Research indicates that educational brochures strategically placed and targeted at the appropriate audience can yield substantial benefits. Brochures can help generate patient interest, spark insightful questions and prompt crucial dialogues with healthcare providers about treatments or services such as chronic care management (CCM) which might otherwise go undetected.
While it might be argued by some practice administrators and practitioners that patients would rather seek information online, and though this may hold true for a considerable number of patients, printed materials like brochures still effectively reach patients, especially those accustomed to paper documentation.
Given the ease of creating electronic documents, a well-crafted brochure can easily be distributed both physically and digitally – for instance, via email, an EMR patient portal message, download from an organization website and a link embedded in a text message to allow a smartphone user to easily load up a brochure from there.
If your organization has already implemented or is planning for chronic care management (CCM), creating and sharing an informative chronic care management patient brochure may prove an effective means of informing patients about its offerings, sparking their engagement, and garnering their trust.
Considering that CCM might be a fresh concept for certain healthcare consumers, it’s crucial that auxiliary materials are relatable and seize their attention. A commendable chronic care management patient brochure for patients should delve into the crucial aspects they need to grasp before embarking on participation in the program and receiving CCM services.
To aid you in forming an efficient chronic care management patient brochure for your patients, here are seven domains to encompass.
Before plunging into specifics about your CCM program, contemplate offering a definition for chronic care management — ideally one that isn’t verbose and laden with industry terminology. In simpler terms, elucidate CCM in straightforward language comprehensible to any patient.
A few instances include:
Even though a practitioner typically discerns who qualifies for chronic care management, patients often remain uninformed. Enlightening patients on their potential eligibility might prompt them to inquire about CCM program participation and boost their interest in taking part. One approach to defining eligibility is as follows:
To qualify, one must agree to chronic care management participation by possessing at least two qualifying chronic conditions that will likely persist over a 12-month period, creating significant health risks.
Including a roster of common qualifying health conditions could facilitate a discussion between you and your patients. This list might encompass heart disease, COPD, dementia, asthma, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, Alzheimer’s disease, and depression. Ensure patients know to consult with you if they don’t find their specific condition listed.
Patients may be reluctant to add another layer of activity to their lives. Hence, it’s crucial to underscore that chronic care management could decrease trips to your organization, enhancing convenience while concurrently bolstering their health and well-being. Since CCM can be executed over the phone or internet, it furnishes patients with more frequent care and interactions with their healthcare team sans the necessity for more frequent in-person visits to an office. Indeed, CCM can curtail the number of requisite in-person visits for healthcare services.
Note that the duration of program participation hinges on the status of the patient’s chronic health condition, and they might need to consent and re-enroll each new calendar year.
Concerns about healthcare expenses are widespread among Americans. While Medicare covers a substantial portion of chronic care management (80% covered, 20% coinsurance), and other plans may offer coverage, patients might encounter some out-of-pocket costs. It’s crucial to be transparent with the patient regarding potential expenses.
When constructing your brochure, it’s advisable to inform patients that Medicare typically covers the service with minimal out-of-pocket costs. Encourage them to engage with a representative from your organization for a more individualized breakdown of estimated costs.
To prevent discouraging patient participation, it can be beneficial to swiftly emphasize how involvement could result in cost savings, including fewer office visits, reduced emergency room visits, improved medication control, and less frequent hospitalizations. A recent study demonstrated that in-home chronic disease management services potentially reduced healthcare spending for patients with specific chronic conditions by nearly $30,000.
Illuminate the individuals comprising the patient’s chronic care management team. Whom will their provider coordinate with throughout the continuum of care? Will specialists play a role? Who serves as the primary contact or advocate within your organization to address patient questions and concerns about enrollment?
The key message for patients should underscore that the healthcare team, working collectively, serves as a support network, facilitating access to the right care when needed.
In straightforward terms, what does the patient stand to gain from engaging in chronic care management? Due to potential barriers in reading comprehension, it might be beneficial to keep this segment concise and incorporate graphics or utilize a simple bulleted list. Tailor the information to your patient population and consider whether it should be available in multiple languages. While the benefits of CCM participation extend to practitioners, patients, and even payers, patients, understandably focused on their personal healthcare goals, should recognize that CCM provides access to a broader array of resources within a comprehensive support network, aiding them in living healthier lives.
What constitutes the initial step for patients to enroll in your chronic care management program? Should they initiate a conversation with their primary care provider? Is there an onsite program coordinator or patient care advocate, like a nurse case manager, with whom they should engage? The more transparent the process, the more likely it is that patients will seek out the service or may even recommend it to a loved one.
Most importantly, your chronic care management information brochure should convey that the process of enrollment and participation in your CCM program is straightforward and worthwhile.
In shaping the content for your brochure, it’s crucial to maintain simplicity and clarity. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, the typical American adult reads and comprehends at approximately an eighth-grade level, with over one-third reading below a fifth-grade level. Consequently, using straightforward language becomes a fundamental aspect of any targeted educational material. To prevent distracting or dissuading patients, your brochure should steer clear of medical jargon and excessive details, ensuring it remains easy to read and comprehend for individuals, regardless of their reading and comprehension abilities. Additionally, adopting a conversational tone directed at the patient enhances engagement with the brochure and its content.
While incorporating essential information about your program into your chronic care management patient brochure, as outlined above, the brochure’s content should still be relatively concise and avoid lengthy paragraphs. It should spotlight what patients need to understand to gain a basic grasp of CCM and your program, integrating bulleted lists, graphics, and other design elements to aid in education and engagement. Keep in mind that providing just enough information to spark interest and facilitate a conversation with you will be most effective for patients and your program.
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