Among the most crucial industries in the world, Healthcare is the one that requires the best IT solutions. According to reports, the Healthcare industry got a fancy share in CAGR and is predicted to grow by 7.9% compared to 2020 by 2027, which is approximately 282 billion dollars in 2019.

There were times when healthcare organizations used to store their internal management and Patient data in the EHRs (Electronic Health Records). Since the entrance of Healthcare Management Software and CRMs, these organizations have given thought to modifying how they manage their data and the patient’s and staff’s schedules.

With the surpassing of a global pandemic, moving and handling all tasks digitally becomes a constraint. Considering the patient’s expectations and regulatory changes, the healthcare industry has witnessed a life-changing transformation. Rendering the best medical and patient-centric services has become essential to success.

Technology is a big cheese when it comes to fulfilling customer expectations and providing quality care. However, there were numerous challenges that healthcare providers were crossing paths with. Some of them are lack of real-time data, internal technical expertise, and management of legacy systems.

Salesforce already had a tool for serving healthcare management, the “Patient Relationship Management Tool.” But a few years back, they re-launched it with Salesforce Health Cloud, capable of allowing end-users to work on well-structured applications.

Take a deep insight into Salesforce Health Cloud in this blog. And now, just by leveraging health cloud technology, particularly it has reconceptualized how healthcare services are delivered to patients.

What is Salesforce Health Cloud?

Salesforce’s only patient and member relationship management platform charged with the power and security of a cloud is named Salesforce Health Cloud. Connectivity with social and mobile media makes it capable of delivering personalized customer experiences.

Further, it gives users a holistic view of the patients, triggering the best way to manage their data and curate an interlinked patient engagement experience.

Built over Salesforce Service Cloud, this product from Salesforce features functionality like EHR-to-Salesforce API connections, smart case management, and record management.

Healthcare teams also get equipped with clinical and non-clinical data of members comprising information like current and past health conditions and medications, communication preferences, appointment history, and data across all the systems, including EHR.

Salesforce Health Cloud Features

The following are the features of it:

1. Enhanced Patient Experience

Health Cloud revolutionizes patient-to-patient support by enabling medical experts to provide tailored care. This individualized approach spans the entire patient journey, ensuring comprehensive assistance. This platform facilitates seamless engagement throughout the acquisition, treatment, and discharge phases, thus fulfilling patient needs and enhancing service efficiency.

2. Effortless Care Plan Creation

Simplifying care plans is a breeze with Health Cloud. The platform empowers healthcare providers to craft uncomplicated, customized care plans based on patient requirements. This streamlined process elevates the quality of service and contributes to operational cost reduction.

3. 360-Degree Patient Insight

It offers an all-encompassing view of patient’s medical data. This comprehensive perspective and individualized patient views provide a detailed representation of the patient’s medical history, ongoing treatments, appointments, and medication records, enhancing informed decision-making.

4. Real-Time Interaction Facilitation

It ensures constant patient engagement. Through integration with private Salesforce communities, real-time healthcare advice becomes accessible to patients and medical professionals alike. This fosters a strong sense of confidence and trust among patients, fortifying the patient-provider relationship.

5. Seamless EHR Integration

It seamlessly integrates with existing Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems, yielding a centralized view of tasks and goals associated with various treatment plans. This integration enhances the efficient management of health records, promoting better patient care.

6. Personalized Patient and Healthcare Provider Engagement

It facilitates personalized patient interactions across diverse communication channels, including online platforms and phone interactions. Medical staff can promptly respond to individual patient demands, offering an elevated level of care throughout the patient’s journey.

7. Tailored Patient Programs

Notably, this cloud empowers medical technology companies to devise tailored patient programs. Leveraging features like guided program registration, omnichannel communication, and digital consent management ensures that individual patient needs are met efficiently, fostering optimized healthcare delivery.

Stats & Industries representing the significance of Salesforce Health Cloud

A survey by Salesforce says that 71% of healthcare providers need patient relationship management like Health Cloud to deliver high-quality patient care.

One good example is Mount Sinai Health System, which transformed its quality of serving more than 350,000 patients. They experienced a 40% increase in patient engagement, a 26% improvement in the productivity of service providers, and a reduction of around 30% in no-show rates of the patients.

