How consumers feel about healthcare

For the report, Monigle surveyed 27,269 respondents between November and December 2024 to determine consumers' feelings about the current state of healthcare, as well as their perceptions of certain healthcare brands. The respondents were the healthcare decision-makers for their households who received medical care in the past two years and had health insurance. Among the respondents, 70% had private health insurance, and 30% had government-based insurance, excluding Medicaid.

According to the report, healthcare engagement has steadily remained at high levels after seeing declines during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Engagement also remained largely stable across every attribute of the engagement index, including emotional value, proactivity, symbolic value, topical interest, and personal goals. Notably, proactivity was at an all-time high at 74%, meaning that more people are doing their own research on symptoms and treatments.

"It's a clear signal that today's consumers are showing up informed, opinionated and ready for a real dialogue," Monigle wrote. 

Levels of trust in healthcare providers have also increased over the last few years, going from 44% in 2023 to 48% in 2025. However, the increase in trust is not true for all groups. Compared to other age groups, those ages 25 to 34 saw their levels of distrust increase instead of decrease, going from 38% in 2024 to 42% in 2025. 

According to the report, what drives trust for Gen Z consumers is "empathy, kindness, responsiveness and transparency about what's happening next." Gen Z is also the most engaged generation when it comes to health, care, and wellness, so it's important for organizations to provide them with value during every interaction, according to Monigle.

"It's time to move beyond just clinical success and focus on the personal, human impact that truly resonates with them," Monigle wrote.

The 10 must-trusted healthcare brands

According to Monigle, the 10 most-trusted healthcare brands are:

1.       UAB Medicine

2.       University of Iowa Health Care

3.       Mayo Clinic

4.       Duke Health

5.       UVA Health

6.       Penn Medicine

7.       University of Miami Health System

8.       Johns Hopkins Medicine

9.       Bon Secours – St. Francis

10.   Houston Methodist

How health systems can improve their brand

In the report, Monigle encouraged organizations to move from "thinking about brand as a marketing or communications function to the enterprise leveraging brand as an ecosystem of experiences, built and delivered across your entire organization." Here are five key takeaways from the report:

1. Create memorable experiences for your consumers.

"In a crowded and chaotic world, your brand can't afford to blend in," Monigle wrote. Using distinct visual and verbal cues, such as colors, typography, tone of voice, and naming conventions can help your organization stand out in people's minds.

Organizations can also include brand-led cues during consumers' healthcare journeys, including first visits and wellness check-ins. Scents, sounds, visuals, and interactions can all help organizations create a unique experience.

Wellness initiatives, such as nutrition programs and stress relief spaces, also provide organizations with an opportunity to stand out while also meeting people's needs.

2. Engage with consumers across the care journey.

Although engagement levels are strong, many health systems have struggled to provide consistency throughout consumers' healthcare journeys.

"Connect preventative care, mental health, chronic conditions and wellness into seamless, personalized pathways that reflect peoples' goals, not just your offerings," Monigle wrote. Health systems can also leverage AI to create dynamic touchpoints across different platforms that can adapt to each person's mindset and stage of engagement.

Organizations should also map any potential gaps or pain points when it comes to care and equip teams with the necessary tools to quickly resolve these issues.

3. Provide powerful, meaningful service to build satisfaction and trust.

Although AI is becoming more prevalent, the human element of care is still important to patient satisfaction and trust. "[S]atisfaction is not just about clinical excellence — it's about how [healthcare consumers are] treated, listened to and emotionally supported," Monigle wrote.

Monigle recommends health systems implement service training programs that include active listening and emotional intelligence. These skills can help employees respond to consumers with empathy and build trust.

Monigle also recommends staff make goals with patients to help personalize interactions and build lasting trust. Some potential questions include "What's most important for you to get out of today's visit?" and "Is there something you've been working on in your health that we can support?"

4. Make the healthcare experience easier for consumers.

"Ease remains a defining expectation, and a weak link, in many healthcare experiences," Monigle wrote. Some key reasons people have delayed care include access issues, clunky interfaces, and confusion about insurance.

Providing consumers with clear navigation, intuitive language, and a unified brand presence across different locations and channels can reduce friction and provide more clarity. Creating user experiences that can connect consumer-generated tools, such as apps and wearables, to your clinical systems, portals, and care pathways can help make the healthcare experience more seamless, personalized, and relevant for patients.

AI can also be a useful tool to help remove barriers to care, helping consumers reach the right answer or person to help them more quickly.

5. Inspire and motivate your employees.

Although many health systems are focused on the consumer experience, they should not neglect the employee experience. Employees directly impact the consistency and quality of experience delivery for consumers.

"When employees feel heard, supported and set up for success, they naturally deliver better experiences — and they stick around to do it," Monigle wrote. Some way health systems can support employees and their well-being include flexible scheduling, workload balancing, mental health access, and cross-functional alignment to reduce friction and burnout.