Accommodating Patient Communication Needs for Different Populations

Effective communication is essential for providers to deliver quality patient care. However, reaching patients on a channel that is either inaccessible or not preferable can lead to less desirable outcomes.

While it may be challenging to accommodate, considering things like a patient's age, socioeconomic status, and where they live are important factors when deciding how and when to reach a patient.

Below are some examples of how providers can best communicate with difficult-to-reach groups such as young adults, the elderly population, lower-income Medicaid communities, and patients living in rural America with bandwidth constraints.

According to a study by BankMyCell “75% of millennials avoid phone calls as they’re time-consuming”. [1]

Young adults tend to prefer digital communication channels such as texting and email. Providers can accommodate these preferences by offering patient portals that allow secure messaging or integrating email and text messaging platforms into their communication systems.

By offering digital communication channels, practices can not only automate many messages and reminders, but they can give patients the convenience of responding when they’re available.

Opposite to younger adults, the elderly population often prefers face-to-face communication, phone calls, and written communication sent through the mail.

To meet these preferences, practices should complement any in-person visits they may be providing with telehealth services, sending mailers, pamphlets, and important notices.

Using these options, providers are able to connect with patients in a way that reduces friction for having to learn or adapt to new technology.

Underserved Medicaid communities often have limited access to smartphones and the internet. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation “prior to the pandemic, it’s estimated that 13% of Medicaid enrollees did not have internet access in their home and an additional 13% have limited computer access but own a smartphone with some internet capabilities. [2]

Healthcare providers can accommodate these patients by using communication options that don’t require patients to have at-home internet access or a data package on their smartphones.

Channels that providers will typically use for these groups are face-to-face encounters through a community outreach program or using SMS and Phone Calls since neither requires data usage nor knowing an up-to-date address like sending physical mail would.

Unlike the Medicaid Population, rural towns usually have more reliable access to the internet, though they may have bandwidth constraints and limited access to high-speed internet.

Even with access, some considerations similar to Medicaid patients should be made for patients living in rural communities.

Providers can accommodate these patients by using communication channels such as phone calls, text messaging, or through plain-text emails that don’t require an urgent response.

For your business, you may encounter patients that fall into one or many of these groups. However, meeting each of these patients where they’re at through the appropriate channel shouldn’t require your business to have to use many separate tools.

CRMs like Tellescope can help you deliver patient communication and messages across any channel from one unified place. Reach out or fill out the form below to learn more.