Strong Patient Engagement drives adoption and uptake of any Digital innovation

Involving the patients with their views and input in our Digital Transformation is important for many reasons and we have come up with 6 important reasons, you should consider when leading a digital implementation in healthcare.

1. The patient is the end user of every the overall solution, so our investment depends on the patient buying a working solution. Healthcare does exists to help the citizens in need.

2. Innovations should deliver values to the patient, otherwise the actual implementation will be a straggle.

3. Patients are good barometers, they are coming from various backgrounds and walks of life and they will be very honest when testing and imbedding an innovation.

4. Patient satisfaction and positive feedback is our main success criteria for any Digital health project.

5. Patients are our “free helpers”, when we need to test, market and promote our innovation. Patients are ready “community of followers” to drive adoption and uptake, they can spread the word, encourage the clinicians to use a tool and a system and market it through their friends and family and social media.

6. Your Change management also depends on the patient support. Patients often encourage clinicians to drive adoption and embrace new ways of working.

Most of the Healthcare settings will have PPG (Patient Participation Groups/Reps).

Also is good to consider patients, who will be able to understand the value of the innovation, who possibly will be Digitally mature at a level to communicate the benefits to other fellow patients.

Some care settings like GP practices have very vocal PPG groups, you would find former lawyers, retired clinicians and C level professionals, who will ask good questions and will be able to influence a very powerful and positive way.

How the patients can be involved?

Use patients to create the write the comms material for the projects. How they believe your project needs to be explained.

Ask them to tell you what are the main comms channels in the area, e.g FB group, social events, knitting groups. These are your platforms to “spread the word” tomorrow.

Ask them to test the system and “help” the clinicians understand it. This is really interesting way of clinical and non-clinical staff to be trained.

Ask them to help with the overall Marketing and Promotion to drive adoption and uptake.

Ask them to be speakers at User group, or other events and webinars.

What to do next?

Check what general PPG ( Patient Participation Group)  events and meetings are traditionally set up and how you can get on the agenda;

Schedule PPG meetings and forums as update to every stage of the project;

Prepare a simple deck/presentation or just one page, which you can quickly update depending on the stage and context of the meeting.

Create an open virtual user group (depending on the innovation).

Create an email for feedback and concerns which can collect in one place the Patient voice. Be mindful and appreciative and respond to people.

Use the patients for surveys and questionnaires that may give you more information and tips on how to implement.

Encourage them to test and demonstrate excitement when talking to the clinical, or non-clinical members of staff, involved in the Transformation project.

If you need an implementation advice, or want to share your challenges contact us.