TTA has an open invitation to industry leaders to contribute to our Perspectives non-promotional opinion area. Today’s contribution is from Josif Dishliev, co-founder at Healee, an integrated patient access solution built for the operational complexity of high-performing medical groups. For one of its clients, UK-based Perci Health, Healee helped launch a branded patient access platform that aims to challenge the status quo for those impacted by cancer. Perci Health connects people living with cancer and their caregivers to a team of multidisciplinary cancer experts, tackling the physical, psychological, and practical impacts of cancer with a focus on managing the long-term side effects of treatment which are often overlooked in traditional healthcare. In this article, Mr. Dishliev talks about the role robust patient scheduling and intake capabilities play in improving patient access to cancer care.

When it comes to cancer treatment itself, the UK has one of the most well-developed healthcare systems in the world. With advancements in screenings, diagnostics, and therapy, the cancer survival rate in the country has seen radical improvement. Although 1 in 2 people will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, survival rates have more than doubled, and by 2030 6% of the population will be living with and beyond cancer.  

However, innovation in the aftercare of cancer survivors has significantly lagged. Patients find the healthcare system complicated and confusing, they cannot get the care they need, and continue to suffer from the long-term effects of treatment.

Digital health technology holds immense potential to improve patient access to cancer care and provide people living with or beyond cancer with much-needed support from the physical, psychological, and practical impacts of cancer. 

Perci Health observed several critical requirements when it comes to successfully implementing a patient access solution that enhances cancer care:

Allow for custom digital intake forms

Strong digital patient intake is the first – and one of the most crucial – steps to the success of a virtual-first care model that prioritizes convenience and affordability but not at the expense of high-quality personalized care.

Perci’s Healee-powered platform utilizes digital intake forms by offering an online questionnaire that first determines the person’s demographic profile and then provides the option for two journeys – “supporting someone with cancer” or “living with or beyond cancer.”

• For people who choose the “supporting someone with cancer” option, the platform asks a set of questions to determine the physical, psychological, and social impact that taking care of a person with cancer has had on them. 
• For people who choose the “living with or beyond cancer” option, the platform asks several additional questions including type of cancer, year of diagnosis, and treatment stage.

Based on each person’s answers, the platform offers tailored recommendations for the type of care and the healthcare professionals best suited to their needs.

Robust patient access platforms offer custom intake forms, which determine each user’s needs based on their demographics and specific physical and psychological requirements. This method allows users to access personalized treatment plans and match them with the healthcare professional best suited to their needs.

Enable strong patient-provider matching

A well-designed patient access solution allows matching the exact patient need with the best-suited provider in one easy, smooth and real-time provider search experience. Automated patient-provider matching takes into account providers’ characteristics such as provider specialty and considers patient and provider preferences as well as system requirements.

Perci’s platform offers over 20 holistic cancer support types and a list of NHS-qualified healthcare professionals that range from cancer and clinical exercise coaches to psychologists, dieticians, psychosexual therapists, and more. 

Given the many different types of cancer specialists and the varying needs of cancer patients, the access to the right team of healthcare professionals is crucial to improving patient outcomes. (more…)