Selected Podcast
WakeMed Shares Secrets to Success for Creating a Digital Patient Companion
When WakeMed Health & Hospitals sought to transform its digital front door strategy, leaders knew they wanted to create a true “digital companion” for consumers. In this session, find out how WakeMed found the right digital health platform and partner, developed an all-access digital engagement strategy, and engaged employees to build its platform and achieve measurable results, including over 9,000 active users a month and 250,000 sessions a year.
Featured Speaker:
Debbie Laughery
Deb Laughery is Vice President of Marketing and Communications for WakeMed Health & Hospitals, a 970+-bed multi-facility health system based in Raleigh, N.C. In her role, which she has held for 25 years, Deb is responsible for all corporate communications, marketing, public relations, and community relations activities for the health system. She has 38 years of healthcare communications and marketing experience at facilities ranging in size from a small rural hospital in Wyoming to a large integrated academic health system in New York. Deb holds a bachelor of science in Journalism and an MBA from West Virginia University. Transcription:
WakeMed Shares Secrets to Success for Creating a Digital Patient Companion
Bill Klaproth (host): This is a special SHSMD Connections 2022 podcast as we talk with keynote speakers and session leaders from the show floor. I'm Bill Klaproth. And right now, we're going to talk with Deb Laughery, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at WakeMed Health and Hospitals. Deb, welcome.
Deb Laughery: Thank you.
Bill Klaproth (host): It is always great to talk with you and thank you for your session at SHSMD Connections 2022, entitled Secrets To Success for Creating a Digital Patient Companion. So when we talk about a digital patient companion, can you just clue us in to exactly what that is?
Deb Laughery: Yes. It is basically an app that fits into our overall digital strategy for the health system. It allows you to do just about anything that you could do on a desktop computer and it really is what we've named the WakeMed All Access App. We really set forth our digital timeline back in 2012, when we decided to go with Epic. And we have a lot of online tools that a patient or their family member could use. So we decided that an app, in addition to what Epic offers, would really bring the ability of a patient to do business with WakeMed in the palm of their hands. So that's what we set out to do with our app.
Bill Klaproth (host): So this initiative, you said all the way back to 2012. So this has been in the making for several years now.
Deb Laughery: Our digital strategy has been absolutely in the making for, I guess, 10 years now. But we were actually even an earlier adopter in that we launched an app back in 2008, which was just more informational in nature. It did show you wait times and the closest emergency departments and things like that. But then, we realized quickly that to be successful and the app really needed to be more transactional, you actually needed to be able to do something on it. Well, our digital strategy had many things in it. It became very apparent that our app could really do even more if it provided a lot of different functionality.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. So this has been an evolution?
Deb Laughery: Yes, it has.
Bill Klaproth (host): So, you know, we hear this term a lot, Deb, the digital front door. So we all know what that is. So the digital front door is basically, and you've mentioned a couple of times, your digital strategy. So this patient companion, if you will, this all-access app is a component of that digital front door strategy. Is that right?
Deb Laughery: Absolutely. It's a key component.
Bill Klaproth (host): So, can you tell us about your digital strategy? You're very progressive there. So of course, like I said, we call it the digital front door. Can you clue us into kind of your overall digital strategy that this patient companion fits into?
Deb Laughery: Sure. We've divided up our digital access or strategy into what I would call pre-visit activities, during-visit activities and then post-visit activities. And there's multiple ways that you can come into our system for care, much of which offers a digital or online version. So everything from finding a doctor, online scheduling, price estimation, pre-appointment communication, preregistration, virtual visits, post-visit communications with regard to test results and things like that. And it just really does run the whole gamut from acquisition of a new patient, all the way through their post-visit. And then of course, nurturing that patient so that they stay with you throughout their lifetime.
The app, which includes many of these digital access points, and a big one on the app is wayfinding. And that really was one of the key element to what we were trying to do. You know, with three hospitals our flagship being, you know, 1.8 million square feet, people get lost and they get frustrated and they can't remember where they parked their car. So wayfinding was a big piece of what we were also trying to develop.