Given its impactful performance, Salesforce Health Cloud boasts a substantial user base of 588 companies, including renowned names like UnitedHealthcare, Pfizer, Medtronic, and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Let’s check the breakdown of the users of it:

1. Hospitals and Clinics

Think hospitals and clinics – Health Cloud steps in to smoothen things out. From fixing up appointments to managing patient records, it’s a pro at making operations efficient. Plus, doctors and nurses get real-time scoop on patients, taking care to a new level.

2. Insurance Companies

Insurance companies, you’re in luck, too. Health Cloud helps you speed up claims processing and crack the code to your customers’ needs. And no more sneaky frauds and tricks – it’s got you covered there too.

3. Pharmaceutical Companies

Pharma pals, listen up. Health Cloud lends a hand in running those clinical trials and keeping tabs on how patients are doing. Oh, and it’s like a translator, helping you understand precisely what patients want for better treatments.

4. Medical Device Manufacturers

Medical device wizards gather ’round. Health Cloud’s got your back in managing your stuff – from supplies to getting what your customers want. And hey, it’s excellent at taking patient notes to make your devices even better.

5. Government Agencies

Even the big shots in government can benefit. Health Cloud helps manage health programs and tracks those pesky diseases. Plus, it’s like a genie that knows what your folks need and gives you tips for better care.

Salesforce Health Cloud Integrations

Security Integration

Let’s talk security first. With Security Integration, you’re bringing together different apps’ authentication mechanisms. This not only boosts the user experience but also reduces user admin hassles. Picture this: Client apps must log in with legitimate credentials, just like they would for your organization’s system. Plus, they’re shielded by the same security measures as the regular Salesforce interface. It’s like wrapping your apps in a secure, unified blanket.

User Interface Integration

Now, imagine blending multiple apps’ user interfaces (UI) into one. That’s User Interface Integration. And what’s the good thing here? You don’t have to work on the UI of every other application. Salesforce makes it easy-peasy. Your users get a one-stop-shop entry to all things Health Cloud. Say goodbye to hopping between different apps.

Business Logic Integration

Business logic meets integration. Often, your business logic is spread across various apps. That’s where Business Logic Integration comes in handy. It lets you extend related business processes from one app to another, making sure your workflows are seamless from end to end. Salesforce plays well with inbound logic from outside the platform and outbound logic from within.

Data Integration

Bringing it all together at the data layer is a breeze. Data Integration is like getting all your apps to jam in harmony. Imagine multiple apps, each speaking its programming language, working together through a standard open API. And they all manage data in a shared database. Health Cloud supports various APIs – SOAP, REST, Streaming, Bulk Data Transfer, you name it. So, data integration?

However, additional integration considerations and types are essential in Healthcare and beyond. Here are some other integration types and considerations:

Interoperability Standards: In Healthcare, sticking to standards like HL7 and FHIR is necessary. They make sure info flows smoothly between different systems and groups.

Authentication and Authorization: When integrating, strong security is a must. Only the right people should get their hands on patient info, so robust authentication and authorization are key.

Single Sign-On (SSO): With Single Sign-On (SSO), healthcare pros can enter multiple systems using just one set of login info. It’s a win-win: easy access and top-notch security.

API Integrations: Utilizing Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to connect different systems is a common practice. It provides REST and SOAP APIs for integration purposes.

Event-Driven Integrations: Implementing event-driven architectures can improve real-time data synchronization between systems, ensuring healthcare professionals can access the most current information.

Patient Consent Management: In compliance with privacy regulations like HIPAA, managing patient consent for data sharing is critical. Integration should support consent management and tracking.

Clinical Decision Support Integration: Healthcare organizations can promote better decision-making on patient care by integrating clinical decision support systems.

Geolocation Integration: Location-based services and geolocation data can enhance patient care coordination, especially in emergencies or when dealing with mobile healthcare services.

Population Health Management: Integration with population health management tools allows healthcare businesses to track patient populations and make timely improvements constantly.

Telecommunications Integration: Integration with telecommunications systems can facilitate secure communication between healthcare providers and patients, especially in telehealth scenarios.

Legacy Systems Integration: Many healthcare providers are still dependent on legacy systems. Integrating these systems with modern solutions like Salesforce Health Cloud can be complex but is often necessary.

