Whether it pertains to the cost of an item, your relationship with colleagues, or your communication with customers, the statement “to be unclear is to be unkind” is accurate 100% of the time. Rover—the pet-sitting app that millions of pet owners use across the country—recently sent an email explaining their updated cancellation policies. The subject line? “We’ve updated our cancellation policies.” Talk about clear communication.
While the Rover platform is user-friendly, one of the most frustrating features has historically been its cancellation policies. Until recently, users saw “flexible,” “moderate,” or “strict” policies—which were not descriptive or helpful when deciding on who to book as a pet sitter.
Rover likely heard frustrations from users (or perhaps tracked how often the #tellmewhatthismeans button was clicked), because “Strict” is now the “Seven Day” policy and “Flexible” is now the “Same Day” policy in which cancellation can occur any time before the booking begins. Rover made a conscious effort to communicate more clearly with users to improve their experience.
In healthcare, there are many instances when unclear communication can increase costs, drive dissatisfaction, or lead to administrative rework. Whether it’s EHR vendors being unable to normalize and display ingested data in a clear manner; providers being unable to utilize technology while trying to engage with patients; or patients being unable to understand medical jargon, what they owe, or specifics about their condition or treatment, a lack of clarity can lead to frustration and negative outcomes.
When RxRevu designed SwiftRx Direct—our real-time prescription benefit solution that brings patient-specific cost and coverage information to the point-of-care—clear communication was a primary focus. Our team quickly realized that providers were only willing to use the tool if the data was accurate and the messaging was clear. So, we designed a system that was able to present concise information directly within the prescribing interface.
One of the most common requests was for our prescription decision support tool to translate medication inputs to values that PBMs could price. Working closely with clinical guidelines, we built this functionality directly into our solution. Now, when a provider prescribes two 30-day inhalers, we automatically translate that quantity to something the PBM can recognize and price (i.e. “2 inhalers at 6.7 grams each for a total of 13.4 grams”). While this quantity translation seems simple, it is an essential step in displaying an accurate price in-workflow. Instead of displaying estimated price ranges or errors, we convert user inputs into billable quantities—allowing us to price more medications and display more results—to help providers communicate with patients about medication costs and alternative options.
Two other areas where we have focused on delivering clear communication are:
NDC Swapping
When a physician pends a medication, we automatically replace discontinued NDCs, repackaged NDCs, and NDCs that might not be applicable, so that we can get accurate information from PBMs to display in the physician’s EHR. While the provider does not need to know the NDC of the medication they are prescribing, the swapping of NDCs behind-the-scenes allows for clear communication and the presentation of viable medication options on the front-end.
PBM Messaging Normalization
RxRevu often receives numerical codes when we price medications. In response, we work to present simplified, actionable messages to end-users by deciphering the codes and displaying plain-English messages that can help providers avoid coverage restrictions such as step-therapy and quantity limits. Again, by simplifying the messages we display, we can improve communication between patients and providers, and enable on-formulary, low-cost prescribing.
With erroneous EHR data burdening providers at every turn, it is essential that vendors do their part to communicate accurate, meaningful information that can drive better outcomes. By prioritizing the EHR-to-provider interaction, RxRevu is simultaneously helping streamline the provider-to-patient interaction. As RxRevu founder and Chief Innovation Officer Carm Huntress explained in a recent episode of the Business of Pharmacy Podcast, “We want to get doctors back to the reason they became doctors in the first place—to help patients and be an empathetic partner for them.”
By displaying information that is relevant, clean, and actionable, provider teams can enable communication that is both clear and kind.
To learn more about how RxRevu can help you improve communication with real-time data, reach out today.