Bill Klaproth (host): Okay. I love how you said that. And wayfinding is good. I had to go to an ENT the other day. So I live in the Chicago area, big hospital system, big campus, like you say, I could hardly find where I was supposed to go and I parked in the wrong lot. I wound up walking like three lots away from where I was supposed to be. So I could see where wayfinding is really crucial. And I love how you say there, it's kind of divided into three categories, if you will: pre, during and post-visit activity. It's all right there on the app, is that right?
Deb Laughery: That is correct.
Bill Klaproth (host): That's really important. So when you put this app together, I'm sure there is a digital platform you use or potentially a partner. How did you go about finding that right partner to help you with this app?
Deb Laughery: Well, it was a process, that's for sure. It took us several years to really find what we were looking for. And now, I would say that that lead decision was the fact that it offered wayfinding, both external as well as blue dot, like we're used to on a Waze or something like that, actually inside our facilities. So it is and it works beautifully. That was one of the lead decision points. But we knew that wayfinding alone wasn't going to offer enough functionality for people to really download this thing. I mean, that's important, but we wanted a platform that really allowed us to weave in all of the other digital access and functionality that we wanted to. So we interviewed multiple companies, ultimately settled on Gozio because their platform allowed for all of those other things we wanted to do. Some are just links, but they work. Some are embedded in and, you know, really the functionality, you would never know that it feels very much like it's part of the app. And Gozia was able to do that.
And the key for us was we don't have developers within our system. We just don't. And a lot of systems don't. They have a great IT department. So the nice thing was that with this product, we didn't have to have those developers or go out and find and piece together a bunch of different developers to come up with one product. We were able to get the wayfinding and add in all the other functionality because that's the way their product is built.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. So that's really good information for someone looking to duplicate what you've done there at WakeMed. And you're right, most people don't have developers on staff, so finding a partner is crucial. And you found one that could deliver the wayfinding that you wanted, and then all of the other things that you wanted it to do too, as you call it an all-access app. So when you think of an all-access app, you think it's got everything on it that you're going to need. That makes sense.
Deb Laughery: And what might be different for those listening here is this was driven by the marketing department, not by IT and not by our patient engagement and access department, although we all three work very, very closely together. But IT said, "This can not be a heavy lift for us if we're going to do it. We just don't have the bandwidth right now." So, it worked out well. And I think many, many organizations are faced with the same thing. Stuff like this may just not be the priority of the stretched resources that so many of us are finding.
Bill Klaproth (host): Absolutely. So finding that partner is really crucial. So Deb, you've got this great app now. It's really powerful. How did you market this? How did you spread the word to let your community know you have this great digital patient companion, you know, right in the palm of their hands? How did you market this?
Deb Laughery: We started internally. Well, first, we started with user testing and I think that's really a critical element of all of this. We needed a broad section of our community, our employees, our volunteers, et cetera, et cetera, to really test it, to really understand was it delivering what we promised it was going to deliver.
And so, we started with user testing. And then, we made a few final tweaks. And then, we launched it first, internally. Because we have 13,000 members of the WakeMed family being our employees, our volunteers, our physicians. Well, what better voice is there than utilizing those 13,000 people? So they saw it and they used it and they understood it, then they will help us spread it to the community.
So we did all of your traditional internal communications types of things that I'm sure every hospital across the country does. You know, your newsletters, your events. I mean, we made it fun. We did some crazy things to really get in front of our employees. And our new employees during orientation are told to download this app because it will help them find their way as brand new employees as well.
So starting internally allows you then to go external with it. We did TV. We did radio. We did print. We did digital. We did billboard, news release. It got picked up broadly. We continue to this day to do some of that, but it's also included on all of our direct mail and email newsletters, so that we continue to keep it in front of people as an option, which is really continuing to help with downloads.
