Survey: Patients want more tech

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Fifty-three percent of U.S. consumers say that adding more technology to health care settings would improve their experience as a patient, according to a new survey from RXNT, a health care technology company. 

The survey, which included 700 nationally representative consumers and more than 300 health care professionals, highlights critical opportunities for improvement within the health care industry, including better provider communication and more convenient mobile apps, the company says. 

According to the survey: 

• 67% of consumers in the West agree that adding more technology to health care settings would improve their experience as a patient, followed by 51% of consumers in the South.  

• One in every two consumers (52%) who are dissatisfied with their current health care cite poor communication with health care providers as the primary reason for their dissatisfaction.  

• Over half of consumers (55%) agree that they would prefer to use a mobile app to manage health care appointments, prescriptions and medical records. 

While patients report that technology is essential to a better experience, the survey found that health care professionals are feeling the pressure of time constraints that leave little room for adding better digital tools. Health care professionals surveyed in the South estimate that they lose four hours per week in productivity due to outdated practice software used for administrative tasks like medical billing and health record management.  

According to the survey: 

• Health care professionals aged between 25-34 believe they could see 20 more patients per week after implementing better software tools. 

• 48% of health care professionals are frustrated with the slow performance of software, while 35% have security concerns about the software.  

• One in six health care professionals do not plan on integrating AI tools and features into their daily workflow.  

“These findings should be a wake-up call for health care providers, with patients expressing a need for better communication and technology,” said Randy Boldyga, founder and CEO of RXNT. “I founded RXNT over 25 years ago with the goal to make health care simpler and safer through technology, and I’m proud to say that our integrated software is designed to address these exact challenges; improving the patient experience, increasing patient satisfaction and enabling a better daily routine for providers.”