It’s no secret the demands on healthcare systems are skyrocketing as the coronavirus spreads.  

So it’s a welcome development that a partnership has been announced between Kyruus, a provider of search and scheduling solutions for health systems, and GYANT, developer of an AI-enabled virtual assistant for healthcare, which aims to help health systems enhance consumer access and self-service on their websites. 

According to a statement, the partnership “will enable health systems to capitalize on the comprehensive provider directory and direct scheduling integrations they put into place with Kyruus to enhance the scope of services they offer via GYANT’s virtual assistant.” 

Specifically, the integration between the Kyruus and GYANT solutions will allow joint customers to expand their chat-based care navigation and triage as well as to offer patient-provider matching and scheduling.

"Partnering with Kyruus provides for a natural extension of our services, helping better meet consumer needs early in their care journey by bringing scheduling support into the patient experience,” said Stefan Behrens, Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder at GYANT.

Increasingly, and particularly as providers are urging patients to limit their use of healthcare systems to true emergencies only, healthcare consumers want the online convenience they enjoy with other types of services online, they also want the flexibility to address the wide range of criteria they consider important in care decisions. Simultaneously, providers want to feel confident that consumers booking on their own have the tools they need to make informed decisions and sufficient guidance to schedule appropriately. 

The two companies plan to expand their collaboration to facilitate seamless digital transitions to call center agents when necessary, giving health systems the option to route consumers needing additional assistance to a virtual access center, physical access center, or clinical triaging service depending on the health system’s access model.

"Across industries, chat-based solutions play a big role in meeting consumer demand for on-demand, digital access, but we’ve only just started to see their potential in healthcare, especially when it comes to care selection and scheduling," said Chris Gervais, Chief Technology Officer at Kyruus.