Medfluence Advisors, a healthcare marketing company that partners with multiple locally rooted ENT practices, will be attending the AAO-HNSF annual meeting and OTO experience on September 30 through October 4. Ahead of the conference, they provided Patient Daily with their expert advice regarding relevant office trends that they’ve noticed in the industry.
“Each month across the United States, there are only 8,000 searches for minimally invasive balloon dilation procedures, while 300,000 searches occur for sinus symptoms," Greg Caesar, Medfluence Partner and Senior Director of Business Development, said in a statement. “There is a disconnect between the symptoms patients experience and the solutions they choose when meeting with providers.”
Medfluence reports that one of the biggest recent trends in the growing ENT world is that patients are increasingly utilizing digital information to establish connections with healthcare practices and surgeons. The organization observes that convenience and ease of communication are the leading factors for patients when selecting a provider.
Also relating to digital resources in the ENT industry, they’ve noticed that healthcare decisions are becoming more social. Medfluence noted that, according to feedback shared on review sites, patients are seeking a humanization of healthcare and want to feel prioritized and heard. When a patient is looking to find a new doctor or practice, online reviews are one of the first places a person will go for this information.
According to a 2023 healthcare study of 4,400+ respondents conducted by GET Creative, 85% of adults research a physician before making an appointment, and 79% of adults are likely to do additional research after receiving a referral to a specialist. The study notes that 46% of adults consume health-related information from online video. It also mentioned that patients are more likely (+10%) to choose a physician that makes them feel confident that they care about their long-term health and wellness.
All of these ideas and more will be discussed at the AAO-HNSF 2023 Annual Meeting & OTO Experience, beginning Saturday, September 30. At the conference, professionals from across the globe will gather to learn, collaborate, and explore techniques and technology aimed at enhancing the way patient care is delivered. It will dive into the modern era of how patients consume information and offer the opportunity to learn about new or established healthcare procedures and the providers who offer them. Established technologies, along with new and innovative approaches to ENT care, will be showcased.
“We're excited to meet with hundreds of ENT surgeons to discuss a novel approach to simplifying the complexity of patient acquisition and delivering results,” Caesar said. “We have attended this conference multiple times and are happy to support the AAO-HNS Foundation.”
According to the organization's website, Medfluence has over 40 years of practice development and healthcare leadership at its helm. The company focuses on understanding healthcare and how to connect surgeons with the patients they want to treat.