Patient Experience

Who might Amazon acquire next? Numerous media outlets have speculated on the e-commerce giant’s potential takeover targets. This had me wondering: What would Amazon do differently if they took over the Urgent Care industry?

There is a lot of conversation today about the rise of the consumer as a newly empowered stakeholder in the country’s healthcare system. I’m all for it. But before we further discuss the consumerization of healthcare, there are a few things we should be clear about.

When patients began reviewing their providers online the way they review restaurants and hotels, many worried that unfiltered comments from the public would have an unhealthy effect on the delivery of medical care. After all, the delivery of care is not at all like the delivery of pizza. In the consumer world, the mantra that

I have spent much of my career helping create new software for the healthcare industry. There are plenty of inefficiencies in healthcare delivery, and technology can help address these by enabling better communication between physicians and administrators.

Until recently, patients have faced significant challenges when engaging with their providers outside of in-person visits or hospital stays. Regular, daily dialogue between patient and provider was cumbersome and inconsistent for both parties.

Physicians use all their knowledge, training and skill to help the injured and the ill recover. When those patients are discharged from the hospital, healthcare providers hope for the best. They hope the patients will mend and go on with their lives.

For healthcare providers today, it’s all about quality, not quantity.