The Path to Value-Based Care through Patient Engagement

The healthcare landscape is undergoing a significant transformation towards value-based care, focusing on the outcome rather than the volume of services. While this shift holds providers accountable for results, it also allows for more patient-centric care. However, despite the benefits, there is no comprehensive guidebook for success in this transition.

Patient engagement plays a crucial role in the success of value-based care. Empowering patients from the beginning, even before actual care interactions, is essential. Pre-care self-service capabilities, including access to medical information and telehealth services, grant patients control over their care journey. This empowerment encourages proactive involvement, leading patients to become active partners in their health journey.

At the point of care, effective rounding programs, both nurse-led and digital, enable health systems to understand in-the-moment issues and act on them. This process facilitates patient feedback, improving overall hospital experiences and satisfaction metrics. The continuous feedback loop allows for timely service recovery and informs systemic changes, ensuring ongoing improvement in patient-centered care.

Post-discharge outreach and education are critical for patients' continued recovery. Discharge readiness rounds and automated outreach post-discharge help bridge the gap between hospital care and at-home recovery. This approach includes patient education, screening for adherence to discharge instructions, and addressing any barriers to healthcare adherence. Continuous support reinforces trust, leading to better adherence to care plans and improved outcomes.

Patient outreach is more than reminders; it's about building a meaningful relationship. Conversational context, driven by authentic, data-driven understanding, optimizes every patient interaction. Leveraging AI functionality allows providers to tailor patient engagement strategies to individual needs. A flexible, intelligent, continuum-wide approach puts the patient at the center, turning them into active participants in their health journey.

Joy Avery, SVP of Clinical Strategy at CipherHealth, emphasizes the importance of patient engagement. With 37 years of expertise in clinical practice, healthcare operations, and command centers, she advocates for placing the patient at the center of care, improving outcomes and access across the care continuum.