Articles

Patient Centricity: The Key to Better Outcomes

Nov 5, 2024

Patient centricity is about designing processes and creating experiences that meet patients where they are. When it comes to the patient financial journey, that means creating processes that make it easier for patients to pay for the medical care they need. 

The challenge is that the traditional revenue cycle was designed around payer reimbursement rather than patient payments. Other than collecting patient co-pays, the process was mainly focused on getting paid by the payer. That may have worked 20 years ago, but not today.

It’s no secret that high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) have made it more difficult for patients to pay their medical bills. We know this because of our country’s skyrocketing medical debt. Today, more than half of all American adults have medical debt, and it’s having an adverse effect on outcomes. Here’s why:

  • One in seven U.S. adults surveyed said they had been denied care due to unpaid bills.
  • Half of individuals having trouble paying their medical debt avoided care.
  • One-third of individuals with medical debt issues skipped a medical test or recommended treatment.
  • One-third of individuals with medical debt issues cut their medicines in half or skipped doses.
  • 41% of people with medical bill issues have avoided filling a prescription due to cost.

When patients don’t get the care they need when they need it, outcomes can deteriorate while hospitalizations and emergency department visits increase. This, in turn, can lead to even higher healthcare costs and medical debt.

Strategies to create a patient-centric financial journey

Fortunately, there are several proven methods to make the financial journey more patient-centric, helping make it easier for patients to pay for the care they need. This includes the following:

  1. Provide patient responsibility estimations before the time of service so patients can make more informed decisions about how to pay for their care. Besides helping educate patients about their financial responsibility, estimates also reduce the potential for surprise bills.
  1. Offer payment plans before an account goes into collections. Plans should be based on a patient’s financial situation and allow them to add future balances. When patients are offered a payment plan that fits their budget, they can avoid adding to their medical debt and better afford the care they need.
  2. Offer multiple payment options so patients can choose what works best for them: mobile payments, payment portals, automated phone payments, or through the mail. This gives patients the ability to pay when and how it’s most convenient. 
  1. Simplify billing statements, making it clear what the bill is for. Statements should also list all payment options available. This helps reduce frustration and helps patients understand why they owe what they owe.
  1. Offer personalized communications, including appointment and payment reminders. Patients should be allowed to choose the type of communications they prefer: text, email, phone, or mail. Clear, ongoing communications can help improve trust and the provider-patient relationship.

In a survey of 1,500 patients, 90% said that provider loyalty depends on the patient financial experience.

Next steps

The vast adoption of HDHPs has made it more challenging for patients to get the care they need. Now that so many have outstanding medical debt, providers must do all they can to help reduce the burden and make it easier for patients to pay for the care they need. Creating a more patient-centric financial journey is a proven way to do just that.

Karie Bostwick

VP of People and Compliance

As VP of People and Compliance at Revenue Enterprises, Karie Bostwick oversees People functions including recruiting, training, onboarding, engagement and satisfaction. Additionally, she is responsible for compliance training, oversight and monitoring.

Karie has a long history of working in the revenue cycle support industry. Her skills span leadership, operations start up, policies and procedures development, operations workflow, budgeting and client management.

She is passionate about the experience of our people, patients and the Healthcare clients we serve and believes that a team of diverse, talented and motivated individuals working together toward a common goal can make a difference.

Robert Sterett

VP of Information Technology

As a transformational leader Robert Sterrett has leveraged his 20 years of experience to build effective service lines and exceptional teams. In his role as VP of Information Technology at Revenue Enterprises, Robert excels at taking a unique, balanced, and strategic approach to technology leadership with people first for the best possible outcome. Using his experience from engineering, project management and service line management he takes a multi-faceted approach to ensure the right people are in the correct position coupled with the best technology to meet or exceed all expectations from security to compliance and business continuity.

Robert’s leadership style lends itself to building long term relationships and has consistently been a relied upon strength in many organizations. Over Robert’s time as an IT operational and project leader, he has spent significant time in both hands-on technology facing roles and client centric management roles to bring the best solutions that strive to meet the business and client needs.

Focusing heavily on his personal development skills and opportunities, Robert continues to foster coaching and mentorship relationships everywhere in his life, and the lives around him.

Douglas Dunbar

VP of Sales & Marketing

As VP of Sales and Marketing for Revenue Enterprises, Douglas Dunbar leads with a passion for building strategic partnerships, nurturing relationships, and upholding customer service excellence. In his role, Doug focuses on marketing and brand strategy, sales team leadership, and working closely with members of the management team to best serve company goals.

Doug has over 28 years of National sales and marketing call/contact center leadership, with 10 years of service specifically at Revenue Enterprises. Currently, Doug serves as part of Wyoming HFMA Chapter leadership and has held various roles in Colorado HFMA Chapter leadership for over 9 years.

In his spare time, Doug is very family oriented. Additionally, he loves traveling, cycling, golfing, fishing, hunting, and boating.

Kris Brumley, MBA

SVP/COO

As SVP/COO of Revenue Enterprises, Kris Brumley is a collaborative partner within the executive team and a leader for operational functions across the organization. Kris productively shares vision, drives innovation, and supports those around her in a way that elevates them and fosters continuous improvement and results. She has helped create a supportive environment for clients resulting in 98% client retention and a 65% NPS score for all clients and 75% for top clients by revenue.

Kris possesses an MBA in data analytics and has twenty-five years of experience in the healthcare industry, with 19 specifically in revenue cycle. She brings a wealth of customer service experience to her role and has worn many hats at Revenue Enterprises including Director of Business Development, EBO Division Director, and VP of Client Experience Management.

In her personal life, Kris is as busy outside of work as inside. She values spending time with her family, and enjoys fishing, hiking, traveling and interior decorating and design.

Timothy (Tim) Brainerd

CEO

As CEO of Revenue Enterprises for almost 20 years, Tim Brainerd leads by example. He promotes a shared vision and stewards a culture of Integrity, Passion, and Respect. He has assembled and empowered high-performing talent and teams to support customers, facilitate strategic planning and manage the capital of the company. Under his leadership, Revenue Enterprises has doubled in size three times over the past fifteen years while maintaining a culture of caring and gratefulness.

Tim has close to four decades of revenue cycle experience, including nineteen years with RSI
Enterprises. He has been a past president of Colorado Chapter of the HFMA and a presenting speaker on the topic of Leadership. He is a fifteen-year member of Vistage International, the world’s largest CEO coaching and peer advisory organization for small and midsize business leaders.

Raised in the Midwest, Tim values humble principles like being respectful, caring, passionate, self-reliant, and most importantly grateful. His most important lesson and the lesson he hopes to pass on in all relationships is living the Golden Rule–do unto others as you would have them do unto you. He is intentional in his choices and believes in making decisions, taking action, being accountable, and loving your neighbors.

Whenever possible, Tim spends his time with his wife of nearly forty years, his adult children, and his grandchildren. His hobbies include fishing, golfing, traveling as well as game nights and sharing great food with his family.