So that campaign launched in July of '20, I believe. Then, we kind of paused it because our good friend COVID entered into the world. And if you think about it, you know, for that period of time, it hit North Carolina on March 6th of 2020. So during that period of busy, busy COVID, we weren't having a lot of patients. We weren't having a lot of visitors come to our hospitals. No one was coming to the emergency department, unless they absolutely had to like with a heart attack, and even then they stayed home sometimes. So the volumes weren't where they typically would be if it was an open normal time. So we kind of paused all the marketing then, but it's continued to grow and it's continued to get downloads.
Bill Klaproth (host): Well, that sounds like a great thought out strategy. And I like how you said it was an internal to external strategy, starting with the internal staff first and then moving externally and using all of the traditional ways that we market things, TV, radio, print, billboards, et cetera. So you said it continues to grow, so it was launched in 2020. What have the results been so far?
Deb Laughery: So right now, we have just over a hundred thousand downloads. And about 9,000 users a month and then, you know, 250,000, 260,000 sessions a year. We think it's pretty good.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. So you're happy with those results. Those are great numbers.
Deb Laughery: I always want to see them continue to go up, but yes, I'm happy.
Bill Klaproth (host): Right.
Deb Laughery: I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't, right?
Bill Klaproth (host): That's right. So I would imagine you've gotten great feedback on this as well.
Deb Laughery: We have. We've gotten very good feedback on it. You know, I'll see people in the hall. They have it in front of her face and they're like, "Okay." I'm like, "Don't forget to look up, so you don't run into somebody."
Bill Klaproth (host): That's right.
Deb Laughery: They really do. And somebody was using it the other day and they're like, "This is the greatest thing ever." They really, really appreciate it because it helps them find their way. And of course, you can mark where you parked your car. So, if you can't remember what parking deck or what door you came in, it will take you back to where you started, which is really, really important.
Bill Klaproth (host): That wayfinding seems so simple, but easy to overlook, right? With everything going on at a modern healthcare organization, it's probably easy to overlook that, "Hey, we should probably help people navigate the campus and help them remember where they parked their car." So it's important not to overlook things like that, right?
Deb Laughery: Exactly. And then, we put in a bunch of amenities as well. I mean, it's one thing if you're coming to visit a loved one, but like where do I get a cup of coffee? Where is there an ATM machine? All of those sorts of things that really help with the overall experience and that's really what the intent was.
It is important, I would say, that we were able to embed in this app the MyChart experience. Again, you know, I said we have epic as our EHR and we were able to link together and embed MyChart into this. So it's a seamless experience, because it's MyChart that offers some of the functionalities like test results and the pre-registry e-check-in and self-rooming and some of those things. Much of the functionality that you can do through the app is really through a link to our patient portal.
Bill Klaproth (host): Right. And so it really is an all-access app. And I like how you said, really this is designed to help the overall experience. And if someone has a good experience, that's a win for you. If someone walks out of there going, "This was great. Wow. This was fantastic. I'm going to now spread the word," that's exactly what you're looking for.
Deb Laughery: Yes, it is.
Bill Klaproth (host): Well, this has been great, Deb. Always a pleasure talking with you. As we wrap up talking about creating a digital patient companion and the strategy behind the digital front door, anything else you want to add about this?
Deb Laughery: I'd probably like to add don't be frightened to take on something like this. If you really have the right partner and you team up with your IT and your engagement and access folks, it's really not insurmountable. And honestly, I thought for sure it was going to be so expensive that it was out of reach. And it's not inexpensive by any stretch, but I think the returns are far greater than what our investment has been.
Bill Klaproth (host): Well, that's a great way to wrap up, encouraging people, "Hey, don't be afraid of this. Check it out" and, "Hey, you might be surprised at how affordable it is." And for the spend, the investment, it sounds like the return definitely is worth it. So that's a great piece of advice, Deb. Thank you for that.
Deb Laughery: You're welcome.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. And thank you so much for your time as always. Always a pleasure talking with you and thanks again.
Deb Laughery: Certainly. Anytime.
