Video: Real-time access to care improving member health through app

About five years ago Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska (BCBSNE) began evaluating its traditional care management programs and recognized they needed to meet their members where they were at. With that goal in mind, they began piloting the delivery of a care management program through a mobile application. They started with a focus on patients discharged from the hospital, and have expanded to now include all of their care management offerings – supporting members with services ranging from chronic condition, maternity and catastrophic care management to health coaching. In addition, the mobile care management app provides members with a deeper understanding of the benefits they have and how to best use them.

Since its launch in 2018, BCBSNE reports a significant increase in engagement with its members as well as improved clinical outcomes, which are reducing overall healthcare costs. The company attributes part of the success to real-time communication offered by its team of 80 nurses and health coaches.

The app allows members to communicate via text or phone call without having to set up an appointment with a doctor. Patients can use the app to record their health status, read educational content, receive reminders and ask questions related to their care. Those resources often lead to a more individualized conversation with the care team.

Watch this video to see how BCBSNE member Katie, a bank executive in Wayne, Neb., used the app to ask questions during her recent pregnancy. She called her care managers “a team” and said it was the first app she checked each morning.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, an association of independent, locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. To learn more about how Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska is helping its members get care click here.