Patients, loved ones, and caregivers often turn to the web first when seeking health care information and solutions. While your in-person healthcare services prioritize patient experiences, is your website designed with the patient in mind? The design of your website is crucial for attracting and retaining new patients. The design of your website is crucial for attracting and retaining new patients.
What is a patient-centric website?
A patient-centric web design prioritizes patient needs, preferences, and expectations. It should also provide valuable and accessible educational resources. By creating a user-friendly and informative site that resonates with your patients, you can deliver value and insights that significantly enhance their healthcare journey, extending beyond their scheduled appointments.
What are the advantages of a patient-centric website?
There are several benefits of a website including: enhanced patient experience through education, improved trust and credibility, increased engagement and more effective communication.
- Enhanced patient experience – Create a positive patient experience by making content easily accessible, having an intuitive user interface, and seamless website navigation. By taking these actions on your website patients will feel invited and supported.
- Improved trust and credibility – Medical practices with well designed, professional websites instill more trust and confidence with patients, as well as having more potential patients choose your service instead of a competitor.
- Increased engagement – Informative and relevant website content is the key to sustaining patient interest. Your web design should include patient education resources, blogs and FAQs in order to maintain patient activity and provide engaging information.
- Effective communication – A patient-centric website will integrate features such as telehealth visits, online appointment booking and provide secure messaging ensuring more channels of communication are available for patients that are existing or looking to join your practice.
Tips and strategies for a patient-centric website.
Below is a six step checklist of tips and strategies to assist you with ensuring your website is patient-centric.
- Avoid medical jargon and acronyms – According to The Literacy Project the average American reads on a 7th-8th-grade level, with 54% of adults reading at or below the 6th grade level. Your patients and prospective patients are not likely to be medical experts and it would be best to avoid confusing your audience. Instead of using medical jargon or complex words, use plain language and terms, so that someone with a 6th-grade reading level and no medical experience understands what is being said.
- Website responsiveness – Websites need to maintain integrity across all platforms, but none more so than the mobile platform. Google algorithm’s are notorious for improving search rankings for websites that are “mobile friendly.” Your website priority is ensuring patients and prospecting patients are able to access the information they need from any device they choose to use.
- Patient journey perspective – A patient-centric website provides insight on all steps of the patient journey: beginning with patient awareness, patient cogitation, patient service selection, patients receiving care and patients on post-care follow up. Your website needs to provide meaningful information no matter where your patient is on their journey map.
- Up-To-Date website content – Have you examined your website with scrutiny recently? You might find that your practice has updated its technology or is providing a service that is not accurately portrayed on your website. Keeping your content updated will ensure your patients have all the information they need to make an informed decision. By taking advantage of your website’s power to educate your patients and prospective patients, you can maximize your practice’s patient centric approach. .
- Search engine optimization (SEO) – Search engine keywords are integral to maintaining your web page/content stays relevant (near the top of the page) when patients, loved ones and caregivers are looking for relevant information. Search engine optimization (SEO) is constantly evolving, like your web page content, SEO requires fine tuning and adjustments to keep up with changes in technology and patient preferences.
- Video Leverage – “Videos are the most influential media on the internet” (Gürler & Büyükceran, 2022) more so than even verbal information that is received in-person. The reasoning is that many patients, loved ones and caregivers will search online for information and are more likely to look at a video than read through pages of information. This is where informative and accurate videos can boost your website and become more patient-centric.
In the digital age, all industries must adapt to the times. The traditional one-sided approach to healthcare is outdated. Today, a patient-centric website is essential. Prioritizing patient preferences and needs attracts new patients, builds trust, keeps them engaged, and fosters lasting relationships. Investing in a patient-centric web design is an investment in your practice’s success. Remember, your website is often the first point of contact between your practice and your patients. Learn more about upgrading/updating your website for the best patient experience by scheduling a 30-minute complimentary consultation today. Our team of experts is ready to elevate your online presence.