Pediatricians, family doctors and gerontologists alike know that getting people in for preventive care visits can have a big impact on health. Knowing about health risks early can give people time to make lifestyle changes to reduce them. And when health conditions are identified early, people tend to have better options for treatment. Yet Americans get only about half of their recommended preventive care1 – a decision that can leave serious health conditions undiagnosed, lead to diminished treatment options, and significantly increase health care costs.
While clinics have long tried direct mail and outbound calls to increase scheduling, these methods typically don’t drive enough patient behavior to produce the desired ROI. Direct mail is expensive, and calls require a significant amount of staff time. Text messaging, on the other hand, is an easy and affordable way to reach patients via a method they’re already using every day: their smartphones.
With strategic, focused patient communication, ambulatory health care settings can improve preventive care adherence. In fact, some of our CareWire Messenger: Encounter Navigator clients have achieved >50% improvement in their preventive care scheduling rate.
How are they doing it? A big part of the answer involves these three tips:
