News

Research: Healthcare patients want more self-service

April 5, 2009

DAYTON, Ohio — According to a survey of U.S. and Canadian consumers commissioned by NCR Corp., patients are growing increasingly frustrated with long waits at doctors' offices and hospitals and are looking to self-service technology as a way to help expedite these interactions.

The annual research study reveals that 74 percent of patients find waiting at a hospital or doctor's office the greatest frustration at a healthcare appointment. In addition, respondents indicated they are inconvenienced by the time and effort required to schedule appointments, pay medical bills and complete paper forms, and they would like to spend less time on these activities.

"Patients desire greater control over their care, and that includes the way they interact with their providers," said Raj Toleti, vice president and general manager for NCR Healthcare and Public Sector. "In today's consumer-directed healthcare environment, hospitals and clinics have an opportunity to increase overall satisfaction and strengthen patient loyalty by leveraging self-service as a way to make everyday interactions faster and easier."

The research findings, unveiled at this year's HIMSS Annual Conference and Exhibition, clearly indicate that patients also want better access to information about their care and are more likely to choose providers that offer multichannel solutions to help them manage associated tasks:

• 62 percent of consumers are more likely to choose a healthcare provider that offers the flexibility to interact via online, mobile and kiosk self-service channels versus a provider that does not.
• 53 percent of consumers expressed interest in booking or changing medical appointments online, through a mobile device or at a kiosk and receiving text message reminders of an appointment.
• 49 percent of consumers said the ability to book an appointment online would be convenient to them.
• 49 percent consumers said the ability to securely receive lab results online would be convenient them.

"As healthcare providers move to implement electronic health records, self-service will become even more widespread," Toleti added. "Automating patient interactions not only addresses consumer demand, it serves as the entry point for electronic record keeping."

According to NCR, more than four million patients have checked in for medical appointments using self-service technology, resulting in time savings of up to 10 minutes per encounter. In addition, healthcare providers utilizing NCR MediKiosk have seen copayment collection increase by up to 40 percent and insurance claim denials decrease by up to 36 percent. Adopting self-service also can reduce the costs associated with paper-based forms by up to 90 percent and free up staff to focus on patient needs, which can help lead to increased patient satisfaction.