Hybrid Approach Addresses Patient Engagement Programs' Challenges

Behavioral health treatment drop out is a common occurrence. Each year, roughly one-fifth of adult patients in mental health treatment programs fail to complete their recommended course of treatment. However, there isn’t exactly a finish line when it comes to making and sustaining healthy behavioral changes. It’s an ongoing journey on which patients need continuity of care—that is, available resources and coaching to help them maintain progress and success.

While patient engagement programs will always be up against challenges inherently, including high patient dropout rates and expensive program maintenance, many of these issues can be overcome. Only then will providers and patients see the benefits of programs that deliver effective behavior change solutions. Understanding the barriers patients face and the shortcomings of engagement programs will help attain successful patient outcomes. As patient needs and barriers to obtaining care stack up, it’s time to remedy persistent failures.

What is Preventing Success in Behavioral Health Programs?

Turning specifically to substance use, patient engagement programs often fall short of achieving the main component of said programs: engagement. At a time when Americans are increasingly coping with stress and emotions by turning to substances, meaningfully engaging patients has become ever more important. Over 19 million adults experienced substance use disorder prior to the pandemic. This number grew last year, when some 13% of Americans reported starting or increasing drug and alcohol use to cope with the pandemic. As the pandemic continues, another endemic has worsened. Forty US states have seen increases in opioid-related mortality. 

This increase in substance use has fueled a demand for behavioral health and treatment programs. Yet, 100% in-person coaching is not scalable to meet growing patient needs. While long the model of care, providing numerous benefits including personalized care and 1:1 communication, in-office programs present a plethora of challenges for patients and providers. Such programs are expensive and can require extensive time and travel commitments while still seeing their patient engagement efforts fall short of addressing the treatment barriers patients face. For their part, all-virtual programs expand access, have greater reach and reduce time commitments. The downfall here: They are missing the ever-important human element.

A Hybrid Approach Promotes Successful Outcomes

Combining the benefits of in-person and virtual patient engagement programs can lead to greater access to care and increase a patient’s long-term recovery. This hybrid care approach can boost engagement by delivering personalized care experiences that are proven to maintain patient participation, ultimately leading to better outcomes. What does personalized care entail? It comes down to creating individual content and care pathways that allow patients to manage their treatment in a way that aligns with their personal lifestyle, needs and goals, and learning styles.

Effectively launching and scaling such care includes providing material specific to a patient’s personal condition and interests based on defining characteristics, such as their gender, age, and socioeconomic status. Inspiring engagement requires more, however. To drive patient participation and success, hybrid programs should also implement the following elements:

• Incorporate casual, inviting dialogue: By utilizing colloquial language that can  put patients at ease and invite participation will produce personalized interactions that feel natural, comfortable and intimate, allowing patients to open up.
• Allow for flexible care pathways and goals: Lives can shift in an instant and don’t typically follow a set course. To set patients up for both short- and long-term success, hybrid programs should allow patients the flexibility to adjust their care plan and goals. Taking into account life’s inevitable transitions, this flexibility in care will ensure that a patient’s treatment program remains meaningful.
• Have two-way communication capabilities: Providing patients and providers the ability to easily and openly communicate with one another will not only create a personal bond, it will lead to trust and more significant opportunities for patient engagement. This will lead to enhanced interactions that become memorable and empowering experiences for patients.
• Tailor programs to organizational curriculum: Hybrid programs should provide patients with a consistent experience with seamless integration into an organization’s programming. Customizable solutions and white label options can benefit both patients and healthcare organizations, enabling providers to deliver personalized, behavior change content at scale.

When it comes to helping patients stay engaged and achieve their goals, providers should strive to provide patients with effective behavior change solutions — hybrid programs are the answer. Such programs, fusing the personal approach of in-person care with the flexibility and access of virtual programs, deliver the personalized care experience that can keep patients engaged.

Clark Lagemann is Co-CEO of Avidon Health.

The views expressed in Perspectives are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Behavioral Healthcare Executive, the Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Learning Network, or other Network authors. Perspectives entries are not medical advice.