Will you succeed or die in digital America?

That is the question the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) report, “Digital America: A Tale of the Haves and Have-Mores”, poses to all sectors of the American economy.

Looking at it through the lens of American healthcare—to tease out a road map for the business of healthcare—the report provides a compelling argument for aggressive hospital digitalization with the following key points:

We discussed in an earlier post that information found on social media affects the way more than 40% of consumers deal with their health. But did you know that healthcare social media content also helps attract patients to your hospital and encourages them to return in the future?

Patients are increasingly becoming savvy healthcare consumers, shopping for hospitals the way they do other items online. They are looking for a concierge experience that combines the best care, accessible doctors, friendly nurses and amenities like private rooms and hotel-quality food. In patients’ minds, all of those items factor into a positive hospital experience.

Your patients are looking for educational resources online.

In fact, about 7 out of 10 (72%) of adult Internet users say they have searched online for information about a range of health issues—especially specific diseases—according to Pew’s The Social Life of Health Information. 

A few weeks ago, we shared a blog post about Choosing the Right Patient Education Systems for the changing digital healthcare environment. We wrote about how the first step in an effective plan for real patient education or engagement is finding patient education systems that will help you connect with patients digitally—right where they are—online. 

Now that you understand the need to connect with patients digitally about their health, your next question is probably, “Who has the time?” That’s where APIs come in.

 

Patient education is no longer just what you want to do—it's what you need to do.

Consider that:

• Healthcare spending is out of control.
• Patients forget 80–90% of what they learn at doctors' appointments.
• ACA mandates that you go digital. 

But how do you choose the right patient education systems? There are so many tools that claim to provide patient engagement. How do you find the one that meets your hospital's needs? Here are a few things to look for.