Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/898852
85 Executive Briefing Sponsored by: To Keep Patients From Leaving, Remember Why They Stay W hat is your organization doing to keep patients coming back? As a recent study conducted by NRC Health Market Insights shows, probably not enough. The study found that 48% of customers feel frustrated with their current healthcare providers. One in three would switch providers right now, if they could find an affordable alternative. Even more conservative industry estimates of 7-10% customer attrition represents as much as $100 million in lost revenue opportunity per hospital. Shocking as these figures may be, they are part of a larger trend. The creation and sustainability of loyalty is a problem that has bedeviled the healthcare industry for years. Solving it will require a new commitment to understanding how consumers approach their care. The frugal—and fickle—healthcare consumer A patient is earned by an election of trust. We know that patients don't return when providers break that trust, or fail to live up to their expectations. Two concurrent trends have driven these expectations higher than many organizations are prepared to manage. 1. A surge in out-of-pocket costs The Kaiser Family Foundation reports that over the past two decades, the cost burden associated with healthcare has shifted. Regulatory changes and price inflation have foisted a large share of the financial load directly onto the consumer. Previously, insurers or government programs assumed more responsibility for costs, and consumers didn't apply as much scrutiny to their care options. But now, because their money is at stake, consumers pay keen attention to the value they receive. They demand high-quality care, ease of access, and high-end amenities, all at a reasonable rate. These high standards put immense pressure on providers to continuously improve their operations. If patients can't find a good value with their current provider, they'll look for it somewhere else. The second trend simplifies the process by which patients seek out these alternative options. 2. Digital empowerment Technology has permanently transformed the way patients pursue care. Specifically, the Internet has allowed for unprecedented levels of transparency and choice. These changes have already revolutionized several industries, and healthcare is finally following suit. Accustomed to quick and convenient comparisons of hotels and restaurants, consumers have begun to expect the same from healthcare providers. Consumers now understand that if their current provider disappoints their expectations, they have a wealth of choices at their disposal. This makes it easy for them to simply walk away from care experiences that present them with difficulties, frustration, or confusion. Loyalty growth opportunity remains. Are you missing it? Healthcare leaders can be encouraged by another important fact revealed by the Market Insights study: consumers prefer to be loyal. According to the study, 58% of consumers say they'd prefer to receive all of their care from just one health brand. A comprehensive range of healthcare services, convenient (if not preferred) access, consistency of experience, and seamless personal health information sharing are all elements associated with consumer-friendly health systems. Consumers don't want to take a piecemeal approach to their health, or to fret about network coverage or referral pathways. They want streamlined, full-service care from one health brand, and they want to feel authentic engagement with that brand throughout their daily lives. If consumers actually crave loyalty to health brands, then why do providers fail to create strong bonds with them? The answer may lie, in part, in misguided marketing analysis. A holistic view of loyalty resists simple measurement. Retention data does not tell the complete story. Consumer loyalty, after all, is as much about relationships as it is about volumes and revenue. This subjective, emotional side of loyalty has proven difficult for providers to track and quantify. Historically, healthcare leaders have relied on a proxy that they can measure: the positive patient experience. One in three patients would switch providers right now, if they could find an affordable alternative. 58% of consumers say they'd prefer to receive all of their care from just one health brand. By Brian Wynne, General Manager, NRC Health