A Forbes Advisor survey revealed that 64% of businesses believe artificial intelligence (AI) will help increase their overall productivity. This statistic reinforces the growing confidence out there in AI’s potential to transform business operations. And one sector that’s ready for a much-needed and dramatic change is healthcare. AI is set to change the entire system by making everything more efficient, personalized, and patient-centered. For anyone who’s been through the U.S. healthcare system, you can cue the dance music!
The healthcare system can be, for lack of a better word, a nightmare — with its complex processes and confusing terminology. We've all been there, tasks that should be more simplified, such as paying a medical bill or understanding test results, can be overwhelming. Patients may already be dealing with sensitive health issues and this adds unnecessary stress and worry. Unsurprisingly this often leads to frustration and cynicism with the healthcare system.
Step in AI algorithms that have the capability to process massive quantities of patient data to help predict needs and automate tasks. Ultimately providing highly targeted and timely communication.
So what does this mean for you and I? This would mean less time spent waiting on hold to schedule appointments (👏), deciphering confusing explanations of benefits (EOBs) and medical bills, and improving our patient satisfaction. An example of this in the real world is AI’s ability to help personalize online scheduling by considering past preferences, location, and doctor availability creating a more seamless and personalized experience.
An application already on the market is Zocdoc, which offers AI-powered personalized scheduling solutions that take into account patient preferences and physician availability. Also, HealthTap which uses a pre-appointment patient interview experience, powered by GPT-4, allows doctors to start their virtual visits already aware of a patient's symptoms giving them more time to focus on building the relationship and care. This efficient access to primary care helps alleviate far too common pain points in traditional healthcare facilities.
Leaving a doctor's office feeling more confused than informed is, unfortunately, a pretty normal experience. Doctors, after all, are medical professionals — not communications professionals. With AI, physician offices can help bridge the communication gap between patients and healthcare professionals. By translating complex medical jargon into clear, concise language, AI can help inspire patients to participate actively in their care, ask informed questions, and feel more in control of their health decisions. A practical application of this is HealthTap's AI-driven virtual assistants help simplify medical language for the patient, making giving and receiving health information feel a lot more accessible.
Perhaps the obvious example of AI in healthcare is the ability to automate and optimize administrative tasks such as scheduling, billing, and data management. By implementing comprehensive workflows, the burden on both patients and healthcare providers is reduced. AI solutions like Akasa streamline these tasks, making the healthcare experience smoother for everyone involved.
AI will transform patient interactions — from diagnosis to treatment and follow-up. We already mentioned AI’s capability to process and interrupt data. Add to this a wider range of data, including genetics and social determinants of health, AI allows healthcare providers to create a holistic view of a patient's health and tailor interventions accordingly.
Imagine, if you will, a doctor using AI to understand how a patient's living environment might impact their ability to manage a chronic illness. AI platforms like Google’s DeepMind Health and Tempus are starting to do just that by integrating various data sources to provide comprehensive health insights, thus enabling more personalized and effective interventions. Caveat there are drawbacks such as algorithm bias but as the technology evolves it will hopefully mitigate this risk.
Autonomous, or intelligent, agents represent the next frontier in AI-driven patient engagement. These advanced systems can perform tasks independently and cooperate together, learning and adapting over time to improve their performance. In healthcare, autonomous agents can take on a variety of roles to enhance patient engagement beyond, for example, virtual assistants and chatbots. Autonomous agents can provide:
By leveraging predictive analytics and patient data, agents can anticipate needs and proactively reach out with appointment reminders, medication adherence support, and targeted health information through a patient's preferred communication channels.
Agents can triage patient inquiries based on symptoms or concerns, and intelligently route them to the appropriate level of care (self-service resources, nurse line, emergency services, etc.)
By analyzing consolidated patient data, autonomous agents can provide a 360-degree view of the patient's history and needs. This helps enable personalized insights and care recommendations tailored to the individual.
Autonomous agents can automate routine patient communications like appointment reminders, visit summaries, and follow-up instructions, reducing staff workload while keeping patients engaged.
Agents can enable hospitals, suppliers, payers, and providers to collaboratively develop shared care plans by exchanging data on patient needs, supply/medication requirements, and anticipated demand.
To summarize, AI-driven autonomous agents, with the help of predictive analytics, can enable more proactive, personalized, and convenient engagement for patients across scheduling, education, adherence, and care coordination touchpoints.
One point that needs to be hammered in is that AI is not here to replace human interaction. Healthcare is all about human care. AI is here to enhance healthcare by minimizing administrative burdens and fostering clear communication. AI can help free up valuable time for doctors to focus on what matters most to them — providing this personalized, patient-centered care. As the technology continues to evolve, we should expect even more innovative tools and platforms that empower both patients and healthcare providers, helping to improve health outcomes and transform the healthcare experience.
We are at the forefront of integrating various forms of AI, machine learning, and automation into patient engagement strategies. By leveraging these technologies, Braive helps healthcare providers with the ability to offer continuous, proactive, and highly personalized care, ultimately improving patient acquisition, satisfaction, and health outcomes.
Implementing AI solutions can be challenging for busy healthcare providers, and that's where Braive comes in. We specialize in developing and implementing AI-powered marketing solutions to improve patient engagement. Here’s how we can help:
Use AI to automate scheduling tasks and offer patients convenient online booking options.