Couple standing next to each other outside. Trees in background

Five creative ways to personalize engagement for optimal gap closure 

Gaps in care programs, biometric screening offerings and outreach campaigns that help your members live their healthiest lives are important parts of any managed care or payer program. But no matter which combination of these you choose to deploy, they’re only as good as the engagement levels they achieve.  
 

Understanding your members better so you can personalize and improve their engagement helps you maximize results and close gaps in care.
 

supporting image

Five ways to enhance member engagement
 

 

1. Target communities to meet members where they live and work

In the modern world, it’s all about convenience. This makes it critical to remove as many barriers as possible that impede member access to healthcare, so the entire process is seamless and easy. One barrier that may not be obvious is how populations vary across different regions.
Not only are there cultural differences, but there are also significant physical, geographic, financial, social and technological differences. These are all barriers for access to healthcare, as well as barriers to engagement.
Gaps in care programs produce the best results when they address these barriers by identifying and targeting underserved communities. Because the hardest populations to reach are often the most resistant, yet most in need of accessible healthcare, addressing barriers for such populations can increase your credibility with these members.
 

Targeted outreach can be achieved through:

  • Telehealth options

  • At-home sample collection kits

  • Mobile phlebotomy services

  • Community-oriented events 

  • Digital tools to get personalized insights, view results and schedule appointments 

No matter the method, the best results are achieved when we help members better understand their specific conditions and help them navigate their care journey. When members are engaged, they can be both their and your biggest advocates and carry the message forward so similarly hard-to-reach individuals consider joining your programs.

The process to get a more complete understanding of your population, so you can identify, target and contact the members of your community most in need, should be driven by data for the highest levels of efficiency and efficacy.
 

2. Leverage data for clinical needs, reducing costs and maximizing efficiency 

We live in a data-centric world. Leveraging insights through technology can make healthcare more accessible, convenient and meaningful for your members. 

Data helps assess your members’ clinical needs and assists with efficiently mapping them to healthcare located near their homes and workplaces. Data is also critical for managing population health and can benchmark your population against community-wide disease trends.  

 

Lab data can encompass
 

  • Results values

  • Patient demographics

  • Payer coding 

  • Patient touchpoints over time

The best use of data provides complete results for patients, yielding information that’s critical for clinical decision-making and diagnosing diseases. It helps identify and monitor high-risk patients and target lab-based gaps in care to reduce costs and maximize efficiency—outcomes important to health plans, providers and members alike.

Lab data can also help you optimize efficient use of lab testing. No one wants to perform, endure or pay for duplicative testing or have to do more testing to obtain the clinically appropriate results —and efficient use of lab testing helps reduce that likelihood. 

Ultimately, lab analytics will help your organization and providers focus on the most important, high-risk, high-cost patients who can benefit most from earlier and more targeted interventions. Leveraging data helps support your goals of:

  • Prioritizing care management
  • Reducing hospital and emergency room visits
  • Improving performance on quality measures
  • Reducing total cost of care

3. Employ gaps in care programs

Many members want to be more involved in their healthcare. But they want it to be done their way and feel like the process is tailored to them. 
Targeted, personalized, early interventions in gaps in care programs are critical. A one-size-fits-all approach won’t maximize your results.
Some motivation may come from employer or health plan wellness incentives or premium reduction programs. 

Health and wellness programs  provide members with:

  • Key insights about the state of their health

  • Ongoing clinical engagement tools and education

  • Education and tools to help manage their health and improve their quality of life

Data can help you target a singular condition and the affected membership for your gaps in care programs. Then, through education and focused outreach efforts, you can successfully raise awareness and guide those members toward cost-effective treatment.

Leveraging employer, community or health plan wellness initiatives further raises awareness of problematic conditions and potential solutions. When Katie Couric's husband died from colorectal cancer, she went on TV shows to increase awareness on the importance of screening. Similarly, you want to significantly raise awareness to harness the power of engaged members.

Wellness initiatives are also important for detecting diseases in asymptomatic individuals. Annual screenings and testing are important, as survival rates are heavily influenced by early detection and early treatment.

Screenings also help you know who your high-risk or rising-risk members are so you can have better and more targeted gaps in care programs or treatment opportunities within the population. Incomplete records or inaccessible records lead to inaccurate risk classification, leading to poorer health and steeper financial consequences.

4. Account for generational differences

Many current benefit designs were created by the baby boomer generation and very much focused on what that generation wanted at the time. But things are changing. 

Embracing the changing times and needs, and how quickly you do so, will determine your success. Because generational differences are significant, especially regarding variations in their healthcare needs, attitudes, behavior and access to resources. Studies and experience indicate that:
 

Baby Boomers

Want face-to-face communication, are less tech savvy and implicitly trust their providers. They’re loyal to trusted brands and relationships

Generation X

Prefers technology but will meet in person. Convenience is important, as is having a relationship and trust with their providers. They tend to trust but also verify. This is critically important as they age into Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans

Millennials

Are more comfortable communicating digitally since they've been brought up on the internet. They prefer instant messaging, email or text over face-to-face interaction

Generation Z

Uses technology as the first, and sometimes only, method of interaction. Virtual health, self-care, mental health and feeling valued as a person are top priorities 

New health plan models, benefit designs, communication tools and methods of engagement will all need to be rethought and revised so they’re not treating each generation like they have the same needs and preferred methods of contact. 

Consider offering a mix of digital tools and in-person interactions to bridge the gaps across generations. Whether it’s mobile phlebotomy services, online scheduling or at-home collection kits,   make sure you find the right strategy and tactic for the right member.
 

5. Find the right, creative partnerships

With so much change going on in the industry, it’s important to look for a trusted leader to help you develop creative solutions for your unique member engagement needs. No matter what gaps you’re looking to close, it’s important you find partners that don’t just look to do things how they’ve always been done to reduce morbidity, improve mortality, decrease healthcare costs and improve overall population health.

Improving quality metrics and outcomes requires being aware of the factors and trends discussed above, and being prepared to do something different. If you do the same things you've always done, you’ll get the same results you've always gotten.  

That means as you move forward, “newer” tactics like home collection kits, mobile health and telehealth options will become increasingly important. And what’s more, who knows what the next effective trend may be?

Lab data is heavily involved in scientific research and furthering whatever treatment or tools that may become the next way to induce engagement and improve care. The more data savvy you are, the better your population understanding will be.

Best practices include:
 

  • Creatively embracing technology

  • Prioritizing health equity 

  • Improving the member experience 

Embracing these practices requires you to know your members and personalize engagement that moves them into action. When you offer more personalized engagement, you’re also more member-centric, leading to more satisfied members and better outcomes. 

Having the right partner who has access to the data you need is essential in reducing pain points and barriers to close gaps in care.
 

We’re here to help

At Labcorp, we’re committed to scientific excellence and continue to add to our over 6,500-test portfolio to ensure we deliver quality service to our patients, providers and health plans. Successful gap closure programs and care in general benefit from our extensive scale and partnerships, top-quality services and products, and broad and multichannel access for members.

Our tools and solutions help you evaluate and target at-risk patients for early intervention, helping to improve patient health and increase satisfaction. Learn more about how our different gaps in care programs can boost patient experience with convenient solutions for at-home test kit options.

Contact us today to get started.
 

Kim Licata, VP Payor Solutions, manages client relationships with four of Labcorp’s top national payors. Her main objective is to provide outstanding client service, explore new initiatives, and help resolve any challenges. 

Kim received her juris doctor with honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law and her bachelor of arts with distinction (American Government and Philosophy) from the University of Virginia.