Improving patient acquisition with process automation is quickly becoming essential. Mental health care providers and certified community behavioral health clinics (CCBHCs) are under constant pressure to serve more people without sacrificing quality of care. At the same time, administrative tasks and inconsistent outreach efforts exponentially increase the challenge to keep pace.
With automation tools like self-scheduling, digital intake and smart reminders, practices can streamline operations, reduce no-show rates and build stronger client relationships, all while helping more people access care quickly and easily.
The Challenges of Patient Acquisition in Mental Health
Effective patient acquisition is the foundation of a growing practice. However, mental health care providers often face unique challenges, such as limited resources, stigma toward seeking mental help and clients who may struggle to keep appointments or complete intake paperwork. Traditional strategies like phone calls and manual outreach are time-consuming and often unreliable.
These challenges can lead to:
- Missed appointments
- Long intake cycles
- Poor client follow-through
- Staff burnout and reduced productivity
With the right acquisition strategies in place, you can overcome these challenges and grow your client base without overwhelming your team.
How Process Automation Transforms Acquisition
Process automation tools simplify the entire journey. They make reaching potential clients, onboarding and keeping people engaged throughout their care journey easier.
Here’s how automation can transform your new patient acquisition process:
- Automated scheduling: Clients book appointments anytime, without needing to call during office hours.
- Digital intake: Patients complete paperwork online before their appointment, speeding up check-ins and improving accuracy.
- Automated reminders: Text or email reminders help lower no-show rates and keep clients informed.
- Two-way communication: HIPAA-compliant communication keeps clients engaged and supported.
Why Mental Health Care Needs Automation
Automating repetitive administrative tasks can help free your team to focus on what matters the most — delivering excellent care.
Process automation reduces the need for phone tagging with clients, creating manual appointment reminders, paperwork management, and chasing down no-shows. Instead, your team gains more time for meaningful client interactions, which can improve both satisfaction and outcomes.
Improving Acquisition With Automation: a Step-by-Step Approach
If you’re ready to improve your processes with automation, you need a detailed guide to help you implement it effectively in your mental or behavioral health care organization.
1. Assess Your Current Process
Start by identifying areas that need improvement. Look at your existing acquisition strategy and identify sections where clients are falling through the cracks. For example, if you’re seeing a high number of no-shows, clients are failing to complete intake paperwork, or phone lines are frequently tied up with scheduling calls, these can be key areas to focus on.
2. Choose the Right Automation Platform
Once you’ve identified the gaps, it’s time to select a solution that can help you address them. Look for a platform specializing in mental and behavioral health care, as many general solutions may not have all the right tools for the field’s unique needs.
Ensure the platform offers portal-free access to make it easy for clients to engage without creating logins or downloading apps. Confirm the system integrates seamlessly with your existing EHR so you don’t create new administrative burdens.
3. Set up Self-Scheduling
Enable self-scheduling so clients can book appointments at their convenience. This might mean adding clear “Book Now” buttons on your website and linking to your scheduling page from social media, emails and text messages. Be sure to configure the system to reflect your updated availability to help prevent double bookings and cut down on time spent manually managing calendars.
4. Streamline Digital Intake
Replace paper forms with digital intake forms that clients can fill out from home with their phone, tablet or computer. These forms should capture all the essential information you need ahead of the visit, such as medical history, authorizations and insurance details. This will help shorten check-in times and ensure you have all the necessary information you need before seeing the client.
5. Implement Automated Reminders
Set up reminders to go out 24-48 hours before appointments. Include time, location and any pre-appointment instructions. Offer one-click options for confirming or rescheduling.
6. Enable Two-Way Messaging
Offer two-way, HIPAA-compliant messaging, like Mend’s Group Video Conferencing, to make communication easy and efficient. Use this tool to answer client questions, send reminders, share updates and provide follow-up care instructions. Ensure staff are trained to monitor and respond promptly to messages, helping build trust and keep clients engaged throughout the process.
7. Monitor and Adjust Performance
Use the reporting tools built into your automation platform to monitor progress. Track metrics like engagement rates, no-show rates and time saved on administrative tasks. Review this data regularly to identify areas of improvement.
For example, if you notice lower engagement with reminders, you may need to adjust the timing or content of your messages. Continuous monitoring can help ensure your automation solutions are working as effectively as possible.
Why Trust Mend?
At Mend, we understand the specific challenges facing mental and behavioral health care providers because it’s the only space we serve. We’ve facilitated over 25 million client visits, achieved a 90% engagement rate and have helped providers decrease their no-show rates by 43% while increasing client satisfaction rates by 30%. This creates a smoother experience for both staff and clients, leading to better outcomes and a stronger reputation in the community.
Our patient acquisition tools are purpose-built for your needs, offering a seamless, portal-free experience that integrates directly with your EHR. With Mend, you get a trusted partner who is as invested in your success as you are in your clients’.
Meet Your Growing Demands While Maintaining Quality Care
By streamlining scheduling, reminders and communication, your team can focus less on admin tasks and more on what truly matters — helping clients thrive.
With a platform like Mend, you can simplify operations, improve engagement and create a better experience for clients and staff. We can help you modernize your patient acquisition strategy and invest in solutions that drive real results. Schedule a demo today to see how Mend can help your organization grow and deliver better care with less friction.
