Want to cut costs for your healthcare facility? The key is in better informed patients and improved management of medications, according to a recently released study by Harvard University. And the top solution is interactive patient education systems.
The study showed that giving patients more information about their medical conditions and helping them better manage their medications can help reduce the number of repeat visits by Medicare patients by nearly 20 percent. Researchers found that many patients fail to give their physicians a full listing of medications they’re taking. As a result, these patients often return to doctors because prescribed medications reacted badly with those prescribed by other healthcare providers. Research also revealed that patients often don’t fully understand their illnesses or the care that they’re receiving or should be receiving.
The lack of adequate communication and understanding leads to multiple repeat visits. In fact, previous research showed that one in five Medicare patients returns to the hospital within 30 days of a previous admission. These patients cost Medicare upwards of $17 billion a year. And a new healthcare law taking effect this month forces hospitals to repay Medicare for the cost of readmissions for heart failure, heart attacks, pneumonia and more within 30 days of a previous stay.
So how do you help your hospital or healthcare facility avoid Medicare readmission costs? MDM Healthcare specializes in interactive patient education and television systems that can be installed in your waiting rooms and patient rooms. Systems are designed to help distribute information facility-wide or to select audiences and can be tailored to personalize healthcare interactions with specific patients. And multiple studies have shown that patients who are better informed about their conditions and healthcare options are more proactive about their treatment, communicate more thoroughly with their doctors and enjoy better outcomes than those who remain uninformed.
There’s no doubt about it – Healthcare costs are on the rise. Let MDM Healthcare help you keep your facility’s costs down with a customized patient interactive system. Call toll-free 800-359-6741 today.