The Key to Fewer Readmissions? Engagement and Education – GUEST BLOG
August 2, 2016 · Julie A. Snow
What is the key to fewer readmissions? The answer has to do with patient engagement and education.
The Key to Fewer Readmissions
Reducing Hospital Patient Readmissions
Raising the quality of patient care is always a priority for healthcare professionals. A patient engagement system can help your hospital achieve this by doing all of the following:
- Setting Expectations Prior to Admission – Better prepare your patients and their families before they step into the hospital by allowing them home access to forms and important information through a web portal.
- Expanding and Streamlining Communication – Patients are able to submit pain levels, view information about their care team, send feedback, and order meals through a device and in real time.
- Educating Patients and Their Families – Automatically prescribe personalized educational videos and activities to be delivered to a device at a suitable level and in a preferred language.
- Providing Distraction Therapy – Help your patients relax with movies, games, relaxation therapies, spiritual content, white noise, and more.
- Managing Details for Nursing and Staff – By automatically updating administrative dashboards with the patient’s current condition, medications, the team’s schedule, where the patient is on reviewing their assigned educational material, and patient questions, the level of care and the patient’s satisfaction can increase dramatically.
Help with Discharge Coordination
Help your patient prepare for and actively participate in the hospital discharge process. By answering their questions and guiding them through the education of their prescriptions, physical therapy needs, and symptoms to watch for, you’ll empower your patients to take charge of their own health.
Follow Up with Patients
Following up with your patients is a very important step in their recovery after a hospital visit.
By improving communication between doctor and patient via video conferencing, a stronger connection can be achieved. Consider how invaluable it is to also give the opportunity for family members who are not able to attend appointments the opportunity to ask their own questions and voice concerns. Educating caregivers is an essential part of decreasing recovery time of patients.
Patients will also feel engaged and informed when they are able to see appointment times and reminders. This gives them a chance to be more fully prepared for meaningful discussions and to be well informed which makes them more likely to make sustainable improvements to their health.
Boost awareness and give information to patients about the hospital’s many other services and departments that play a part in recovery, such as:
- Rehabilitation Centers
- Pharmacies
- Sleep Clinics
- Outpatient Services
With a simplified way to follow up with your patients, you’ll help ensure they get the best care possible.
Not only is this method of utilizing a patient engagement system highly efficient, but it increases patient perception about the attentiveness of their nurses and doctors. By encouraging active patient participation all along the continuum of care, you’re lowering the chance of patient readmission, improving care, and promoting healthy lifestyles.
This is a guest blog by writer and researcher, Julie A. Snow on behalf of Sonifi Health. NCQA accepts guests blogs that are relevant and informative. Contact communications@ncqa.org to learn more about submitting a guest blog.
