Patient engagement and access platform Upfront announced today the acquisition of PatientBond, the leader in consumer science for healthcare, creating a single enterprise technology solution to drive patient acquisition and loyalty.
Upfront’s pioneering technology ensures every patient completes necessary care. Since 2016, the company has supported millions of patients through its market-leading digital platform, now serving more than 4,000 locations. With many health systems focused on capturing the ‘digital front door,’ Upfront now extends well beyond that position by engaging, guiding, and activating patients from their first interaction across the entire continuum of care.
PatientBond has a substantial presence in urgent care, payer, and life sciences networks, a benefit that pushes Upfront to the forefront of patient navigation innovation across the entire healthcare industry.
This powerful strategic union is a result of Upfront’s commitment to tackling healthcare’s mounting challenges around technology fragmentation, a complex friction point for health systems as providers are overburdened and patients fall between the cracks due to siloed communication.
Currently, 72 percent of consumers indicated that technology is important for managing their health, yet patient engagement levels remain staggeringly low.
Driven by consumers’ desire for personalized healthcare journeys, patients increasingly expect providers to deliver the same digital touchpoints and user-friendly navigation they experience in other industries. In turn, provider organizations are scrambling to find cohesive digital health solutions to attract and retain patients, supporting their ongoing healthcare journeys.
Upfront’s acquisition of PatientBond includes the company’s exhaustively proven healthcare-centric psychographic segmentation model, built through more than 100 million data points collected from proprietary market research, enabling Upfront to accelerate patient activation capabilities through proactive and personalized communications.
Psychographics incorporate people’s attitudes, personalities, and lifestyles to determine their motivations and communications preferences. The method was first developed as a tool of market research and driven by CPG brands.
The acquisition accelerates Upfront’s delivery of their next-generation personalization platform. Combined with Upfront’s omnichannel communications capabilities, PatientBond’s robust consumer insights build and expand loyal patient-provider relationships to influence positive behavioral changes, resulting in improved patient acquisition, retention, and experience.
“We are two like-minded companies relentlessly committed to enabling all patients to get the care that they need,” said Ben Albert, CEO and co-founder of Upfront. “The provider landscape is changing and access is getting more difficult and confusing for patients. Together we will not only strengthen our clients’ abilities to attract new patients but also simplify access by proactively engaging and guiding all patients to ultimately improve long-term loyalty.”
By understanding how a patient prefers to communicate, healthcare organizations can determine the best route to meet the needs of patients and influence consumer behaviors, said PatientBond CEO Justin Dearborn, who will continue in a leadership role on Upfront’s board of directors.
“Healthcare providers can no longer utilize a ‘one size fits all’ approach to consumer health,” Dearborn added. “Personalized engagement requires a deep understanding of patients’ motivations and preferred communication channels. We’re not only enhancing member and patient experiences but ultimately empowering patient success. We couldn’t be more thrilled to join Upfront in their mission to change our industry.”
With its strong growth and financial position, the continued expansion of Upfront’s leadership and operations teams is central to its growth strategy. Today, more than 200 Upfront employees are committed to advancing the company’s mission to drive patient success and maximize health outcomes.
Joshua Klein of Neal Gerber Eisenberg, LLP acted as legal counsel to Upfront.
About Upfront
Upfront is a mission-driven healthcare company, delivering tangible outcomes to leading healthcare systems and provider groups. Our patient communication and engagement platform makes each patient feel seen, guiding their care experience through personalized digital outreach. The backbone of the Upfront experience is our data engine, which analyzes clinical, sociodemographic, and patient-reported data. These insights allow us to individually activate patients to complete necessary care, show up for visits, and close any gaps in care. We are rooted in partnership, leveraging best-in-class healthcare expertise to maximize the impact of our technology and deliver a next-generation patient experience. To learn more, visit www.upfronthealthcare.com.
About PatientBond
PatientBond was founded by leaders in digital health and consumer engagement, and consumer product executives from P&G who realized that the rise of consumerism in healthcare means that providers and other healthcare stakeholders must take a “digital first” approach to building loyal patient relationships. PatientBond’s mission is to leverage Healthcare Consumer Insights and Innovative Technology Solutions to help its clients build a tighter bond with their patients and members to improve health outcomes, increase revenue and reduce costs. PatientBond is growing rapidly, as recognized by Inc. 5000 and Financial Times. To learn more about PatientBond, visit www.patientbond.com.
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