Healthcare is a sensitive topic for a lot of Americans. It’s become top of mind for many who have seen loved ones sick.
We all want to be healthier and have a better quality of life. Still, unfortunately, customer service in healthcare has one of the worst reputations, and people want to veto the experience altogether.
While doctors, nurses, and all healthcare support staff are busy trying to save lives, it’s no secret they are overworked, and the priority in the patient experience can fall to the bottom of their preferences. It is often a thankless job, but fortunately, there is an opportunity to serve the community in an outstanding way that your competitors lack. See here for more details.
Why Customer Service in Healthcare Is Important
Keeping up-to-date with the latest medical advances has always been a priority for the healthcare industry. Still, new technology and the opportunity to improve the administration and patient experience can stay caught up. With lives on the line, it’s almost a no-brainer where to invest when trying to allocate limited resources.
However, the latest consumer trends and research make the lack of customer experience impossible to ignore. Healthcare is contending with evolving patient demands. People want more out of their experiences. Personalized experiences have become the norm in industries like retail and hospitality. According to research conducted by SalesForce, 69% of consumers say one extraordinary customer experience raises their expectations of other companies, and 57% of Americans say the healthcare industry cares more about their own needs than the patient’s needs.
Younger generations prioritize a better quality of life and are not afraid to go elsewhere to get treated the best. In the same Salesforce survey, 83% of millennials wanted a mobile app for health coaching, and 79% wanted 24/7 text messaging abilities. Compared with other generations, they are mainly accustomed to having their needs met in a personalized way, and their customer experience in healthcare has been incredibly jarring.
Common Patient Complaints
Healthcare administration staff might be surprised that patients dealing with unfriendly staff are not the number one complaint. Although a rude receptionist can sway their entire experience at the clinic or hospital, the biggest complaints are scheduling difficulties, waiting too long, and confusion with insurance and billing. Unsatisfied patients did rank high in feeling like they weren’t heard and did not think they had enough time with the doctor, but it wasn’t the most outstanding problem.
This provides some good news for those in healthcare. A lot of the problems can be fixed with automation and technology. By hiring additional chat support staff, which tends to be cheaper than hiring in-person personnel, you can also quickly address issues and customer scheduling concerns that can be done outside of the office and in the comfort of the patient’s home.
How to Provide Excellent Customer Service in Healthcare
A patient-centric approach is critical to transforming the overall customer experience. People want a seamless experience, which can be provided to patients by offering various communication touchpoints. You might think good service begins with the people, and you’re not wrong. However, setting up good tools and efficient systems will only make the training process more accessible and more scalable.
In the end, people want to feel like they matter and that their concerns are heard. Doctors have limited time, which offers an excellent opportunity for customer service staff to thrive. By having suitable systems and processes in place, you can collect patient feedback and address it promptly.
Kustomer: The Healthcare Customer Service Solution for You
Kustomer helps the healthcare industry and its patients in several ways. First and foremost is keeping up-to-date with HIPAA compliance so that patient data is safe and secure.
Using AI, Kustomer automates manual tasks, routes conversations, and answers commonly asked patient questions to help people self-serve before talking to customer service.
Kustomer has developed a handy guide that outlines what consumers expect from the patient experience here. With a survey of over 550 US-based participants, Kustomer uncovered that 79% of individuals say service is essential when deciding where to do business. In the guide, you’ll learn how to drive more revenue through prioritizing the patient experience.
If you’re interested in requesting a demo or would like to know more about how Kustomer helps those in the healthcare industry, find more information here.
