Q: Are health care workers willing to engage with patients outside the official channels (e.g., will they be willing to work with patients through an app)?

Q: Are health care workers willing to engage with patients outside the official channels (e.g., will they be willing to work with patients through an app)? I assume staff are very busy and this could be somewhat of an inconvenience, or potentially disturbing if patients are contacting them frequently.

A: One of the most challenging aspects of working with super-utilizers is maintaining consistent contact. While many of these individuals show up frequently in emergency rooms, it is often difficult to reach or engage them outside of this setting. Tools that can facilitate consistent contact and convey important information in a timely manner about how these individuals are doing could be very useful to the staff who work with them.

Despite the limited number of digital health tools designed for this population, anecdotal evidence suggests that products that facilitate the process of accessing and sharing information, help patients and staff stay in touch, and convey important information in a timely fashion are readily adopted by care team members that work with super-utilizers.

Health care professionals and care team members are trained to set boundaries with patients, but challenge participants should consider the best mechanisms and structures for facilitating communication between patients and staff when designing their products.