Research and Analytics Data Integration: Healthcare providers may integrate with research databases and analytics platforms to support medical research and clinical trials.

Remember, the connections needed will depend on what the healthcare team wants to achieve. A thorough assessment of these requirements, including compliance with healthcare regulations, is essential when planning and implementing integrations in Salesforce Health Cloud or any healthcare system.

Salesforce Health Cloud Implementation: Step-by-Step Process

Step 1 – Enable Contacts to Relate to Multiple Accounts

Relate a single contact to multiple accounts so you can easily track the relationships between people and organizations. For example, a care provider who is represented as a contact can be related to an organization’s primary account as well as to a patient’s person account record.

Step 2 – Enable Chatter Settings

Chatter helps this cloud users collaborate in real-time with Salesforce. It’s a fast, simple tool that enables users to talk to each other, work together, and share information. Suppose Cure Well’s care coordinator, Sam, wants to post updates about his flu diagnosis for his therapist. Chatter helps her do so with a few clicks.

Step 3 – Make Data Protection Details Available in Records

To help maintain the privacy of your users’ data, enable data protection details for lead, contact, and person account records.

Step 4 – Install Health Cloud Packages

Install the Health Cloud managed package in your org so that you can begin implementing this cloud for your users. After that’s done, you can install the optional unmanaged packages that extend Health Cloud with extra features.

Step 5 – Assign Health Cloud CRM license, Permission Sets, and Permission Set Licenses

Grant users access to Health Cloud CRM licenses.

Permission sets enable users to use specific tools and settings according to their user license. With permission-set licenses, you can give users access to features beyond those included in their basic user licenses. To use Health Cloud users need the Health Cloud permission set license and the Health Cloud Platform permission set license.

• To see what permission set licenses are available, go to Company Settings in Setup and click Company Information.
• Assign the required permission set licenses to all your Health Cloud users.
• In the Permission Set License Assignments related list, select Edit Assignments, and then select Enabled for these permission set licenses:
• This permission set license provides access to standard and custom Salesforce objects that enable features delivered in the Health Cloud managed package.

Health Cloud Platform

This permission set license provides access to Health Cloud-related standard Salesforce objects for features that are built directly on the platform and aren’t part of the managed package.

Health Cloud for Experience Cloud Site

This permission set license provides access to Health Cloud objects and features for site users.

Step 6 – Enable Person Accounts

Person accounts store information about individual people by combining certain account and contact fields into one record.

From Setup, enter Person Accounts in the Quick Find box, and then select Person Accounts.

• Go through the steps listed on the Setup page.

Acknowledge the org implications of enabling person accounts.

Make sure the account object has at least one record type.

Make sure user profiles that have read permission on accounts have read permission on contacts.

The organization-wide default sharing is set so that either Contact is Controlled by Parent or both Account and Contact are Private.

• Turn on Person Accounts.
• After Person Accounts is enabled, a person account record type is created. You can create additional record types for person’s account if needed.
• Assign the person account record type to user profiles.

Step 7 – Turn on Person Accounts in Health Cloud

After you enable person accounts in your org, update the Use Person Accounts setting so that you can use person accounts to represent patients and members in Health Cloud.

• From Setup, in the Quick Find box, enter Custom Settings, and then select Custom Settings.
• In the list of custom settings, click Manage next to the Use Person Account custom settings.
• Click Edit next to Use Person Account.
• Select Enable.
• Save your changes.

After person accounts are enabled, assign them to profiles.

Step 9  – Map Person Accounts in the Health Cloud

With person accounts enabled, configure a default mapping record to create patients or members in Health Cloud.

From Setup, in the Quick Find box, enter Custom Metadata, and then select Custom Metadata Types.

• In the list of custom metadata types, click Manage Records next to the Individual Record Type Mapper custom settings.
• Click New. Enter Person Account as the label for the mapping record.
  You must have at least one mapping record using this label. This mapping is used by Health Cloud to create patient or member records.
• The Individual Record Type Mapper Name field is auto-populated. Keep it as is or add a custom name. This field is for internal use only.
• In the Account Record Type field, enter the name of a valid person account record type that you want to use in this mapping. Alternatively, you can use the same value you entered for Label, that is, Person Account.
• In the Record Type Namespace (Account) field, enter the namespace for your org.
• Leave the Contact Record Type field blank, as person accounts don’t use the contact record type..
• Leave the Record Type Namespace (Contact) field blank.
• In Lead Record Type, enter the name of the lead record type you want to map.
• For Record Type Namespace (Lead), enter your namespace.
  Save your work.

