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The healthcare landscape is rapidly shifting towards mobile-first, consumer-driven experiences, as seen with the growth of patient-centric apps. Emphasising patient engagement, mHealth apps offer many features, from virtual consultations to wearables integration. Moreover, personalised experiences, rewards, and community engagement play pivotal roles in retaining users. Montar stands at the forefront of this evolution, helping businesses craft exceptional mHealth apps.
Dr Karen DeSalvo, Chief Health Officer at Google Health, once remarked, “The future of health is consumer-driven. People expect a mobile-first experience with more personalised insights, services, and care.” This sentiment seems prophetic, especially as patient-centric healthcare apps are growing at over 35% CAGR. Tech giants like Google and Microsoft, known for their impeccable digital experiences, are now dipping their toes in the healthcare pool.
A significant pivot point is patient engagement. It's not merely a buzzword but a tangible metric shaping the success trajectory of mHealth apps. Over 60% of consumers now lean towards virtual care and wellness advisories in the post-pandemic landscape.
At its core, patient engagement is about fostering a deeper involvement of individuals in their healthcare journey. This includes everything from understanding their treatment to being proactive and communicative about their wellness. In a world where technology and health are increasingly intertwined, mobile health apps become bridges that connect patients to better care experiences.
So, how can these apps truly optimise patient engagement? Let's dive into it below!
Healthcare apps are not just tools but catalysts for change. They bridge the gap between providers and patients, making healthcare more interactive, accessible, and personalised. Let's dive into the 11 ways these apps are revolutionising patient engagement.
Busy. Busier. Busiest. Most of us live in one of these three states. That’s the reason consumers look for convenience when it comes to decision-making. mHealth apps provide convenience and reduce the friction of accessing healthcare.
Virtual consultations and telemedicine services allow patients to access medical advice, diagnoses, and even specialised care from the comfort of their homes. Continuous care and support via secure messaging features of healthcare apps ensure seamless communication with healthcare providers.
Healthcare apps that offer the booking of healthcare services, like consultations, lab tests, and medication deliveries, eliminate long wait times. Additionally, medication management and access to personal health information through apps improve digital patient engagement.
MyChart app, for example, provides a wholesome experience by providing patients access to electronic health records, online appointment scheduling, access to test results, and immunisation history in a single app.
Need to see a doctor in person? Why wait for a callback or at the doctor’s office to get an appointment?
In a world where you can order your favourite pizza at the tap of a button, appointment-scheduling apps offer similar ease of booking a consultation with a physician.
Additional features of these apps include details of the specialities of healthcare providers and their real-time availability. These apps eliminate manual errors caused by miscommunication on the phone while booking appointments. Another functionality of these apps is the ability to send automated reminders and reschedule if an unexpected event occurs.
Whether you see a doctor physically or virtually, retaining prescribed information and dosage instructions of medicines is an added responsibility. Thankfully, electronic prescription refills, medication reminders, and integration with pharmacy services are part of multiple healthcare apps that make prescription management easy.
These apps do away with paper prescription storage, while integration with the pharmacy adds the convenience of checking medication availability and prices. Some apps have a feature where you can have your prescriptions delivered to your doorstep. Some features like medication trackers and reminders ensure you never miss a dose.
Today’s health and fitness apps aptly complement the quote, “you can’t improve what you don’t measure”. Keeping you motivated to care for your health has never been easier. Whether it’s staying active through step tracking, monitoring your heart rate and sleep patterns, or counting calories, mHealth apps are like having a personal health coach in the palm of your hand.
Wearable tech devices have sensors that capture vital health metrics interpreted by a mobile app and provide personalised insights. The wearable health tech market is growing at a little over 13% yearly and is estimated to reach $ 30.1 billion by 2026.
For example, the Polar Beat app helps you set fitness goals, track a range of sporting activities and measure progress by administering fitness tests.
One size fits all doesn’t work for health advice. Personalised health recommendations, like custom diet plans and exercise routines, increase the probability of people staying consistent with achieving their goals.
Many health apps consider health data, food preferences, and objectives to create a roadmap for the user to reach their goal and improve digital patient engagement.
For example, the Rocketbody app tracks users' physical activity, nutrition, and sleep patterns. Then, it uses AI to analyse collected data and offer tailored fitness plans and dietary guidance.
Healthcare apps have savvy features to keep users engaged. Notification nudges that help you stick to exercise routines or take medications. Visualising your progress over time through dashboards to keep you motivated.
Games are the most popular category, going by the number of app downloads. What better way to increase patient engagement than playing games while tracking your health parameters?
Rewards for taking medications on time, walking, getting regular check-ups, or completing levels of learning about health-related topics ensure that users stay motivated.
Fitbit utilises competition as a motivator, encouraging users to set challenges and compare progress with friends through social sharing.
Special cases like recovering stroke patients are now recommended physiotherapy and cognition apps to help improve their fine motor skills, coordination, and communication.
The Physitrac app contains a library of high-quality videos and narration of rehabilitation activities to improve adherence and patient confidence. PT professionals use this app to onboard and provide customised care plans for their patients.
The CogniFit app offers many brain games and exercises to improve cognition and brain functions. Personalised training programs tailored to a patient’s initial assessments are also offered.
Finding similar people, sharing the journey, and being heard gives us a sense of belonging. Online communities foster long-term relationships between brands and their community members.
An example is the WeAreMore app, where individuals share their mental health journeys and engage with a supportive community. There are also self-help tools, mood trackers, and mental health discussions that provide camaraderie while improving patient engagement.
There’s growing evidence that reward-based systems motivate people to maintain health habits.
mHealth apps are highly effective in motivating and incentivising users for healthy behaviours. These apps utilise various strategies, including rewards and incentives, personalisation, and reminders.
Rewards and incentives like points, discounts, or prizes provide users tangible rewards for achieving their health goals. Personalisation, in terms of custom recommendations and content to each user's specific needs and goals, creates a meaningful user experience.
With reminders, users are more likely to stay on track with medication, workouts, and health-related tasks, promoting adherence to treatment plans. These elements create a positive feedback loop, resulting in improved compliance and better patient health.
Digital medical records or electronic health reports store sensitive health information securely while empowering users with greater control and access to their health records.
Health reports in electronic form (EHR) are stored in compliance with healthcare regulations like HIPAA. EHRs have built-in security measures, such as encryption and access controls, safeguarding user data from unauthorised access or breaches.
Also, digital storage of health reports ensures that users can access their medical history and share it with healthcare providers.
Leveraging healthcare apps to handle insurance claims enhances patient engagement by streamlining what's traditionally been a convoluted, drawn-out process. By making the claims procedure transparent and straightforward within an app, patients enjoy a more positive and hassle-free experience.
Starting from submitting claims and uploading required receipts and documents through the app eliminates the need for paperwork. Real-time status updates enable patients to track the progress of their claims. These apps also provide critical coverage and benefits information in one place to help patients better understand their plans and make informed decisions about their healthcare.
There are many ways that mobile apps can boost patient engagement, which can be an important differentiator for healthcare apps in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Montar’s industry insights, depth of expertise in healthcare, and technical know-how help companies differentiate their apps and create features that champion patient engagement.
Reach out to us to get answers to your queries about the latest developments in the world of healthcare technology and how you can translate them into your mHealth app.