Bill Klaproth (host): And make sure you sign up for this year's SHSMD Virtual Conference, October 12th, 2022 plus on-demand through the end of the year. The virtual conference will feature access to 50 plus sessions recorded from the September in-person annual conference plus all new live sessions, just go to shsmd.org. That's S-H-S-M-D.org/virtual to learn more and to get registered. And please join us at the next SHSMD Connections Annual Conference September 2023 in Chicago. And if you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels and find access to our full podcast library at shsmd.org/podcasts. I'm Bill Klaproth. As always, thanks for listening.
WakeMed Shares Secrets to Success for Creating a Digital Patient Companion
Bill Klaproth (host): This is a special SHSMD Connections 2022 podcast as we talk with keynote speakers and session leaders from the show floor. I'm Bill Klaproth. And right now, we're going to talk with Deb Laughery, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at WakeMed Health and Hospitals. Deb, welcome.
Deb Laughery: Thank you.
Bill Klaproth (host): It is always great to talk with you and thank you for your session at SHSMD Connections 2022, entitled Secrets To Success for Creating a Digital Patient Companion. So when we talk about a digital patient companion, can you just clue us in to exactly what that is?
Deb Laughery: Yes. It is basically an app that fits into our overall digital strategy for the health system. It allows you to do just about anything that you could do on a desktop computer and it really is what we've named the WakeMed All Access App. We really set forth our digital timeline back in 2012, when we decided to go with Epic. And we have a lot of online tools that a patient or their family member could use. So we decided that an app, in addition to what Epic offers, would really bring the ability of a patient to do business with WakeMed in the palm of their hands. So that's what we set out to do with our app.
Bill Klaproth (host): So this initiative, you said all the way back to 2012. So this has been in the making for several years now.
Deb Laughery: Our digital strategy has been absolutely in the making for, I guess, 10 years now. But we were actually even an earlier adopter in that we launched an app back in 2008, which was just more informational in nature. It did show you wait times and the closest emergency departments and things like that. But then, we realized quickly that to be successful and the app really needed to be more transactional, you actually needed to be able to do something on it. Well, our digital strategy had many things in it. It became very apparent that our app could really do even more if it provided a lot of different functionality.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. So this has been an evolution?
Deb Laughery: Yes, it has.
Bill Klaproth (host): So, you know, we hear this term a lot, Deb, the digital front door. So we all know what that is. So the digital front door is basically, and you've mentioned a couple of times, your digital strategy. So this patient companion, if you will, this all-access app is a component of that digital front door strategy. Is that right?
Deb Laughery: Absolutely. It's a key component.
Bill Klaproth (host): So, can you tell us about your digital strategy? You're very progressive there. So of course, like I said, we call it the digital front door. Can you clue us into kind of your overall digital strategy that this patient companion fits into?
Deb Laughery: Sure. We've divided up our digital access or strategy into what I would call pre-visit activities, during-visit activities and then post-visit activities. And there's multiple ways that you can come into our system for care, much of which offers a digital or online version. So everything from finding a doctor, online scheduling, price estimation, pre-appointment communication, preregistration, virtual visits, post-visit communications with regard to test results and things like that. And it just really does run the whole gamut from acquisition of a new patient, all the way through their post-visit. And then of course, nurturing that patient so that they stay with you throughout their lifetime.
The app, which includes many of these digital access points, and a big one on the app is wayfinding. And that really was one of the key element to what we were trying to do. You know, with three hospitals our flagship being, you know, 1.8 million square feet, people get lost and they get frustrated and they can't remember where they parked their car. So wayfinding was a big piece of what we were also trying to develop.
Bill Klaproth (host): Okay. I love how you said that. And wayfinding is good. I had to go to an ENT the other day. So I live in the Chicago area, big hospital system, big campus, like you say, I could hardly find where I was supposed to go and I parked in the wrong lot. I wound up walking like three lots away from where I was supposed to be. So I could see where wayfinding is really crucial. And I love how you say there, it's kind of divided into three categories, if you will: pre, during and post-visit activity. It's all right there on the app, is that right?