Challenges that Salesforce Health Cloud Solves

Salesforce has taken care of every problem in the Healthcare and Lifescience industry through its Health Cloud.

1. Fragmented Patient Data

Patient data is often scattered in different systems, making it hard for healthcare workers to see and use all the data. This can cause problems in care and patient understanding. Salesforce Health Cloud puts all the patient data in one place. It collects data from different sources like EHRs, lab results, and patient history. This gives healthcare workers a complete view of each patient.

2. Inefficient Care Coordination

Care teams need to work together to give good Healthcare. However, they often need help with communication and collaboration. This causes mistakes, delays, and low efficiency. This cloud makes care coordination easier by giving a platform for teamwork. Care teams can talk, share information, and plan treatments in it. They can get updates and alerts in real-time. This helps them give care on time and work together better.

3. Limited Patient Engagement

Providers often face trouble giving personal and engaging patient experiences. With good patient engagement, they find it easier to make patients follow treatment plans and care for their health. Health Cloud helps providers engage patients on their favorite channels and give personal interactions. Using data, providers can find out what each patient needs and likes.

4. Tedious Administrative Tasks

Providers have to do many tasks, like scheduling, checking insurance, and writing notes. These tasks take too much effort. Providers often need more time to feel energized and focused on patient care.

With features like easy scheduling and self-help tools in Health Cloud, providers can work faster and better. Automatic insurance checks and completion of care activity also speed up care, ensuring patients get service quickly.

How Salesforce Health Cloud is benefitting various providers?

Health cloud benefits for providers

First, let’s clear the air: It’s not EHR versus CRM; it’s about EHR and CRM working hand in hand. Health Cloud isn’t here to take the place of your EHR. Instead, it acts as the bridge that connects legacy systems and integrates apps into a flexible, compliant platform. The result?

Turning valuable insights into tangible actions while maintaining a patient-centered care approach.

And that’s not all. Health Cloud goes beyond just enhancing your EHR. Specifically tailored for providers, it offers:

1. All-in-one Data Center

A comprehensive 360-degree view of patient data, including real-time condition updates, appointment history, medications, and specialists. All are neatly accessible in one place, eliminating the need to switch screens or devices.

2. Personalized Care Plans

A holistic patient experience, empowering you to craft personalized care plans and foster connections within caregiver networks.

3. Coordination and engagement are better than anywhere else

Seamless real-time patient coordination and engagement through private Salesforce Communities. This feature allows patients and caregivers to exchange secure messages whenever needed.

Health cloud benefits for payers

Health Cloud brings tailored features to the health insurance sector, empowering payers to engage members and providers in proactive, efficient ways, including:

1. Scaled Member Care Management

With smart utilization management, real-time integration, and effective risk identification with legacy systems and EHRs, agents can access a comprehensive view of any member’s health.

2. Personalized Member Services

Agents with in-depth member knowledge can deliver tailored interactions and proactive assistance through intelligent suggestions. A dynamic knowledge base equips agents with real-time member information for swift and thorough support.

3. End-to-End Member Journey Management

Opt for omnichannel communication, automated workflows, and pre-made templates to strategically engage members from their first step – acquisition and onboarding – to staying put. Health Cloud is the cornerstone of patient support for big and small biotech and pharma companies.

Health Cloud benefits for Biotech/Pharma Companies

Health Cloud is the bedrock for patient support initiatives across biotech and pharma firms, both large and small.

1. Optimize Compliance and Adherence

Enhance medicine delivery efficiency by navigating prior authorizations, patient registrations, and fulfillment tracking. This sets the stage for expanding therapy-specific support programs, simultaneously reducing operational costs and bolstering positive health outcomes.

