Streamlining the Patient Journey: Post-Visit

It’s tempting to believe that when a patient’s visit has ended, so has their journey, but that’s not true. There is still one more stage in the patient journey that is every bit as important as the other two. Let’s explore the post-visit stage and how you can end your patient’s journey on a positive note.

What does the post-visit stage include?

The post-visit stage includes anything that happens after the conclusion of the patient’s visit. While practices typically focus on securing reimbursement during this stage by submitting clean claims and billing patients for their responsibility, a big part of the post-visit portion of the journey is preserving patient loyalty. This is the time to follow up on the experience and check for patient satisfaction, being sure to correct any issues that may be brought to light. Additionally, during the post-visit stage you will want to keep communication open with your patients to ensure their treatment is effective.

How can you streamline this process?

Streamlining the post-visit process will all you to end your patient’s journey on a positive note, and there are many things you can do to make this experience convenient for your patients.

1. Optimize your patient portal to ensure convenient communication is possible between patients and your practice. Anytime you can eliminate the need for phone calls, do so. Patients should be able to easily ask questions, raise non-urgent concerns, and request refills without having to spend any time on the phone.
2. Implement the ability to accept mobile payments. Today’s patients are used to convenience when it comes to paying their bills. You need the revenue from these payments, and your patients are busy and need an easy way to pay. With mobile payments, patients can pay their medical bills directly from their phone by clicking the link they receive in a text message.
3. eStatements are another important tool in streamlining the post-visit process. Not only does this make receiving statements more efficient for your patients, but it also saves your practice time and money so you can focus on other areas of service for your patients.
4. A common pain point in the post-visit process is referrals. Too often appointments are never secured for specialized care that patients need. This can be a convoluted process that easily falls through the cracks. Implement a referral management solution and make sure your patients get the care they need.
5. Utilize patient satisfaction surveys. Remember, this post-visit time is when you want to gauge your patients’ feelings about their visit and learn what you can do to improve. Build sending a satisfaction survey into your post-visit workflow and make sure that you act on the insights you gain.
6. When patients require follow-up care, make it convenient. This is an excellent time to consider bringing telehealth into the picture if it makes sense for the situation. Whether virtual or in-person, though, make sure that the follow-up is convenient for the patient and respectful of their time.

The post-visit stage of the patient journey is your last chance to make a good impression and satisfy your patient. The attention to providing convenient care should continue all the way until the final balance is paid. Ending this journey on a high note will demonstrate to your patients that you truly value their time and are interested in meeting their needs. This breeds loyalty, which will not only be financially beneficial for your practice, but also allows you to build a solid relationship with your patients that will ultimately create improved health outcomes. The importance of this process is why MicroMD works hard to find solutions that will allow your practice to provide the best possible service throughout the entirety of the patient journey. Interested in learning more?

Check out our Solutions Central page to see how we can help streamline the post-visit stage of the patient journey or call 1-800-624-8832 to speak to a member of our team.