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Nearly 70% of ER visits are not considered emergencies, according to a 2019 UnitedHealth Group report. And given that the average ER visit costs over $2,000, Americans lose approximately $47 billion a year seeking care in the wrong place. But despite the costs, this trend persists, hurting employers and employees.
Yet, the patient is not necessarily at fault, says Dr. Viral Patel, founder and CEO of Radish Health. Radish Health is an employer-provided benefit dedicated to primary care and healthcare navigation, with one of its missions being to decrease the number of unnecessary ER visits employers see in a year.
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"A lot of people do not have access to someone they trust when they have a medical concern," says Dr. Patel. "My friends and family just call me, and I can usually get the answer and give them a semblance of comfort."
Dr. Patel is a former ER doctor and knows firsthand how frustrating it can be for doctors and patients in the ER. Many people genuinely believe they needed immediate care, while others simply had to wait too long to connect with a primary care physician. Yet unlike Dr. Patel's loved ones, many ER patients don't have a way of getting answers about their health in a timely manner.
That's what inspired Dr. Patel to create Radish Health, where patients can contact the same primary care and mental health providers via chat or video call, or schedule an in-person visit, all through their app.
"We are on a mission to create the experience of having a doctor in the family," he says. "Our primary goal is just a better patient experience, but the secondary goal is to decrease healthcare costs, by reducing unnecessary visits."
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Radish acts as a checkpoint for users who have concerns about their health. Between primary care doctors, licensed therapists and nutrition counselors, users should be able to get a clearer view of their condition, in order to make an informed decision about next steps, be it seeing a specialist or heading to the ER. Most importantly, Radish facilitates long-term provider and patient relationships, building a degree of trust and care for both parties, Dr. Patel explains.
"When your employer signs up for Radish, you're immediately assigned a doctor and a therapist, and that is your doctor and therapist," he says. "So if you wake up one day with a rash, you send a picture to your doctor, hear back within a few minutes and go from there."
As a result, users have seen a 41% reduction in ER visits, according to Radish. The app also offers healthcare navigation, advising users on which specialists or hospitals are in-network and best for their condition if they need help beyond Radish.
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The U.S. health system has historically not rewarded relationship-based or value-based care. It could take a person hours to navigate their insurance and find a doctor in-network, not to mention that the primary care physician shortage has made it even harder to book an appointment.
"Primary care doesn't pay as well, and emergency room visits cost a lot," says Dr. Patel. "So [the U.S.] has set up a system by which it is far more profitable to take care of a cold in an emergency room than in a primary care doctor's office."
Dr. Patel advises employers to fight against this norm by taking as much guesswork out of the healthcare system as possible. This may mean more benefits education, access to virtual care and in-network navigation assistance. Regardless, employers have to help employees gain a better level of healthcare literacy, or suffer the loss of talent and profit, says Dr. Patel.
"If you can provide them with someone they have a relationship with and they are convenient to access, they'll access that person first and naturally," he says. "Then costs will go down."