2. Tailor Patient and HCP Experiences

Health Cloud facilitates tailored engagement by meeting patients and HCPs where they are, across their chosen devices and in real-time. Individual case management, accessible through various touchpoints like phone, web, and mobile, grants companies immediate insights into patient journeys and enables personalized care.

Real-world example of Salesforce Health Cloud Implementation

Case: Confronting the Complexities: Streamlining Patient Care and Data Integration Across Channels

Here, the business got creative with bio-resonance tech. They aimed to help both doctors and patients. Their focus? Giving top-notch care for chronic conditions, keeping an eye on patients from afar, and offering tailored nutrition therapy.

They aim to serve as a link connecting patients, medical professionals, and services from different health organizations. Additionally, they seek to integrate smart fitness data for precise behavioral record-keeping.

Problems faced

Some of the significant challenges faced were –

• Difficulty keeping track of pre and post-surgery actions: Managing patient data and maintaining a comprehensive record of pre and post-surgery activities posed a significant obstacle. The challenge lay in centralizing patient medical records for a unified and accurate source of information, as data was dispersed across multiple storage points.
• Unavailability of proper device data: Another obstacle involved collecting data from diverse, intelligent devices to track health metrics like steps and blood pressure. Manually recording this data from patients posed consistency issues, occasionally leading to missing data that hindered effective treatment.
• Addressing Provider-Patient Interaction Gaps: Medical practitioners grappled with effectively tracking patient interactions, making it challenging to gauge time investment for individual patients.
• Streamlining Reminders and Feedback: Patients sometimes struggled to remember medication timings and appointment schedules. Additionally, capturing treatment feedback and service reviews was a concern.

Solution Offered

In response to these issues, we introduced a comprehensive solution for our client:

• Effortless tracking of pre and post-surgery actions: To tackle the intricate task of monitoring pre and post-surgery procedures, we proposed the integration of a health cloud with their existing Medent EMR system, which handled patient data collection for the clinic.
• Properly organized records of data obtained from multiple devices: To eliminate manual updates and ensure accurate data, we integrated with patients’ FITBIT and BodyTrace devices. After user authentication, essential health metrics like step count, water intake, blood pressure, and heart rate were securely stored in the health cloud alongside the patient’s health record.
• Healthcare provider-patient interaction: Streamlining pre and post-surgery procedures required seamless patient-provider communication. Amid the pandemic, reaching hospitals or clinics was challenging. To address this, we integrated TWILIO and ZOOM with their system.
  Our TWILIO integration facilitated inbound and outbound calls within Salesforce, recorded and stored for reference. ZOOM integration empowered medical staff to conduct instant or scheduled video calls with patients, all logged in Salesforce, with call recording options.
• Monitoring Medical Staff Engagement: Additionally, we implemented a tracking feature enabling the observation of medical staff hours and activities associated with individual patients or patient records. This facilitated accurate billing for patient services and streamlined compensation for medical staff.
• Reminders and Surveys: To resolve the issue with the patient reminders, we enabled other TWILIO functionality SMS. We configured Twilio to send out SMS reminders and custom messages to the patients from Salesforce, and we used the SMS messages for sending out the survey form. The feedback on the survey forms was stored in Salesforce.

Result: Our efforts have led to

• Reduced manual efforts by 45%
• Productivity of the medical staff improved by 65%
• Data management and data loss were reduced by 75%
• Customer experience was enhanced by 67%

Salesforce Health Cloud – License and Pricing

If you are intrigued by the seamless Salesforce Health Cloud features like intertwining clinical data, social determinants, and individual preferences, Salesforce has four different licenses per business requirements and usage.

Check out the detailed Salesforce Health Cloud pricing here to ensure an enhanced care process and improved outcomes while fostering good patient relationships.

Final Takeaway

In conclusion, the implementation of Salesforce Health Cloud holds paramount importance for healthcare service providers. This cutting-edge solution empowers you to seamlessly manage patient data, enhance care coordination, and drive operational efficiency.

As you embark on this transformative journey, remember that leveraging suitable resources and ongoing support, such as partnering with a trusted Salesforce Implementation Service provider like Cyntexa, is instrumental in navigating challenges and optimizing outcomes.

By harnessing the capabilities of Health Cloud, you can elevate patient experiences, improve decision-making, and ultimately lead your industry with confidence and innovation.

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