81% of patients missed 1 to 4 hours of work for in-person medical appointments, while 71% of patients missed less than hour of work for telemedicine appointments

The consumerization of healthcare means doctors need to adapt to elevated patient expectations on everything from shorter wait times to better communication. To understand the biggest patient pain points providers faced in 2022 and how to address them in 2023, Software Advice surveyed over 1,000 adults in the U.S. who have visited a healthcare provider either in-person or via telemedicine at least once in the past three years.

In-person and telemedicine visits provide unique challenges for providers

Wait times (49%) are the top complaint for in-person medical appointments, followed by issues related to getting to the appointment (32%) and scheduling appointments (31%). At most, patients are seen by doctors for only one-fifth of the time they take off of work for their appointment, which results in patients feeling devalued. Moreover, a quarter (25%) of patients say their provider seemed rushed, and 14% say their provider didn't listen to them, potentially leading to poor health outcomes.

The most significant patient pain points for telemedicine treatment include limitations on the type of illnesses it can treat (34%), ease of scheduling an appointment (26%), and technology requirements (24%). Most (71%) telemedicine patients missed less than one hour of work for their last telemedicine appointment, while 81% of in-person patients missed between one and four hours.

Patients will seek alternative care if providers don’t account for customer service

By understanding patients’ top complaints, practices can provide better service and care that will keep patients loyal. In fact, 56% of patients who had a negative experience with a healthcare provider ended up looking for a new one. The study results further indicate that providers must consider customer service as the main part of their job or risk losing valuable customers, as many patients rely on Google searches (22%) and word-of-mouth recommendations (33%) to determine which providers they will visit.

“With the rise of consumerization in healthcare, providers are forced to address long-standing patient complaints or lose those patients—and their payments—to other practices or even mobile apps,” says Lisa Hedges, associate principal medical analyst with Software Advice. “One of the best ways to fix many of those complaints is by offering exams via telemedicine and reimagining your waiting room with automation.”

Software Advice found that technology is often the answer to more efficient patient care. Two-thirds of surveyed patients expect healthcare providers to use tools such as telemedicine platforms and patient portals to make treatment and communication more manageable. Doctors can also equip themselves with cutting-edge technology to automate as many tasks as possible and use tools with strong UI/UX capabilities to empower patients to take an active role in their care.

Read the full results of Software Advice’s 2022 Patient Pain Points survey and in-depth analysis here.

About Software Advice

Software Advice simplifies software buying. Through 1-on-1 conversation and trusted insights, industry-specific advisors guide buyers to top software options in as little as 15 minutes (and it’s 100% free). Founded in 2005, Software Advice has helped nearly 900,000 businesses find the right software for their specific needs. Software Advice also features over 1.5 million verified user reviews to ensure people feel confident in their technology decisions. For more information, visit softwareadvice.com.

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