It’s Time to Make Patient Engagement Solutions a Part of Healthcare

Patient engagement is widely being touted as an integral aspect of healthcare. So much so that numerous companies have begun pouring money and resources into innovating ways of boosting it. But what is patient engagement?

Patient engagement involves all the activities that increase the interaction between doctors and their patients to enable patients to manage their own health better. In other words, there is greater engagement between doctors and patients which goes a long way in educating patients about making the best decisions to improve their own health. Several studies and research have concluded that patient engagement does improve the overall clinical outcomes.

In light of this, many health tech companies have developed patient engagement solutions in an effort to help boost doctor-patient interaction. Care begins when patients leave the clinic. The actual process of care happens in-between clinical visits. During a consultation, the doctors speak and patients listen and sometimes ask a few questions. But this interaction is mostly one-way. The goal of a good patient engagement platform is to make it more bidirectional and impactful.

The concept of engaging with patients on a regular basis is especially helpful for people suffering from chronic diseases. These illnesses cannot be treated with a single course of medication or a one-time treatment. Over 40% of American adults suffer from at least one chronic disease. The most common examples include diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. People suffering from any of these need continuing treatment coupled with regular visits and follow-ups.