Design and UX play a pivotal role in the evolution of healthcare technology, particularly in digital triage software such as Clearstep.
The focus on UX in Clearstep's digital triage software underscores its importance. A well-designed system can streamline the triage process, making it more intuitive and accessible for patients, which is vital in ensuring effective and timely healthcare delivery.
Because we’re committed to providing our users with an excellent experience, we made a number of enhancements to our products within the past year.
Let’s dive in.
Engaging Patients with Intuitive Design
Clearstep's digital triage software demonstrates an engaging UX for patients, reflected in their Customer Effort Score (CES), which indicates ease of use.
Key elements contributing to this experience include progress indicators, which show patients where they are in the process, and the solution's compatibility with web browsers and mobile devices. We measure the success of these elements by triage completion rates and user feedback/satisfaction surveys, which help Clearstep understand and improve the patient journey.
Brand Consistency and Style Integration
Clearstep's digital triage software reinforces health system branding and style.
By maintaining consistent branding elements like colors, logos, and typography, Clearstep offers a white-labeled experience that aligns with the health system's brand identity. This approach is necessary for health systems to maintain a cohesive and familiar patient experience.
Optimizing for the Mobile-First World
With 80% of all digital triage software interactions initiated from mobile devices, Clearstep's design strategy focuses on optimizing for mobile use.
This consideration is critical, as mobile usage patterns can vary based on the age and population of a health system's patient base. The emphasis on mobile-friendly design ensures that the largest segment of users has a seamless experience.
Innovations in UX for Enhanced Patient Care
Clearstep has implemented several UX enhancements to address specific challenges.
Clarified Triage Outcomes: To address patient uncertainty about triage results, Clearstep now provides upfront information about possible outcomes and the ability to book care directly, skipping the symptom checker. We also changed the first question to be less intimidating and more engaging. This change led to the following improvements in conversation completion rates and user engagement:
- +18% conversation completion rates
- +41% "see booking options" question answered
- +32% number of questions answered
- +17% NLP auto-confirmation
Intuitive Tooltips: We added tooltips to clarify why certain information, like age or symptoms, is needed – addressing dropoff points in conversations. This enhancement led to an increase of 4.69% in conversation initiation rate.
Age Input and Pediatric Triage: Recognizing the high volume of pediatric triages, Clearstep refined its age input fields to be more specific and inclusive of younger ages. This change is significant as pediatric users complete triages at a higher rate than adults, underscoring the need for an age-appropriate triage process.
- 6% of all triages are of pediatric age (0-17)
- 33% of pediatric triages come from an age range where patients could have issues describing their symptoms (0-4)
- Pediatric users complete triages at a 20% higher rate than adult users, highlighting an urgency/need for improved triage for these ranges.
Having protocols for triaging newborns is fundamental for ensuring that parents or guardians can make rapid and well-informed decisions to prioritize and manage the care of newborns, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes and the efficient use of healthcare resources.
Enhanced Calls-to-Action (CTAs): We improved CTA visibility and engagement, leading to increases in user interaction with the triage system.
Telemedicine Integration: Clearstep also integrated telemedicine as a care option for "Self Care at Home" triages, resulting in a 14.6% increase in booked telemedicine appointments.
Redefining Optimal Patient Engagement Through Design
Clearstep's approach to UX in its digital triage software exemplifies how thoughtful design can significantly impact patient engagement and satisfaction.
By focusing on user-friendly interfaces, brand integration, mobile optimization, and innovative enhancements, Clearstep ensures that its virtual triage solution not only meets but exceeds the expectations of today's healthcare consumers.
Our clinically validated digital triage software and conversational AI for healthcare seek to engage patients and exchange their information seamlessly with providers.
If your health system is ready to benefit from data-based, reliable AI support that is constantly improving, let's talk.
