Doctors and other small medical providers can miss visits from existing patients or new patients by not allowing them to book appointments online through a mobile device or computer.
People today seem to prefer to do a lot of things via the Internet or mobile applications. Of course, they also want to schedule their doctor’s appointments.
Consider the convenience factor, as well as the popularity of websites, smartphones, and gadgets, which allow us to do so many different things with the ease of tapping an icon on the screen.
PatientPop, an online platform for medical providers which allows, among other things, to make online appointments, predicted that, based on research, online appointment booking for medical appointments is on an upward path. This trend is only growing in popularity.
Researcher Accenture conducted the investigation, which took place last month. Surveys were 3,105 adults living in the United States. The goal was to understand what percentage of the patient population uses or would use online appointment scheduling to make an appointment with their healthcare provider today. The survey also aimed to measure the percentage of patients making an appointment online compared to a phone call.
In total, the survey results are based on data including 13,694 appointment requests, as well as 182 medical practice websites.
Small medical providers should offer online appointment booking for a number of reasons, some of which are listed below.
This is what patients want
Specifically, research shows that 17% of patients surveyed made a doctor’s appointment through a website or app in the past year. 42% more said they would have made an appointment online, but had not had the opportunity.
The future of online planning valued in the billions
By the end of 2019, 66% of U.S. healthcare systems will offer digital self-programming. In addition, 64 percent of patients will book an appointment using these online systems. In total, nearly 38% – or 986 million – appointments will be self-scheduled, a mass estimated at 3.2 billion dollars for these suppliers. If you want to secure your piece of the play, hop on this bandwagon.
Practices can refine competitive advantage
By providing the convenience of online appointment booking, practices can improve the patient experience, giving them a competitive advantage in their market.
Younger demographics prefer it
The 25-34 age group now used online planning the most. In addition, this group also reportedly showed the highest preference for using online appointment scheduling. By targeting this demographic, your firm can leverage this established interest to reach out to the broader 18-34 age group. Overall, online planning should be seen as a major part of a business retention and acquisition strategy.
Online planning reduces pressure on office staff
According to the survey, 34% of scheduled online appointments are made after the office closes. This means that by providing the convenience of 24/7 online scheduling, firms can increase their total number of appointments while reducing any additional pressure on corporate office administration.
New patients will seek it out
The data clearly shows that new patients schedule the vast majority of appointments online, around 63%. Common sense proclaims that practices that offer online appointment booking can expect to attract more new patients than practices that do not offer the online option.
Online scheduling keeps waiting rooms full
While only 6 percent of online appointment requests were for same-day appointments the date was scheduled, more than three times that amount, about 20 percent, were for next-day appointments. However, most (26%) were scheduled online for same day or next day slots.
It reduces no-shows
With scheduling phone calls, the number of people who don’t show up for an appointment (the absence rate) ranges from 10 to 25%, with an average of 14%. By simply offering online scheduling, firms can further fill their waiting rooms by reducing the number of no-shows.
People don’t like to talk on the phone
When the survey asked what the preference was for making a doctor’s appointment through a website or app, without needing to call the office, some 42% indicated that was the scenario preferable.
The demand is there now
Of the 13,694 appointments requested on firm websites, 6,766, or 49.4%, were made over the phone. The remainder, 50.6% or 6,928 patients made an appointment online.
Online booking Photo via Shutterstock
