Top patient relationship management software systems

Distinguishing PRM from patient engagement

To be clear, managing the patient relationship is not the same as patient engagement, many PRM software vendors stress on their websites. Although patient engagement is important, it largely refers to activating and involving patients in their clinical journeys using patient education, activation and self-management techniques.

Conversely, PRM is broader in scope, referring to the relationship patients have with their providers and clinics, how the clinic communicates with patients and how technology enhances the patient visit.

What to look for in PRM tools

As with any purchasing decision, healthcare organizations looking to implement or replace their PRM tools need to assess the functions and capabilities on the market and determine which fulfill organizational goals.

Most PRM tools have a number of common functions, including the following:

• Online appointment scheduling.
• SMS/text message outreach.
• Appointment reminders.
• Digital/remote check-in.
• Patient portal or patient portal integration.
• Recall messaging.
• Social media integration and online reputation management capabilities.
• Email marketing/campaigns.

Some PRM systems will support these features better than others, so it is essential for healthcare organizations to determine the functions most important to their patient populations. Additionally, organizational leadership should ensure systems are HIPAA compliant and allow for EHR integration.

Finally, scalability and flexibility of platforms will be key, as these allow for growing healthcare organizations.

Following PRM software implementation, healthcare organizations should measure KPIs such as patient satisfaction scores, patient retention rates, treatment outcomes, no-show rates and cost savings.

Top PRM software systems

Healthcare organizations have numerous PRM software systems on the market to choose from, ranging from ones developed specifically with healthcare in mind to others designed by CRM companies expanding into the healthcare space.

The following list of PRM software systems is organized alphabetically and draws from rankings from G2 and Definitive Healthcare.

Epic Systems CRM

Definitive Healthcare says the Epic Systems CRM software is among the most commonly used in the nation. The technology, launched in November 2022 in response to trends in healthcare consumerism, helps organizations deploy customized marketing and engagement messaging to support population health.

Epic says the system operates on automated workflows, provides centralized patient communication and offers insights to healthcare organizations.

HubSpot CRM for Healthcare

HubSpot is a popular CRM tool serving other service sectors, with its CRM for Healthcare product operating in the medical space. HubSpot's CRM for Healthcare tool offers key PRM capabilities, like patient self-service, appointment scheduling, appointment reminders, text message communication and follow-up reminders.

HubSpot's tool is HIPAA compliant upon signing a Business Associate Agreement.

Innovaccer

Innovaccer says its PRM software is intended to support better provider profiles and relationships with patients. The technology lets medical practices build provider profiles, check ROI metrics and look through patient and referral analytics to better know populations.

Moreover, the technology can integrate with other patient engagement tools and create an omnichannel communication system, Innovaccer says. Ideally, these systems create more provider and patient satisfaction.

Luma Health

Luma Health lists many of the common PRM functions, including appointment scheduling, reminders, patient messaging and communication systems. Notably, the company says it is mobile-optimized, letting healthcare organizations connect with patients via their smartphones. Ideally, smartphone outreach will enhance overall patient engagement.

In addition to digital patient engagement and communication, G2 says Luma Health features online reputation management. This is designed to help healthcare assess and respond to online provider reviews.

OhMD

OhMD bills itself as a patient communication tool tailored for small and mid-sized healthcare organizations. In addition to two-way text messaging, the technology company says its tool allows for appointment scheduling, remote check-in, referrals, prescription refills and reminders.

These capabilities are set up to also ease care coordination, OhMD says. The text message-based patient communication is designed to make it easier for patients to share important documents, while the system transmits relevant information to referring providers or pharmacies.

NexHealth

NexHealth says it is a patient experience platform, allowing for key patient-facing tasks like secure messaging, appointment scheduling, reminders and payments. The company also says it supports virtual visits and follow-up visit scheduling.

Central to the PRM system is its ability to integrate with other platforms. G2 says it can integrate with third-party EHRs. Additionally, NexHealth says its messaging functions integrate with other platforms like iMessage and Gmail.

Relatient

Relatient's Dash product was designed to streamline patient appointment scheduling and two-way communication. In particular, the tool features intelligent scheduling, real-time chat, personalized messaging and reminders and digital intake.

The company says the system is built for better provider use and that the system has 10% greater physician utilization and 50% lower staff training time.

Salesforce Health Cloud

Salesforce Health Cloud is unique in that it was developed by a company that offers broad CRM systems to other service sectors. The company says the Health Cloud can provide a "360-degree view of each patient" and helps lower costs by using AI to streamline workflows.

Salesforce says Health Cloud users have seen a 33% increase in care plan adherence, a 29% decrease in operational costs and a 35% increase in patient or member acquisition.

Solutionreach

Solutionreach has many of the main features PRM tools boast, including online scheduling, text message appointment reminders, patient education, digital intake, text message-based billing and payments and integration with other platforms.

Notably, the vendor says it aims to improve organization revenue, reduce staff burnout through automation and improve productivity.

Tebra

Tebra, formerly Kareo and PatientPop, hosts a PRM tool that includes an EHR, billing and payment capabilities, online patient scheduling and telehealth. Tebra says its system also integrates with other EHRs.

According to G2, Tebra mainly serves smaller healthcare organizations, including independent practices.

Updox

Updox bills itself as enabling electronic communication, boasting electronic fax, secure text messaging, video chats, patient reminders and broadcast messaging and campaigns.

The company says the system is cloud-based and optimized for document management. In addition to allowing clinicians from separate offices or organizations to send digital faxes, Updox says its tool also lets clinicians store, edit and share documents.

Weave

Filled with many key PRM technology functions, Weave says it is designed to ease patient communications. The system has two-way texting, appointment reminders, text-to-pay, online scheduling and digital payment options to ease the patient journey, the company says.

The system is designed for small and medium healthcare businesses, according to G2.

As healthcare organizations retool their software suites to align with healthcare consumerism, they should assess which PRM tools provide the functions best suited to their populations.

Sara Heath has covered news related to patient engagement and health equity since 2015.