These days our lives are fast-paced, busy, and full of demanding stressors. Consumers, frankly, don’t have time to be bogged down waiting on phone lines and heading down to physicians offices for their every need. 

With such a high demand for healthcare, service gets bogged down with all the requests. The healthcare industry needs to evolve in order to meet changing consumer demands and remain efficient. One convenient tool for patients and providers alike is the healthcare provider search. 

What is a Healthcare Provider Search?

A healthcare provider search is a tool that allows patients to search the healthcare network directory for the information of their current provider or a new provider all together. A healthcare provider search tool makes it easier and more convenient for providers to refer patients to other providers or specialists in the same network. 

In doing so, the provider search increases network retention and the patient has a more complementary care team. This also helps patients find a provider that their insurance will accept more easily. Patients who are paying with insurance are more likely to be a recurring patient and receive the repeated care they need because of affordability. 

The healthcare provider search also allows patients to be more engaged with their care. Long gone are the days of relying on your primary care doctor to select your care team for you. Patients can search and find the best provider that suits their needs and select another if they are in need of a second opinion. 

What are the Key Features of a Great Provider Search?

The set of features your provider search tool will need is ultimately up to you. A more simple and paired down approach may suit some networks, while others will need something more detailed. 

Here are a few key features to consider including in your healthcare provider search tool to help you get started:

Comprehensive Directory

To have a great provider search you need to start off with a solid foundation. You will need to have a comprehensive directory of all the physicians in your network. Each provider will have their own landing page that houses all of the important details that a patient might need. To access these landing pages, the patient will use the search function. A simple “search engine” style is the most user-friendly way to get the patients to those landing pages. 

Quick Access to Information

Patients have different needs. A recurring patient may just need access to a provider’s phone number, but a prospective patient may want more detail. A quick look feature, like those used on many eCommerce stores, can be added to allow the patient to see the most important details from the physician, like their name and phone number, without having to click onto a new webpage. Those full landing pages can then be exceptionally detailed if the patient needs more information. Landing pages can include photos, education, and even appointment scheduling. 

Easy to Update

A great provider search should be easy to use for both patients and physicians alike. It should be simple and easy for a physician to update their profile if they switch offices or simply want to update their photo. This feature prevents frustration and confusion from patients, but also eliminates the need for consistent administrative maintenance. 

Extremely Accessible

The provider search should also be accessible. As a tool for receiving care, the tool should be easy to use for people with a variety of needs. Users should be able to navigate using a keyboard and the site should have resizable text. Many sites are choosing to use dyslexia-friendly fonts and high contrast backgrounds to increase readability. Outside of features and design, alternative text or “alt text” should be available for all images on your site to cater to people who cannot see the images.

How to Get Started

Looking to create a healthcare provider search tool but don’t know where to start? Camber Creative can help. Camber is a full service digital product agency that can help you build your product, market, and maintain it. The first step is to decide whether you want to build or buy your product. 

What is build vs buy? To build your product means to custom-develop it to your specific needs. To buy a product is to purchase a premade solution from a third-party vendor. Camber can create a custom solution for you or set up and implement the solution you purchased.  

We have the capability to integrate your shiny new search tool with any systems you already have in place. Camber will work with you to establish all the requirements for your product. Our team can fully develop a roadmap from scratch or support an existing roadmap. When you are ready to take your patient experience to the next level, we’ll be happy to take you there.