WELL Health and OSIS bring communications technology to community health centers

WELL Health and OSIS announced this week that they have partnered to provide community health centers and federally licensed health centers with more seamless access to patient communication technology.

WELL Health, a communications provider, announces that it will offer community health centers in the OSIS network discounted access to its technology platform through the OSIS Partner Program.

The discounts, which vary by hospital size, are proportional to the number of providers, visits and expected usage on the WELL platform, WELL representatives said.

“Access to WELL Health through OSIS makes a major difference because when OSIS approves a provider, it has already evaluated… workflow best practices, implementation methodologies, discounts in the pricing model and their understanding of the needs of the community health center,” said Peter. Mojarras, chief operating officer of California-based Castle Family Health Centers, in a statement to Health Informatics News.

“Effective digital communication with patients can make a big difference in access to care in today’s ‘digital first’ world,” added Mojarras.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT

WELL Health’s platform facilitates conversations, including pre-procedure instructions, virtual care coordination, and post-appointment follow-ups, between patients and their providers via secure SMS/texting, email or telephone messages.

Depending on the provider, 19 different languages ​​are available.

“Most of our patients, who are primarily Medi-Cal and Medicare patients, don’t have time to wait to speak with their healthcare provider,” Mojarras said.

“Leveraging patient communication technology – such as WELL Health – to engage with patients via SMS/text is imperative for us to serve our patient population today,” Mojarras added.

WELL Health says OSIS members can also use its ChatAssist AI technology to automatically respond to routine patient inquiries, allowing staff to focus on patient interactions.

OSIS’s network includes more than 115 health centers in 34 states, and WELL will be available through privileged access at 65 of them.

“We choose like-minded partners who understand the needs of our Community Health Center members and offer best-in-class products and services that make a difference,” said Scott Heaton, vice president of business development and relationships. with members at OSIS, in a statement.

“The OSIS team’s deep expertise coupled with WELL Health’s innovative solution will help our members improve quality of care and positively advance outcomes in the modern era of community-based healthcare,” said Heaton.

THE GREAT TREND

Other companies and organizations have also sought to reduce provider burden through patient communications before and after appointments — including COVID-19 vaccinations.

For example, in 2020, Cerner announced a collaboration with WELL to enable engagement through its patient portal HealtheLife.

Meanwhile, in 2021, Dr. Paul Szotek of Indiana Hernia Center in Carmel, Indiana, told Healthcare IT News that he uses another provider, Klara, to help shape patients’ impressions of their care. “I realized that in order to deliver the same experience every time, I had to control the narrative from the start. Yet most physicians are completely cut off from this most important step and employed physicians have been completely removed from this process. “, did he declare. .

REGISTRATION

“Having the ability to communicate with our patients in real time via SMS so that we can immediately fill or reschedule appointments has been invaluable to us – it has helped us improve the patient experience while getting the most out of the time and resources of our staff,” said the Mojarras of Castle.

Kat Jercich is editor of Healthcare IT News.
Twitter: @kjercich
Email: [email protected]
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.

Maria J. Book