Deb Laughery: That is correct.
Bill Klaproth (host): That's really important. So when you put this app together, I'm sure there is a digital platform you use or potentially a partner. How did you go about finding that right partner to help you with this app?
Deb Laughery: Well, it was a process, that's for sure. It took us several years to really find what we were looking for. And now, I would say that that lead decision was the fact that it offered wayfinding, both external as well as blue dot, like we're used to on a Waze or something like that, actually inside our facilities. So it is and it works beautifully. That was one of the lead decision points. But we knew that wayfinding alone wasn't going to offer enough functionality for people to really download this thing. I mean, that's important, but we wanted a platform that really allowed us to weave in all of the other digital access and functionality that we wanted to. So we interviewed multiple companies, ultimately settled on Gozio because their platform allowed for all of those other things we wanted to do. Some are just links, but they work. Some are embedded in and, you know, really the functionality, you would never know that it feels very much like it's part of the app. And Gozia was able to do that.
And the key for us was we don't have developers within our system. We just don't. And a lot of systems don't. They have a great IT department. So the nice thing was that with this product, we didn't have to have those developers or go out and find and piece together a bunch of different developers to come up with one product. We were able to get the wayfinding and add in all the other functionality because that's the way their product is built.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. So that's really good information for someone looking to duplicate what you've done there at WakeMed. And you're right, most people don't have developers on staff, so finding a partner is crucial. And you found one that could deliver the wayfinding that you wanted, and then all of the other things that you wanted it to do too, as you call it an all-access app. So when you think of an all-access app, you think it's got everything on it that you're going to need. That makes sense.
Deb Laughery: And what might be different for those listening here is this was driven by the marketing department, not by IT and not by our patient engagement and access department, although we all three work very, very closely together. But IT said, "This can not be a heavy lift for us if we're going to do it. We just don't have the bandwidth right now." So, it worked out well. And I think many, many organizations are faced with the same thing. Stuff like this may just not be the priority of the stretched resources that so many of us are finding.
Bill Klaproth (host): Absolutely. So finding that partner is really crucial. So Deb, you've got this great app now. It's really powerful. How did you market this? How did you spread the word to let your community know you have this great digital patient companion, you know, right in the palm of their hands? How did you market this?
Deb Laughery: We started internally. Well, first, we started with user testing and I think that's really a critical element of all of this. We needed a broad section of our community, our employees, our volunteers, et cetera, et cetera, to really test it, to really understand was it delivering what we promised it was going to deliver.
And so, we started with user testing. And then, we made a few final tweaks. And then, we launched it first, internally. Because we have 13,000 members of the WakeMed family being our employees, our volunteers, our physicians. Well, what better voice is there than utilizing those 13,000 people? So they saw it and they used it and they understood it, then they will help us spread it to the community.
So we did all of your traditional internal communications types of things that I'm sure every hospital across the country does. You know, your newsletters, your events. I mean, we made it fun. We did some crazy things to really get in front of our employees. And our new employees during orientation are told to download this app because it will help them find their way as brand new employees as well.
So starting internally allows you then to go external with it. We did TV. We did radio. We did print. We did digital. We did billboard, news release. It got picked up broadly. We continue to this day to do some of that, but it's also included on all of our direct mail and email newsletters, so that we continue to keep it in front of people as an option, which is really continuing to help with downloads.
So that campaign launched in July of '20, I believe. Then, we kind of paused it because our good friend COVID entered into the world. And if you think about it, you know, for that period of time, it hit North Carolina on March 6th of 2020. So during that period of busy, busy COVID, we weren't having a lot of patients. We weren't having a lot of visitors come to our hospitals. No one was coming to the emergency department, unless they absolutely had to like with a heart attack, and even then they stayed home sometimes. So the volumes weren't where they typically would be if it was an open normal time. So we kind of paused all the marketing then, but it's continued to grow and it's continued to get downloads.
