Revolutionizing Healthcare: Bridging the Gap Between Exceptional Patient Experiences & Data Security

The healthcare industry has long struggled with delivering retail-like experiences that patients and members demand. In fact, 67% of patients describe every healthcare step as a chore, and 62% believe the system was inherently confusing. However, building great experiences cannot come at the expense of accidentally releasing sensitive consumer data.

We sat down with Steve Gwizdala, VP of Healthcare at Ping Identity, to discuss how healthcare leaders can bridge this gap and create exceptional - as well as secure - digital experiences. How can the healthcare industry address the challenge of delivering retail-like experiences for patients and members while ensuring the security of sensitive consumer data in an era where data breaches, fraud, and ransomware threats are prevalent?

Healthcare consumers want improved convenience, personalization, and communication practices. Digital identity solutions, such as consumer identity and access management (CIAM), allow healthcare leaders to design and deliver exceptional healthcare consumer digital journeys. Below are three CIAM features purpose-built to improve consumer journey experiences without sacrificing security:

• Social Registration and Authentication: No one enjoys filling out long registration forms, especially when seeking care. As a type of single sign-on (SSO), social registration and authentication allow users to quickly register and authenticate using their existing information from a social networking service, such as Google or Facebook. As opposed to typing out usernames and thinking up passwords, users can simply click for registration and login.

• Progressive Profiling: Building on the theme of a simplified registration process, rather than asking consumers to provide extensive information when they register, organizations can implement progressive profiling. This technique collects user information over time as consumers interact with the system (website, application, etc.). For example, organizations may just collect the consumer's name and email address upon initial signup. Then, at a later time, ask for their company name and health insurance details. This gradual accrual of information feels less cumbersome to consumers and allows healthcare organizations to gather pertinent information along their journey so they don't skip a beat either.

• Self-Service: According to ZenDesk, 69% of consumers prefer to resolve their customer service problems on their own before seeking help from agents.

In terms of CIAM, self-service is a feature that allows users to manage their accounts on their own rather than relying on an organization's support staff. Examples of self-service include managing login preferences and passwords, updating contact information, requesting specific support, and more. Some CIAM providers also offer a feature that allows users to manage their data-sharing preferences, such as what types of data to share and for how long with third-parties, including providers, and family members, among others.

Self-service not only improves consumer experience and engagement, it reduces help-desk IT costs.

Achieving interoperability with new technologies and legacy healthcare IT environments is a complex task. Could you share insights into how healthcare leaders can navigate this challenge to create exceptional digital experiences while maintaining security and compliance?

A true enterprise CIAM solution provides all the features listed above on top of a foundation of system integration and interoperability across hybrid IT infrastructure and digital health ecosystems. From telehealth to billing to scheduling platforms, and even shared third-party partner apps and systems, users can create a single view of the consumer in order to deliver personalized, omnichannel consumer journeys end-to-end — all while complying with regulations such as HIPAA, CCPA and the 21st Century Cures Act.

In an environment where patient expectations are evolving rapidly, what strategies can healthcare organizations employ to build great experiences that not only meet patient demands but also protect against data breaches and fraud?

A key strategy healthcare organizations can utilize is passwordless authentication. Even with the convenience of social registration and self-service, managing usernames and passwords is a source of consumer frustration. Usernames and passwords also increase healthcare organizations' risk of breaches exponentially.

Passwordless authentication enables organizations to design secure and seamless login journeys without the need for passwords. Some CIAM solutions can also eliminate the need for usernames.

In addition to giving consumers a great login experience, passwordless authentication reduces attack surface by virtually eliminating credential theft arising from phishing attacks, password reuse, credential stuffing, keyloggers, and more. This is a major advantage given that healthcare is the number-one industry targeted by cybercriminals.