For the second year in a row, I was afforded the opportunity to attend the InstaMed Healthcare Payments Summit and just like last year it did not disappoint. On the evening prior to a full day of speakers and sessions, InstaMed held a Welcome Reception which gave attendees a chance to network, enjoy some delicious food including Philly’s famous cheesesteaks and catch a live taping of Payment Matters, a HealthcareNow Radio show hosted by Jeff Lin, Senior Vice President of Product Management at InstaMed.
A nice time was had by all at tonight’s Welcome Reception at the @InstaMed #HCPayments19 Summit! Attendees even had the chance to see a live interview for #PaymentMatters w/ host @jeffblin & Dave Stewart of @ingenico pic.twitter.com/ttKQTA39RC
— HealthcareNOWradio (@HCNowRadio) March 26, 2019
Payment Matters airs weekdays at 4:30 am, 12:30 pm and 8:30 pm ET. Tune in to hear the most recent episode or find out what other experts and thought leaders Jeff has been talking to by listening to past episodes on our SoundCloud Playlist or choose your preferred platform in our Listening Guide.
Opening Keynote – Robert Herjavec
This year InstaMed booked Robert Herjavec, CEO Herjavec Group & Star of ABC’s Shark Tank, to give the opening keynote and boy was he a good choice. Herjavec was smart, funny, inspiring and full of good stories to share from Shark Tank and his personal life. While he didn’t start out on the road to technology he told the audience, “your passion finds you.” Today Herjavec says he’s a total tech guy who finds it “exciting and super sexy” which is why he is so successful. While most people don’t find tech sexy and maybe even a bit boring, Herjavec says cybersecurity, his company’s focus, has permeated everything and even comes up now when chatting with celebrities at parties who want to know how to safe guard “those pictures” they posted once on the internet. He said the healthcare industry is the number one target of hackers due to its ancient systems and also because patient records are the most valuable on the black market since they can’t be replaced easily, if at all. At the same time, even though their records may be at risk, what consumers really want is easy, convenient access to their information anytime, anywhere. Herjavec advises that the best compromise to appease both organizations and consumers is authenticating the user.
In #technology, we’re fighting stuff that hasn’t been invented yet. Everything is becoming an access point! @robertherjavec #HCPayments19 pic.twitter.com/FVX860FRPX
— InstaMed (@InstaMed) March 26, 2019
Three Takeaways
Throughout the summit the Provider Sessions were full of tips and good advice gleaned from personal experiences when implementing InstMed’s payments system. Here are three themes that seemed to repeat themselves among the sessions.
- Offer Payment Channels – Be sure to provide consumers with an array of options to choose from when making payments. Consider all consumers, including those who are most comfortable paying the “old fashioned way” with a check in the mail. While it is prudent to appease these consumers at the same time it is smart to gently nudge them in the direction of online payments. Additionally, organizations should consider the other end of the spectrum and offer mobile pay options and everything in between, The more the merrier and the better chance your organization will be paid in full.
- Provide Convenience – These days consumers are accustomed to doing business from the comfort of their tv room couch and making purchases with the click of a button. Healthcare payments should be as easy and convenient as other areas of a consumer’s life and if they are not you may find that patients will go elsewhere if they are not happy with their experience.
- Make Change Familiar – When switching to a new way of doing things help patients keep their sense of security by keeping some things the same. For example, your new statements may encourage payments online and make it a little inconvenient to mail a check. However, in order for patients to trust the new process it helps if they see the same logo and/or color schemes as previous statements. Another good rule of thumb is to get the word out to patients prior to the change and be sure to explain how the changes will benefit your patients.
About the InstaMed Healthcare Payments Summit
The InstaMed Healthcare Payments Summit is the only event that brings together providers, payers, healthcare IT systems and consumers in one place to share insights, learn from industry leaders and preview the latest in healthcare payments technology. The goal of the conference is to foster discussion and collaboration across all healthcare stakeholders to improve the convenience, efficiency and security of healthcare payments.