How do you think about the value of digital?

By digital I mean implementation of a software product to improve the effectiveness of healthcare delivery, especially for the organization's customers. (For now, let's refer to any recent EHR upgrade as a foundational infrastructure capital expense.)

So: What's the value of digital (and perhaps more specifically: digitization) to the organization?

Two (more) questions:

• What’s the value of an engaged and satisfied patient?
• What’s the value of an engaged and satisfied physician?

In my estimation, this pair of questions is where any analysis (and investment, for that matter) should begin. Perhaps where it ends, too. As digitally native companies have demonstrated, the whole shebang has-to-be-entirely-all-about the user/customer ("customer obsession"). And the two essential customers for any provider organization: patients and physicians (+ order-writing providers). (Said another way: Too often the bureaucracy and other participants in the transaction consume organizational attention.)

Yet let's imagine we'll need a bit more to justify healthcare delivery's digital investments. How can we think about the prospective returns in terms of value created for the organization?

Here's a list, with a simple example to help me illustrate my meaning. What would you add/edit/delete? How would you organize it further?

Increase revenue.

• Online appointment availability converts a prospective patient into an actual patient.

Decrease cost (improve profitability).

• Patient schedules appointment digitally vs calling contact center.

Improve patient outcomes.

• Remote patient monitoring (+ intervention) prevents a readmission.

Improve patient experience (or: meet consumer expectations).

• Day of procedure "Here's What to Expect" vignette.

Improve physician and provider experience.

• Decision support helps provider decide on appropriate medication.

Improve employee (including the care team) experience.

• Fewer phone calls to a front desk because a patient was able to find an answer to a question.

Automate tasks (improve workflow).

• Prescription refill.

Improve and expand care models.

• Bring "light" to the "dark" period between post-op discharge and office follow-up visit.

Improve brand equity.

• Patient manages entire relationship with healthcare organization in an app. (As a patient of a new age primary care provider ... it's pretty good ... and expected in 2022 ...)

Enhance, improve, and support operations.

• Post-discharge outbound follow-up calls are now automated check-ins, with escalation when necessary.

Support research.

• Moarrrr!!! data collection.

(Better) manage (and organize) care (including patient self-management).

• Patient tracks post-discharge progress with an interactive care plan.

Compete with digitally native companies.

• Maybe disruption will happen, or maybe it won't ... in my view, primary care patient portal activities with a digitally-native provider are improved over the stock MyChart experiences. (+ What are Apple/Google/Amazon up to?)

(Better) manage financial risk.

• More individual patient data = more provider awareness.

Compete for physician talent.

• Digital tools are transforming work, too—especially at digitally-native provider organizations with different business models. And an EHR built for the provider as customer, as opposed to billing efficiency, is an effective recruiting tool.