Patient comms templates for healthcare providers using a portal messenger

What is a patient portal and how is it used in healthcare?

Patient portals are an excellent way for patients to engage with your healthcare services, and allow them to play a larger managerial role in their health journey. Not only this, but patient portals alleviate stress on your end, as it lessens the load of business processing with many health features being automated and relatively self-sufficient. With a patient portal, you can stay connected through video consulting and messaging services that can also be answered at your own pace. Patient portals allow patients to book appointments in accordance with their own schedules, and with free reminder software, you can reduce no-shows and late cancellations, saving you time and money. Clients can also view and assess their medical history to ensure personal details are up-to-date and accurate, as well as any outstanding payments. They’re a great option, as business transactions are much faster with online payment systems, and all clinical documents can be stored and accessed from one place! 

How do portal message templates work?

When a portal user sends you a message using a template, the results will show up in the portal message. Typically, a patient will fill out a template within the portal, and your practice will receive the message with the essential information. You can choose who has access to these messages, and clients can choose the templates to send messages that are to the point and convey critical details. For example, clients can choose to send messages concerning appointment, referral, or medication refill requests, with customizable options meaning that they can easily be edited at any time. 

Patient communication templates for healthcare providers

There are many ways you can use patient portal templates to organize and streamline your healthcare information, and to ensure that patients are able to receive and send details helpful to their treatment. We have included some of the basic field types that you can use for patient portal message templates, with these being the following:

1. Medication allergies - This contains a bulleted list of the patient’s medication allergies, as well as having buttons for the user to verify and confirm their allergies to allow for up-to-date information. If the patient needs to update information, they can enter the comments manually through an entry field. This way, patients can manage their own medical information without you having to continuously chase up information!
2. Medication refills - There will be a checklist of active medications from the patient’s medication history for the user to select from, and the patient can check specific medications that they want to be refilled. This does not mean prescriptions will be automatically granted, but through portal messaging, patients can easily make requests. A prescriber will have to manually create the refill if the health practitioner allows this. 
3. Appointment request - The patient can easily create a message requesting an appointment, particularly if your appointment booking system is not streamlined online, and patients don’t have an option to book themselves. This way you can easily communicate over a time that suits them, and whether the appointment is appropriate to their healthcare goals. 
4. Appointment date and location - Patient portal messages often need to have a calendar selection tool to include the right date. Occasionally, this may be included by default, but there should be one. As for location, this should also be automatically included, but if not, there needs to be a drop-down field that encompasses all of your practice’s scheduling locations. 
5. Provider list - There also needs to be a drop-down field containing a list of all the providers, specialists, and clinicians within your practice. This way, you can ensure that patients are sending messages to the right individuals, and that all of your eligible staff are able to receive messages. This makes communication much easier, and much more clarified. 

Things to consider while adding text messaging solutions

To maximize efficiency and effectiveness when using text messaging solutions, there are various factors that you should consider before diving into its services. To drive your business towards success, it is best to examine the following:

1. Have different options - Before you begin, ensure that you have other options besides text messaging. While it is super convenient, it is important to realize that it's not the preferred mode of communication for all patients. 
2. Establish policies - It is important that you develop internal and external policies that are compliant with local laws and regulations, as you don’t want to run into trouble, which can rack up severe costs. Being HIPAA compliant is a must, so it is important that you understand privacy and security laws. 
3. Partnership is key - Text messaging can be used alongside other options to complement their services, and boost their effectiveness. For instance, you could add text message appointment confirmations in addition to emails, as they are more likely to be read. 

Effective ways to start using SMS in your practice

Text messaging, or SMS services, are a great, versatile way to enhance your healthcare business practice. They have many uses, including some that you may not have expected!

1. Appointment reminders - Perhaps the most obvious, appointment reminders are an effective way to reduce no-shows by up to 99%, which is brilliant at minimizing no-shows. No-shows can be very costly for businesses, causing losses of around $1000 per week, and so avoiding this is always welcome. Patients can receive reminders of upcoming appointments, and at any time you specify. 
2. Emergency notifications - Especially within COVID times, text messages are a great way to inform patients about any change in conditions, such as increased distancing measures, or how to access your facility upon arrival.
3. Educate - Text messaging can be a great way to promote health awareness, and to encourage patients to come and visit for a check-up on particularly concerning issues. 
4. Scheduling - When it comes to your staff, messaging is also a great channel for you to confirm shifts, and easily communicate when one needs to be filled. They can also be used for meeting reminders, and for follow-up business information. 

Further reading:

• eHealth Partnered Evaluation Initiative
• Patient portal messaging for care coordination: a qualitative study of perspectives of experienced users with chronic conditions