The healthcare sector has often been seen as slow to adopt new technologies. Even before the pandemic and the sudden shift to virtual doctor appointments, patient expectations have rapidly evolved, influenced by the service they receive from businesses in other sectors. Meanwhile, doctors and hospitals have found it difficult to keep up.
Of course, it’s crucial that the quality of service doesn’t suffer during any digital transformation a medical practice might choose to undergo. In the past, we’ve put up with this reluctance to embrace technology. However, the times have undoubtedly changed.
Creating a Strong Patient Contact Center
To get a better idea of how a healthcare organization can use Five9 to improve the service provided to its patients or members, both in normal times and during a crisis, let’s take a look at a story involving a character named Steve.
Steve, a 40-year-old consultant, injures his foot in February 2020. He reaches out to his go-to healthcare site, where the Five9 Visual IVR system helps manage his request. Eventually, his chat is directed to Nurse Nancy, who advises him to ice the injury and keep an eye on it for swelling.
A few weeks later, still limping, Steve decides to see a doctor. He calls the hospital and successfully books an appointment using their Intelligent Virtual Agent (IVA). But then March 2020 rolls around, and suddenly in-person appointments are up in the air.
Steve replies to the appointment confirmation text he received, asking if he should still come in. His text is routed to an agent named Mike, who checks Steve’s interaction history and sees the upcoming appointment. Mike calls Steve to discuss his concerns and finds out from a back-office user that Dr. Fuller’s office is still open.
As the pandemic situation worsens, the hospital asks doctors to consider telemedicine for non-emergency cases. Thanks to the Five9 platform, the hospital can easily train doctors to work remotely using telemedicine. Steve receives a notification with instructions for his tele-appointment, and the doctor carries out the virtual consultation, maintaining a HIPAA-compliant, patient-friendly experience.
In a nutshell, we’ve seen how Five9 helped this healthcare provider offer excellent service to patients during regular times, with features like automated appointment scheduling, visual IVR, and chatting with a nurse. We also observed how they could use more advanced Five9 features like proactive communication and video calls during an emergency.
Five9 is well-versed in healthcare. Leading healthcare companies, including those specializing in telemedicine, rely on the Five9 Intelligent Cloud Contact Center platform to deliver exceptional patient experiences.
Discover more about what Five9 can do for healthcare organizations.
Download “Healthcare Anywhere: Deliver Next Generation Healthcare Experiences” to learn how to create connected experiences with patients and members by integrating your cloud contact center with your CRM, UC, and other key systems.