As with many other aspects of everyday life, consumers desire an ability to self-manage their healthcare experience. We are committed to empowering our patients with digital tools that can allow them to access key features and offerings at Sutter Health.
Consumer Accessible Fee Estimates (CAFÉ)
Our quality improvement study in JAMA Network Open included 4,610 fee estimates during a 10-month study period and demonstrated that the tool showed an accuracy of 83.9%. Survey data found that most users were satisfied with their experience using the tool and would recommend it to others.
Patient-Centric Scheduling
Our study in the Journal of Medical Internet Research of an automated rescheduling system implemented at Sutter Health demonstrated that patients experienced more timely access to care, with the time to see a doctor reduced by 15 days in primary care and 24 days in specialty care on average, and an added benefit of reducing no-shows by 38% by serving as a reminder of an upcoming appointment.
Contactless Check In
Contactless Check In allows patients a safe way to check in for their appointment through their smartphone and skip the front desk. By using geo-location on their phones or by clicking on the “I’m Here” button within their appointment details in My Health Online, the patients are directed to the waiting room. No need to go to the registration desk. Staff are alerted that the patient has arrived for their appointment and are ready to see their doctor.
This feature went live in June 2020 in response to Covid-19 to help protect patients and staff with limited in person contact. To date, over 42,000 patients have used this new feature.
Employee COVID Screening
In response to Covid-19, it is critical that Sutter Health has staff available to take care of our patients and daily operations. To help with this, we developed an application that staff and visitors can access on their smartphones or computers that asks if they have had any one of a list of Covid-19 symptoms based on CDC requirements. If any symptoms are answered with a “yes”, the staff member or visitor is asked to not come into a Sutter Health building with directions on what to do next. If no symptoms are reported, they receive a confirmation page with a green checkmark and allowed to proceed into the building.
