by Scott Zimmerman There is no question that collecting outstanding balances is a challenging process. Not only is it difficult to allocate time for staff members to repeatedly contact patients to obtain payments, it is also crucial to not alienate patients in the process. However, collecting self-pay balances electronically can take the pressure off staff Read More
Ask The Experts, with Mark Gothberg and Michele Von Dambrowski We have covered strategic marketing and business development subjects for nearly 30 years – with an added focus on Web and digital communications since 1999. A lot has changed during this time, but we have observed recurring issues that have limited the effectiveness of marketers, Read More
by Sheryl S. Jackson User-Friendly, Customizable Program Helps Employers Reduce Healthcare Costs Hospitals and health systems are not the only organizations focused on reducing healthcare costs and improving outcomes. Employers are also concerned about rising insurance costs, along with lost workdays when employees’ medical conditions prevent them from working. Susquehanna Health, a four-hospital integrated system Read More
by Mark S. Gothberg OSF HealthCare is an integrated health system comprised of eight hospitals in north central Illinois. Service lines are structured to serve consumers at every hospital, but the market areas of many of the hospitals overlap. Consequently, hospital service-line marketing efforts are confusing and even frustrating for many consumers, inefficient from a Read More
by Theresa Jacobellis Personal computers, tablets, and smartphones bring a world of information, commerce, and communication to millions of users wherever they may be. Now, this technology is helping healthcare providers overcome the barriers of cost, distance, and inconvenience to deliver checkups and urgent care to people in their homes, places of business, and retail Read More
Ask The Expert, with Ted Balowski With the healthcare Web environment rapidly changing, new technologies are constantly emerging and are being adopted in varying degrees by demographic target groups. Now, four generations have unprecedented access to healthcare information and the providers that deliver it. According to a 2013 survey by Econsultancy, four in 10 global Read More
by Mark S. Gothberg “There is no industry more likely to be affected by analytics in the next five to 10 years than healthcare,” wrote Jeanne Harris, co-author of the seminal book, Competing on Analytics. Kevin Fickenscher, MD, president and CEO of the American Medical Informatics Association, said in the June 17, 2013 issue of Read More
by Kaysha Kalkofen Hummingbird, Google’s new search algorithm introduced at the end of September 2013, has marketers in every industry scratching their heads. According to Google’s search chief, Amit Singhal, Hummingbird is the biggest algorithm change since 2001. Hummingbird pulls from different data points so that search results are more refined and conversationally sequential. It Read More
by Mark S. Gothberg “Four years ago our administration looked at our online presence and urged us to do more, to learn as much as we could and try different things,” says Doreen Pichotti, senior marketing analyst at UC Davis Health System, which serves the greater Sacramento, CA, area. “Since then, our online advertising as Read More
Texas Health Resources – Well-Being www.texashealth.org/well-being Organizations increasingly promote community health, although those efforts usually focus on disease prevention and identification/treatment. This special section takes on the broad and important area of overall well-being, and tackles the job nicely. The site consists of two parts. One part addresses the dimensions of well-being: healthy behaviors, emotional Read More
Productivity Apps That Are Fun For many, a key 2014 New Year’s resolution is to become more productive. An app can assist while also offering some fun along the way. The Any.do app is a simple list maker with all the tasks people require, such as setting priorities, establishing reminders, and getting a push each Read More
WEBSITES Unique Features Added to Redesigned www.Pain.com. When a 3-D spinning model called PIP (Person in Pain) is clicked, red squares appear on different areas of the body. Visitors who hover over a square will find a callout that features a selection of articles on the pain problem. A click brings up the article of Read More
RESOURCES New Public HCAHPS Scorecard introduced by Professional Research Consultants. Although it utilizes the national HCAHPS database, this tool is more user-friendly than the federal government’s Hospital Compare site and allows for direct comparisons of multiple hospitals. It also includes Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) Incentive rates. The company’s clients can get an additional tool called VBP Read More
Games to Make Exercising More Fun We all know how important it is to spend time at the gym staying fit, but would we call this time fun? Some smartphone apps can turn exercising into a game and make the experience more enjoyable. With Fitocracy, users get points based on specific exercises and their intensity Read More
by Diane Atwood Imagine for a moment that just the thought of going to an event and meeting new people causes such intense anxiety you feel as if you might be having a heart attack. Such a reaction is usually caused by a form of social anxiety – a fairly common phenomenon. Xenodu, a company Read More
Virtual Tours Checking out healthcare facilities in person is difficult and at best limited. Virtual tours fill this important role and have the advantage of providing details that a tour guide might not give. The three reviewed organizations all offer virtual tours that provide full-screen viewing, 360-degree rotation with click and drag, a zoom function, Read More
Ask The Expert, with Mark S. Gothberg Winners of the 2013 eHealthcare Leadership Awards, the competition’s 14th year, were recognized in November in New Orleans during a presentation at a healthcare Internet conference sponsored by Atlanta-based Greystone.Net. The November issue of eHealthcare Strategy & Trends listed the winners. Last month’s “Ask the Expert” column discussed Read More
by Cheryl Haas Nationwide Children’s Hospital, located in Columbus, OH, is one of America’s leading providers of pediatric care and serves a 32-county area in south central Ohio. Much of that area encompasses rural communities where the barriers to accessing public health are significant. Issues such as reliable transportation, babysitting services, and time to travel Read More
by Julie Pelaez and Dagmara Scalise As a hospital marketer, you might have had this scenario play out in your head: Droves of new patients show up at your hospital simply because they know it offers them exactly what they need. And you didn’t even have to tell them about it! Instead, someone they trust, Read More
Help Finding Things If you lose or misplace your belongings, apps can help you find them. Place an electronic tag on your wallet, car keys, or anything else that tends to disappear regularly and you can locate it with a smartphone app. The tag sends a signal up to 150 feet. If you believe a Read More
Gundersen Health System Provider websites have come a long way since I started reviewing them 14 years ago. But with some exceptions, interactive functions remain underutilized. This site for a Wisconsin system is one of those exceptions. A click on the Health & Wellness link brings visitors to a page where they can access numerous Read More
WEBSITES/MOBILE APPLICATIONS Free Messaging Platform Introduced to Improve Medication Adherence. Care4Today Mobile Health Manager 2.0, which also works on a website, sends out reminders on scheduled medications to be taken and prompts a response from users that is recorded in an adherence report. Caregivers can link family members to their account. Go to www.care4today.com. Hospital Read More
Ask The Expert, with Mark S. Gothberg Key provisions of the Affordable Care Act will be in full force on January 1 – less than two months away. Millions of newly insured consumers will be seeking health services, with many of them having limited knowledge of how the healthcare system works or the providers serving Read More
by Lannie Byrd Throughout the past decade, hospitals have put a lot of effort into improving the overall patient experience. Private rooms. Flat-screen TVs. Wireless Internet. Chef-prepared meals. High thread-count sheets. An overall emphasis on customer service. However, a healthcare institution’s digital platform touches patients throughout their healthcare experience, from searching for a physician to Read More
by Theresa Jacobellis As the American healthcare system is reformed, greater emphasis is being placed on wellness and prevention. Savvy providers are harnessing mobile technology to empower patients to be more engaged in their own healthcare, with the potential to improve treatment compliance, enhance outcomes, and even maximize reimbursements by reducing readmissions. Earlier this year, Read More