Call Centers

How Can Health Care Organizations Bridge the Digital Divide?

David Grandy, national vice president, innovation for Kaiser Permanente

For most Americans, expansion of digital health care at hospitals and health systems across the nation has improved the patient experience and medical outcomes. But for individuals unable to access broadband internet service or lacking ability or desire to use web-based tools, modern medicine’s benefits are beyond their grasp. Innovators at California-based Kaiser Permanente (KP) Read More

How to Stand Out in a Crowded Market? Lessons From Emory Healthcare’s Rebranding Success

Amy Comeau, vice president of marketing, Emory Healthcare

Emory Healthcare’s rebranding initiatives enable the health system to stand out in Atlanta’s crowded market. Emory’s success should serve as an example for other hospitals and health systems looking to develop a successful rebranding strategy and drive growth. There are hospitals and health systems with reputations verging on veneration. But for all the world-renowned research Read More

Cleveland Clinic Reshapes Patient Access Through Process Improvement

lisa-yerian-squared

Continuous improvement of patient access is an enterprise-wide initiative, deeply embedded in and supported by the culture, and now reflected in every patient touchpoint, beginning with how patients start looking for care. Providing start-to-finish patient care — whether it’s scheduling a patient’s appointment with the right provider, providing directions to the care facility, or determining Read More

Health Care “Sherpas” Guide Patients Through Complex Care at Cleveland Clinic

Cheryl L. Serra

Continuous improvement of patient access is an enterprise-wide initiative, deeply embedded in and supported by the culture, and now reflected in every patient touchpoint, beginning with how patients start looking for care. // By Cheryl L. Serra // Providing start-to-finish patient care — whether it’s scheduling a patient’s appointment with the right provider, providing directions Read More

Expanding Access to Health Care in the Face of Provider Shortages

Cheryl L. Serra

By using technology and expanding the care team, Renown Health is increasing capacity and giving patients more ways to access health care. // By Cheryl L. Serra // Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno, Nevada is a 650-bed facility and the region’s only Level II Trauma Center. Renown serves over a million people across 100,000 Read More

Options for Achieving the Strategic and Operational Imperatives of Call Centers

Yuriy Kotlyar is co-founder and CEO of American Health Connection

Marketing leaders understand the strategic importance of call centers. High-quality call centers build patient loyalty and drive increased provider utilization rates. Which option is best? // By Yuriy Kotlyar // The explosion of digital health tools for communicating with patients can make call centers seem like yesterday’s news. Of course, experience shows health care marketing Read More

AI an Essential Tool in Managing Vaccine-Related Call Influx

Houston Methodist

If you’ve called any business in the past 18 months, you’ve probably heard a cheerful robotic voice apologizing for the hold every 30-60 seconds due to “unusually high call volume.” In some industries, call volume to call centers jumped over 600 percent from normal levels, while agent call capacity dropped by 20 percent, according to Read More

COVID Has Heightened the Importance of the Customer Experience

Charlene Li, bestselling author and expert on digital transformation, leadership, and customer experience

The pandemic forced massive change on the world in a very short space of time. The health care industry shouldered its share of the disruption — and benefited from it, as provider organizations found new ways to safely connect with patients and deliver care. “Change and disruption can be an incredibly positive force in our Read More

Leading Change Within Organizations: Why Disruption Is a Good Thing

DignityHealth

// By Jane Weber Brubaker // Health care has largely focused on disruption as a threat coming from outside the industry. The author of The Disruption Mindset turns that notion around, challenging companies to lead disruption from within. The pandemic forced massive change on the world in a very short space of time. The health Read More

The Best Strategies Start with Unsexy Assessments

Mildren-Sally-Boss-Lady

// By Sally Mildren // Our newest contributor, the CEO of Boss Lady Consulting, shares six insights about why a clear, well-developed strategy is the key to driving the results your organization is looking for. Strategy comes first — then tactics. How many times have leaders in marketing and patient success been asked to drive Read More

Health Systems Look Outside the Industry to Up Their Digital Marketing Game

Jim Nilson, senior director, digital marketing at UC Health

// By Jim Samuel // There is a common thought among health care marketers that the business lags years behind other industries regarding digital marketing and meeting consumer needs. Two health systems have brought in marketing executives from Disney and higher education to help them catch up. If you have been paying attention for the Read More

Why Consistency at Your Call Center Is so Important

Rachel Donovan, managing director, enterprise marketing strategy, Nemours Children’s Health System

Google is often the place people look first when seeking health information online. Assuming your health care system has done all the right things to optimize discoverability, the patient’s next step is to access care, most often by making a phone call. That first impression determines the course for a potentially long-term relationship. For a Read More

Is Your Call Center Creating Loyal Customers?

Marcia Simon

// By Marcia Simon, APR // Google is often the place people look first when seeking health information online. Assuming your health care system has done all the right things to optimize discoverability, the patient’s next step is to access care, most often by making a phone call. That first impression determines the course for Read More

Understanding the People Behind the Data Helps Drive Engagement

Brent Morris, CEO of NDP

“If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it” is the motto at Richmond-based NDP. Last year, the full-service marketing and advertising agency added a media planning division — Neathawk360. As the name implies, this new service embraces a 360-degree approach to the many and diverse forms of media that can impact a consumer’s engagement Read More

Taking a Data-Driven Approach to Health Care Marketing

Wendy Stark Healy

// By Wendy Stark Healy // “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it” is the motto at Richmond-based NDP. Last year, the full-service marketing and advertising agency added a media planning division — Neathawk360. As the name implies, this new service embraces a 360-degree approach to the many and diverse forms of media Read More

Call Center Informs and Reassures During COVID-19 Crisis

Christian Pettker, MD, associate chief quality officer, Yale Medicine

Crisis management is a standard part of hospital communication preparedness, but who could ever have anticipated the coronavirus pandemic? How do you communicate to your community and patients about a pandemic when nobody anywhere has all the answers? Yale New Haven Health clinicians and ancillary staff quickly came together, launching a call center to handle Read More

Digital Front Door Boosts Google Click-Throughs

Alexandra Morehouse, chief marketing officer at Banner Health

“Health care has lagged behind other areas such as financial services or retail in the use of technology to provide a single, consistent customer experience,” says Alexandra Morehouse, chief marketing officer at Banner Health, a nonprofit health system based in Phoenix, Arizona that operates 28 hospitals and several specialized facilities across six states. Morehouse’s background Read More

Banner Health’s Digital Front Door Creates Seamless Patient Experience

Sheryl S. Jackson

View from the C-Suite, with Alexandra Morehouse, Chief Marketing Officer, Banner Health // By Sheryl S. Jackson // When it comes to the use of technology to enhance the customer experience, Amazon is widely recognized as the company that is constantly raising the bar for everyone else. “Health care has lagged behind other areas such Read More

Your Call Center Is a Key Part of the Customer Experience

Kristen Bishop, associate director at Brandtrust

Does your contact center delight patients and uphold the promise your health care organization makes to them? Or is it a pain point with long wait times, less than empathetic associates, and questions not answered? Kristen Bishop, associate director at Brandtrust, a Chicago-based market research and branding strategy firm, recently discussed strategies to improve the Read More

Is Your Call Center Aligned with Your Brand Promise?

Wendy Stark Healy

// By Wendy Stark Healy // It’s essential to understand the emotional aspects of a patient’s interaction with a contact center, as people ultimately make decisions based on their feelings. Does your contact center delight patients and uphold the promise your health care organization makes to them? Or is it a pain point with long Read More