Experts share tips on using patient engagement technology

Organizations need a set of guiding principles anchored in the needs of patients before implementing engagement technology, according Ashwini Zenooz, MD, one of four technology experts who spoke with Healthcare IT News for a special report on best practices in patient engagement. Zenooz, former chief medical officer responsible for electronic health record modernization at the Department of Veterans Affairs, emphasized patients’ needs and preferences are diverse, and the strategies for engaging them must acknowledge that diversity. Leaders in a patient engagement initiative at John Muir Health, Walnut Creek, Calif., described how they are working behind the scenes to create a more seamless experience for customers. The article contains numerous other tips and strategies as well as a caution. Unless everyone within a facility understands what leaders are trying to accomplish by implementing patient engagement technology, the initiative is likely to fail. (Healthcare IT News story, 7/25/19)