Among all the focus on developing new technologies to aid healthcare providers, most clinicians will tell you the same thing: Healthcare still comes down to patient care and the patient experience. And the folks at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) believe that too, as evidenced by a significant update in the Meaningful Use Stage 1 requirements for 2014, which now include a core objective “to provide patients with ability to view online, download, and transmit health information for all providers.” That’s another way of saying providers now need to provide a patient portal in order to meet Stage 1. Instead of seeing this as yet another burdensome requirement that needs to be met, healthcare organizations should consider it an opportunity to improve communication with their patients. Further, Meaningful Use Stage 2 already has a significant patient engagement element requiring that providers show at least 5 percent of patients are using patient portals to view, download and transmit their health information as well as send secure electronic messages to their provider. While 5 percent may not seem like a lot, those providers who are now pursuing Stage 2 are significantly concerned about reaching those levels of engagement, so having a functional portal required earlier should make it easier to hit the minimum participation rate down the road.

Increases in copayments, deductibles and co-insurance rates over the past 10 years, as well as the increasing use of health savings accounts, have put a much greater emphasis on individuals taking an active role in how they purchase health services. In short, the age of consumerism has finally arrived for healthcare, but a greater question remains: Are healthcare organizations prepared for the patient-as-a-customer, and how do they positively engage these healthcare consumers to choose their practices over others offering the same services in a very competitive market?

It goes without saying; the healthcare industry is experiencing a technological boom. With the push for physicians to take their practice in a digital direction, doctors have been thrust into a new era of patient care. As if the burden to comply with government incentive regulations like Meaningful Use, PQRS, and ICD-10 weren’t enough, physicians are now experiencing increased pressure to jump into the online world of the healthcare social media community.

Elective Surgery physicians are often daunted with the task of competing for new patients. Because elective surgery works on an “opt-in” basis, physicians find themselves having to aggressively market to their target audience. Whether it is done through television, radio, newspaper or online, physicians must actively compete for business in an age where the Internet has made choosing a doctor as simple as online shopping. When a doctor’s marketing tactics pay off in the form of a lead, it is up to the doctor and the staff to close the loop on converting the lead into a new patient.