Bill Klaproth (host): Well, that sounds like a great thought out strategy. And I like how you said it was an internal to external strategy, starting with the internal staff first and then moving externally and using all of the traditional ways that we market things, TV, radio, print, billboards, et cetera. So you said it continues to grow, so it was launched in 2020. What have the results been so far?
Deb Laughery: So right now, we have just over a hundred thousand downloads. And about 9,000 users a month and then, you know, 250,000, 260,000 sessions a year. We think it's pretty good.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. So you're happy with those results. Those are great numbers.
Deb Laughery: I always want to see them continue to go up, but yes, I'm happy.
Bill Klaproth (host): Right.
Deb Laughery: I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't, right?
Bill Klaproth (host): That's right. So I would imagine you've gotten great feedback on this as well.
Deb Laughery: We have. We've gotten very good feedback on it. You know, I'll see people in the hall. They have it in front of her face and they're like, "Okay." I'm like, "Don't forget to look up, so you don't run into somebody."
Bill Klaproth (host): That's right.
Deb Laughery: They really do. And somebody was using it the other day and they're like, "This is the greatest thing ever." They really, really appreciate it because it helps them find their way. And of course, you can mark where you parked your car. So, if you can't remember what parking deck or what door you came in, it will take you back to where you started, which is really, really important.
Bill Klaproth (host): That wayfinding seems so simple, but easy to overlook, right? With everything going on at a modern healthcare organization, it's probably easy to overlook that, "Hey, we should probably help people navigate the campus and help them remember where they parked their car." So it's important not to overlook things like that, right?
Deb Laughery: Exactly. And then, we put in a bunch of amenities as well. I mean, it's one thing if you're coming to visit a loved one, but like where do I get a cup of coffee? Where is there an ATM machine? All of those sorts of things that really help with the overall experience and that's really what the intent was.
It is important, I would say, that we were able to embed in this app the MyChart experience. Again, you know, I said we have epic as our EHR and we were able to link together and embed MyChart into this. So it's a seamless experience, because it's MyChart that offers some of the functionalities like test results and the pre-registry e-check-in and self-rooming and some of those things. Much of the functionality that you can do through the app is really through a link to our patient portal.
Bill Klaproth (host): Right. And so it really is an all-access app. And I like how you said, really this is designed to help the overall experience. And if someone has a good experience, that's a win for you. If someone walks out of there going, "This was great. Wow. This was fantastic. I'm going to now spread the word," that's exactly what you're looking for.
Deb Laughery: Yes, it is.
Bill Klaproth (host): Well, this has been great, Deb. Always a pleasure talking with you. As we wrap up talking about creating a digital patient companion and the strategy behind the digital front door, anything else you want to add about this?
Deb Laughery: I'd probably like to add don't be frightened to take on something like this. If you really have the right partner and you team up with your IT and your engagement and access folks, it's really not insurmountable. And honestly, I thought for sure it was going to be so expensive that it was out of reach. And it's not inexpensive by any stretch, but I think the returns are far greater than what our investment has been.
Bill Klaproth (host): Well, that's a great way to wrap up, encouraging people, "Hey, don't be afraid of this. Check it out" and, "Hey, you might be surprised at how affordable it is." And for the spend, the investment, it sounds like the return definitely is worth it. So that's a great piece of advice, Deb. Thank you for that.
Deb Laughery: You're welcome.
Bill Klaproth (host): Yeah. And thank you so much for your time as always. Always a pleasure talking with you and thanks again.
Deb Laughery: Certainly. Anytime.
Bill Klaproth (host): And make sure you sign up for this year's SHSMD Virtual Conference, October 12th, 2022 plus on-demand through the end of the year. The virtual conference will feature access to 50 plus sessions recorded from the September in-person annual conference plus all new live sessions, just go to shsmd.org. That's S-H-S-M-D.org/virtual to learn more and to get registered. And please join us at the next SHSMD Connections Annual Conference September 2023 in Chicago. And if you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels and find access to our full podcast library at shsmd.org/podcasts. I'm Bill Klaproth. As always, thanks for listening.