By Devin Partida, Editor-in-Chief, ReHack.com
LinkedIn: Devin Partida
LinkedIn: ReHack Magazine
While patients are fundamental to the healthcare industry, they often get left out of the conversation. In the interest of improving outcomes and increasing engagement, information technology (IT) teams must design patient-centered websites. How should they go about it?
The Need for Patient-Centered Health Care Websites
IT professionals and web developers must consider barriers to access, including — but not limited to — those with disabilities, low income, limited internet access and a lack of insurance. Creating websites centered around their needs preserves their employer’s reputation and may improve patient outcomes.
Website visitors are often going through a difficult time or seeking care urgently. Many cannot visit in person since, in the United States, over 80% of counties lack adequate access to physical care. Fulfilling their goal of scheduling care or making payments is no longer enough. IT professionals must put them first by prioritizing the user experience.
What Does a Patient-Centered Website Look Like?
A patient-centered website must be accessible, intuitive, optimized and secure while providing essential information and services.
Informative
Medical jargon on patient-facing platforms is inaccessible. While a Gallup analysis revealed approximately 130 million people lack literacy proficiency — meaning they cannot read at a high school level — research shows health care websites near a 12th-grade level on average. Patient-centered pages use user-friendly wording and are available in multiple languages.
Intuitive
Navigation should feel seamless and natural, even for those with mental or physical impairments. Accessibility options like text-to-speech, color contrast or sticky menus are ideal. IT professionals should consider responsive design, which leverages Hypertext Markup Language to resize and move user interface elements to accommodate all screen sizes.
Optimized
Lengthy loading times are frustrating — and people are quickly becoming less tolerant of them. According to one survey, 57% of patients have displayed an increased demand for faster response times recently. Web developers should minimize their use of images and animations to remain accessible to those with slow internet.
Credible
Organizations that are vendors of personal health records may be subject to the Health Breach Notification Rule. Violations may result in costly fines and reputation damage. While 98.6% of health care websites allow third-party tracking, IT professionals should not consider selling information for advertising purposes — doing so would damage their credibility.
Secure
Security is a commonly overlooked aspect of a patient-centered health care website. Prioritizing patients involves building trust. Considering cybercriminals compromised upwards of 51 million medical records in 2022, IT professionals would be wise to secure their websites against breaches and cyberattacks.
Tips for Developing a User-Friendly Health Care Website
Reaching out to users directly allows IT teams to create user-friendly, accessible websites that cater to patients’ needs. According to the U.S. General Services Administration, usability testing helps hospitals gather data-driven insights from representative users, generating quantitative results.
If surveys and testing are unfeasible, a user story —a short narrative that places web developers in the patient’s position — is an excellent alternative. For example, it could say, “As someone with memory issues, I want to receive confirmation emails when scheduling appointments online.”
Either way, teams should consider assistive technologies like keyboard emulators, screen magnifiers, and text-to-speech software during development. For example, using alt text to describe charts can help visitors with visual impairments build a comprehensive understanding of the page.
Utilizing Patient Portals to Improve the User Experience
Patient portals provide around-the-clock access to appointment scheduling, provider communication and personal health records as long as users have an internet connection. They are arguably the most crucial part of a patient-centered website because they give individuals control over the user experience.
Timeliness is one of the primary benefits of integration. Physicians spend 44.9% of their time interacting with electronic health records — time they could spend on direct care. If their employer develops a patient portal, they can personalize and optimize care, resulting in better patient outcomes.
Naturally, these portals are not inherently intuitive. Professionals should ensure they include features like multiple communication channels, sticky menus and responsive design. Expanding accessibility options and tailoring the user experience to align with most people’s needs can help them develop a patient-first website.
The Intricacy of Maintaining a Patient-Centered Website
Website development is an ongoing responsibility. As patients’ expectations change, security standards update and the healthcare industry evolves, IT professionals must keep information, services and accessibility tools current.