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We live in a time and age where technology is at the frontier of everything. It's like everything is just a click away. It won't be wrong to say that there is a potential to transform anything and everything. But is technology making a difference?

The advanced technology is definitely delivering solutions and helping companies manage their customer experiences. But it's all about data, data, and data. Where are the humans in this whole equation?

Clearly, innovation is essential, but what about empathy? It's time to step into the patient's shoes and use empathy to identify different ways to bring in a strong era of care and experiences.

This is why healthcare organizations need to step up and use the same option to bring in the new era of care. But answer the following questions before that.

1. Can customer-centric technology bring access to compassionate caregivers? 
2. Can a scalable tech-based platform put its customers in the driver's seat, especially when patients want a listening ear?
3. Can you overcome challenges significant to seniors, especially if they don't know English?

Once you answer these questions, head towards the next part of the article, where we will talk about adding "human" to the list of priorities when transforming your business digitally.

Humanizing technology: What does it even mean?

Humanizing means helping people to relate to the high-tech devices without losing the empathy quotient. It means making interactions more flexible and more convenient so that the customer's life becomes even more simple and meaningful.

Besides that, it also means that you have to make it more inclusive and not tech savvy. Complicated apps aren't user-friendly. Ideally, the technology must be scalable and adaptable to meet human needs. 

But why does technology need to be more human?

It's because we humans depend on technology to run. But this technology is reducing in-person interactions, which is good. But not for the long haul. Because humans look for interactions to build trust. This is why healthcare organizations need to make it people friendly.  

What next?

Let's be honest. The providers are working hard to make the care more patient friendly. But the interaction must be effortless, efficient, and seamless. But at the same time, you must practice compassionate communication to bring the clinicians and patients together. 

The practice must form a therapeutic alliance to create a sense of caring and trust. It means that you need to include humanity at every point in care. This means that you need to inject the science of medicine while engaging consumers. 

For instance, you can heal depending on your understanding and acknowledging their emotions which is a part of their medical condition. You can ask simple questions using different technology integrations like "What are you worried about? Are you feeling fine? Is there anything that's causing your fear?" 

It's not wrong to say that empathetic preoperative consultation helps improve patient outcomes in many ways. Patient-centered care is the key to humanizing technology.

But how?

 Putting humans first in healthcare

 Healthcare is about helping patients and people. But it's been so long that the industry is at a dead end because of the provider-centric offerings. It's time that there is an end to it all. While technology is a crucial enabler of making lives better. Let's look at the human expectations from healthcare tech-enabled systems.

• Accessibility should be a priority.

You can't do anything if your customers cannot access your solutions. They need to be convenient, equitable, and affordable, whether preventive or rehabilitation preventative care. In fact, research shows that if you use telehealth services, more than 50% will use it for preventive, diagnostic, or illness instead of going to a hospital. 

But since not everyone has access to virtual care because of computers, smartphones, or the internet, it limits its use. This is why accessibility and affordability must be a priority to reach millions of people, especially for preventive care. 

• Customer experience is the key differentiator

The healthcare industry can't work if the customers aren't happy with their offerings. Experience matters more than you think. In fact, more than 90% of health executives feel that a highly personalized experience is a strategic priority for the industry. But the number doesn't replicate in the results. Use your data to understand the preferences and complaints and act on them. That way, you can show that you care about your patients more than they think.

Remember, it's a show and tells the world. If you aren't making changes per their demands, you can't reach them again. Retention matters a lot. You can't keep circling back to patient acquisitions. It's time to stop attrition. Work on patient satisfaction and creating more personalized experiences. That way, you can reach your patients and help them care for themselves.

• Better outcomes should be the by-product.

If your aim is better outcomes, revenue, or ROI and not service offerings or experiences, you will never find a way to achieve it. When you offer accessible, affordable, and quality treatment, the experiences are always right. And it results in better outcomes. Adding technology and empathy is the right concoction to achieve such results. 

Help people be proactive about their health, and they will come back to you for proactive measures instead of reactive ones. It's time to be patient-centric. 

Final Takeaways: It’s time to humanize health technology and take the first steps

In healthcare, you need to walk into the other person’s shoes. You must understand that everything is holistically related to one another. You need to look through the human lens to unlock the potential of innovative technologies. You must respond to certain things to bring human elements back into your offerings. 

1. Make sure to give patients control of their health data and different tools to use it and understand it for better care.

2. Consider different data to make health or wellbeing equitable. It;s everyone’s right to get access to good healthcare services. 

3. Use technology in a way that your patients feel personalized and convenient care using it but not clunky and disjointed health. 

It’s time to be more empathetic even with so much technology around.