Digital Minute: The Digital Front Door and The Empowered Patient
By Walter Reiling, MD, system chief medical information officer, Premier Health; and Mandy Via, system director of access, referral management, and telehealth, Premier Health
The "digital front door" concept continues to rapidly transform health care by revolutionizing how patients access and engage with health care services. The digital front door refers to a sphere of digital tools and platforms that serve as the initial point of interaction between patients and health care providers. It encompasses many technologies, including patient portals, mobile health apps, telehealth, and online appointment scheduling systems. These tools collectively create a seamless, convenient, and user-friendly entry point into the health care system.
Like many other health care organizations, Premier Health patients are quickly adopting the digital front door into their digital toolbox for accessing care. The pandemic fundamentally changed how people use technology to order groceries and household goods and access health care. That evolution continues today and will only continue to evolve. Patients leverage digital tools in all other aspects of life, and they expect the same convenience and timeliness for health care. Patients who were once accustomed to entering physical buildings to obtain care now use telehealth. Through digital channels, they have shifted from passive passengers in their health care journey to engaged drivers. Digital tools empower patients to take an active role in managing their care and communicating with their health care providers. This proactive approach accelerates communication and fosters a sense of ownership and control over one's health journey.
The digital front door also improves the overall patient experience by streamlining administrative processes. Online forms, automated reminders, and digital check-ins reduce the need for paperwork and decrease wait times. This creates efficiencies that benefit the staff by reallocating the time spent on administrative tasks back to patient care.
The digital front door will continue to enhance and accelerate the health care experience by offering convenience, improving patient engagement, creating efficiencies, and expanding access to care. We have seen year-over-year growth of the digital front door and will continue to leverage digital tools and resources to ensure that we meet patients where they are on their health care journey. Our digital front door is integrated along the patient’s continuum of care.
Premier Health’s vision, mission, and values are embedded into our digital front door by being innovative and creating frictionless, accelerated digital entry points that keep patients at the center of our digital compass.
Back to the August 2024 issue of Premier Pulse
