Shows importance of digital-first
communications in providing access to care amid rising
patient expectations
RALEIGH,
N.C., April 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/
-- Bandwidth Inc. (NASDAQ: BAND), a leading global
enterprise cloud communications company, today announced a new
report based on a survey of 1500 Americans' preferences in
communicating with their healthcare provider. Among the key
findings: nearly half of patients (41 percent) would switch doctors
if they couldn't reach their office by text message. And over 81
percent of respondents reported that their expectations for
communicating with their healthcare provider have changed since
COVID-19 began.
"Text messaging has emerged as a critical communications channel
in a post-pandemic world, with many people not having the ability
or the privacy to phone their doctor while at work. This shows how
important it is for doctors to meet patients where they are, in the
communications channels that are most convenient and effective,"
said Brad Roldan, Vice President and
General Manager of Programmable Services at Bandwidth. "That's why
Bandwidth is so committed to empowering healthcare providers to
adapt to rising patient expectations and deliver secure, protected
health information by text message and other channels."
The "digital front door" should be a top strategic focus for
healthcare providers in 2023, according to the research firm
Gartner(R)1. Effective digital engagement with
patients enables doctors to more effectively reach patients in
popular channels like text messaging. Bandwidth works with a number
of patient engagement platforms that healthcare organizations use
to personalize communications and improve patient retention, reduce
office operating costs and boost staff effectiveness, while
improving overall health outcomes. By providing powerful APIs,
including HIPAA-eligible text messaging and voice, plus toll free
and in-app calling, Bandwidth helps healthcare organizations meet
rising patient expectations in a post-pandemic world.
Other findings from the survey included:
Phone calls are still important.
- Although text messaging is emerging as a popular channel, it
shouldn't entirely replace the traditional voice call. In many
scenarios, phone call and text messaging held the No. 1 and No. 2
most popular spots, respectively, for respondents.
- However, in certain cases, this pattern changed. In the case of
modifying appointments, a phone call was the number one
choice.
Income plays a key role in patient preferences.
- There was a significant correlation between income and
preferences. Respondents in the lower half of overall
reported income ($75,000 and under)
most frequently named text messages and phone calls as their top
two preferred channels. However, respondents in the higher
half of overall reported income ($100,000 and over) were more adaptive to new
channels like apps.
- This could potentially speak to an accessibility concern, which
is an important consideration for providers and the populations
they serve.
Read the full report here.
1 Gartner, "Predicts 2023: Changing How Healthcare
Provider Services and Operations Are Delivered," Barry Runyon, Sharon Hakkennes, Gregg Pessin, 5 December
2022.
About Bandwidth Inc.
Bandwidth (NASDAQ: BAND) is a
global cloud communications software company that helps enterprises
deliver exceptional experiences through voice calling, text
messaging and emergency services. Our solutions and our
Communications Cloud, covering 60+ countries and over 90 percent of
global GDP, are trusted by all the leaders in unified
communications and cloud contact centers–including Amazon Web
Services (AWS), Cisco, Google, Microsoft, RingCentral, Zoom,
Genesys and Five9–as well as Global 2000 enterprises and SaaS
builders like Docusign, Uber and Yosi Health. As a founder of the
cloud communications revolution, we are the first and only global
Communications Platform-as-a-Service (CPaaS) to offer a unique
combination of composable APIs, owner-operated network and broad
regulatory experience. Our award-winning support teams help
businesses around the world solve complex communications challenges
to reach anyone, anywhere. For more information, visit
bandwidth.com.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bandwidth-study-nearly-half-of-patients-would-switch-doctors-if-they-cant-communicate-by-text-message-301799798.html
SOURCE Bandwidth Inc.