SOLUTION PROVIDER Q&A Architecting the Patient Experience for
the Empowered Healthcare Consumer A conversation with Laura Anderson of Change Healthcare
How would you define the patient experience in the context of the
current U.S. healthcare market? The patient experience in the current U.S. healthcare market is fragmented and incon- sistent. The experiences that some consum- ers have can be vastly different from that of others based on myriad factors, such as the pandemic, socioeconomic conditions, and whether an individual has health insurance. Our challenge in healthcare technology today is to overcome these factors and ensure all patients have a positive experience.
What kinds of strategies should CIOs and other health IT leaders be pursuing in order to lay the IT and strategic foundations for an architecture
of the patient experience? It is essential to have a thoughtful and grad- ual strategy when laying the IT foundation for a positive patient experience. I recom- mend CIOs and other health IT leaders con- sider a “crawl, walk, run” strategy. Leaders shouldn’t be afraid to start small and ask questions such as “What kind of technology platform are we going to use?” and “How are we going to make this customer-centric?” In these early stages, it’s vital that organiza- tions think about how they can make the healthcare experience all about the patient. Leaders should also consider how their
strategy is scalable, flexible, and seamless for the user. They should ensure that their strategy truly helps shepherd patients through the healthcare ecosystem. This will not only improve the experience for the patient but also better the experience for the healthcare provider.
What are the biggest challenges—technological, process, operational, and policy—to address and master in order to architect a
progressive patient experience? Like the market itself, technology choices are very fragmented when determining patient experience, vendors, and solutions. When making these decisions, it’s critical that the patient-experience strategy align with the enterprisewide digital strategy. This will ensure that health IT leaders are staying
true to their primary goals and working together with various departments— from marketing to finance to operations— to gain buy-in and support.
What are the biggest areas of opportunity in this area and what are the most pioneering patient-
care organizations doing right? Data shows that one in three patients would switch providers based on a more positive patient experience. This means that building patient loyalty isn’t the same as it was 10 years ago. Providers today have to prioritize and build a healthcare experience around the patient journey. With the patient journey in mind, one of the biggest opportunities for a progressive patient experience is to develop an enter- prisewide strategy that is end to end and holistic. No matter the number of vendors an organization partners with for their digital needs, the focus should be on a transparent, seamless patient experience from pre-visit all the way through post-visit. The pioneers of patient care are really acting on this principle and putting the customer in the middle of their strategies. They are using design thinking concepts to listen to what the customer wants and building strategies around those desires. Some organizations are using cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence to look at social determinants of health, family size, transportation needs, facility, location, and more. With this information, organizations can design workflows and technology strate- gies around the patient and what they need as they go through the healthcare system.
How will the landscape around the patient experience evolve forward in the next several years?
I expect we will see that the most successful patient-experience vendors continue to take an EMR vendor-agnostic approach that gives their customers choices to help them get more out of either EMR investment. Over the next few years, API integration will continue to increase, and it will become essential that vendors allow each other to plug and play into their capabilities to give the healthcare organization the ability to cre- ate that seamless, holistic platform.
Laura Anderson
Senior Vice President/ Chief Product Officer, RCM Change Healthcare
Laura Anderson is senior vice president chief product officer, RCM Product Management for Change Healthcare. As a member of the senior leadership team, she focuses on inspiring a better healthcare system through data-driven revenue cycle management solu- tions that accelerate healthcare’s transition to value-based care. Ms. Anderson has more than 25 years’ experience in delivering effective revenue cycle optimization strategies. Prior to her work at Change Healthcare, Ms. Anderson’s previous roles included vice president, prod- uct management for Optum360; a variety of product-management leadership roles at NextGen Healthcare; director, product marketing at Precyse Solutions; and clinical marketing and project management positions at Siemens Healthcare. At NextGen, Ms. Anderson was selected to join the company’s High Performing Program, a leadership-development program identifying the organization’s next genera- tion of leaders. She has also been honored with numerous recognitions throughout her career, including four merit awards and a VIP recognition in 2014 from the National Association of Professional Women, the largest and most recognized networking association connecting successful women executives, professionals, and entrepreneurs in the country. Ms. Anderson holds a degree in English
literature and business communications from Bowling Green State University in Ohio and is certified in pragmatic marketing.
Sponsored Content
www.changehealthcare.com SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 |
hcinnovationgroup.com 11
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32
