Collaborating with the Entire Care Team
Health care organizations and providers are faced with complex challenges regarding patient navigation in the workplace daily. Proper case management and care coordination are integral to establish a comprehensive care plan for patients. For this process to be successful it is important for providers to engage in collaborative strategies when working on a patient’s healthcare journey. Care team collaboration can only be successful with efficient communication systems and strategies. Proper communication matters between all players in a healthcare team to ensure the safety and wellbeing of a patient which is why a better and faster way for clinicians to communicate with each other and their patients is important.
The importance of care team collaboration
There are many benefits of collaborative care for providers as well as patients. This mutual relationship has been proven to improve quality of care, patient outcomes, satisfaction, and reduce health care costs. Collaborative care builds better communication because when healthcare providers work independently, vital patient information is often lost in translation. Gaps in care coordination are critical to the patient’s health because providers are not able to treat their patients properly. Instead of the patient going to multiple providers for different treatments, the patients would have a team working together to provide the best care. Through this, the chances of misdiagnosis decrease. A patient is also less likely to be readmitted saving the care team and the patient from unnecessary stress and costs.
The cost of an inefficient care team
In terms of medical care cost, proper and efficient patient care navigation can increase the quality of health care while drastically decreasing costs. Health care team communication can strongly impact a patient’s care delivery. When a patient sees different providers, the unnecessary repetition of diagnostic or personal questions and changes to treatment plans can reflect poor care coordination. Improving healthcare team collaboration through proper communication can decrease inefficiencies in care coordination. An inefficient care team has an estimated $4.6 million financial impact for the average 500-bed hospital. Today, health systems rely on patient navigation teams to reduce hospitalizations and unnecessary services for patients resulting in millions in annual savings. A proper digital patient navigation software opens the door to similar cost-saving opportunities. Health care providers and organizations must plan for the future of quality care by utilizing digital resources created for the goal of more efficient care for patients.
The benefits of digital systems
Health care teams can collaborate more efficiently through a digital system. Unstructured communication through the use of paper notes, voice mail, and other means restricts timely communication and proper collaboration. Digital networks can make communication more robust to strengthen the interaction between team members as well as with their patients. Although many healthcare teams have some sort of digital system, at times they don’t have the capacity for communication between the care team as well as their patients. A more unified digital network that fosters a holistic collaboration can make sure everyone is on the same page. The importance of engaging patients, as well as their multiple providers in collaborative care plans, is crucial to improve patient navigation. It is also often difficult for health providers to find the time and tools to successfully assist patients in setting achievable care goals and action plans. With an easy-to-use, digital interface providers can work with their team and patients to advance the patient’s health. Communication is an integral factor in improving patient self-management. Proper digital communication networks that have the capacity to house all patient care coordination tools allow busy health offices to have the time to have important conversations with patients without feeling rushed by the fast-paced environment.
How Tellescope is changing patient navigation
A digital system that promotes interaction between health care providers allows for efficient collaboration on patient treatment and continuity of care. For this reason, collaborative care has become the standard. Although patients typically have multiple people on their care team, they can not all seamlessly collaborate with each other and communicate with the patient. Communication is key to building a fulfilling relationship between patients and providers within the healthcare system. This is where Tellescope comes in handy. Tellescope is a space designed to simultaneously optimize health provider workflow and manage patient communications and engagement. Using Tellescope can help a healthcare team manage their consult coordination and patient journey process with ease electronically. Get in touch with us to request a demo of the Tellescope platform!
Sources
https://www.insynchcs.com/blog/the-top-8-benefits-of-collaborative-care-for-providers-and-patients
https://getreferralmd.com/2019/03/medical-staff-collaborate-efficiently/
https://www.liveprocess.com/blog-three-ways-collaborative-communication-improves-healthcare/
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2013/0500/p35.html
https://patientengagementhit.com/news/patient-care-navigators-increase-care-quality-decrease-costs
