New Data Reveals Barriers to Provider Directory Adoption 

When consumers can check bank balances, book travel or track a package with a tap, they expect their digital interactions to be effortless and accurate. Yet when it comes to something as important as finding an in-network doctor, the experience often falls short.  

New data from the Provider Directory Utilization Consumer Insights Survey 2025 from LexisNexis® Risk Solutions reveals the gap between expectation and reality. One in three provider directory users reports encountering outdated or incorrect information, nearly one in five adults have never used a provider directory at all and 21% find directories difficult to use. These findings signal that patient and member trust and engagement are shaped by the same forces transforming every other digital experience: convenience, accuracy and personalization.  Provider directories should be a member’s most reliable source for finding care. When these tools fail to deliver, the consequences impact the entire healthcare system, resulting in increased call center volume, care delays and poor satisfaction. Healthcare organizations have a significant opportunity to gain a competitive advantage by treating provider directory accuracy and usability as keys to patient and member trust and retention. 

Understanding Provider Directory Accuracy and Usability Challenges 

The accuracy and usability challenges consumers report represent systemic problems preventing wider adoption that affect nearly every healthcare organization, including: 

• Pace of provider data changes
• Complexity of delivering intuitive, user-friendly experiences 
• Persistence of gaps in consumer awareness 

These are the primary obstacles to provider directory use that together can undermine even the most well-intentioned provider directory strategies.  

The data volatility challenge

Provider information changes constantly. In fact, 26% of providers experience changes to their information every 90 days.¹ Industry consolidation, provider mobility and credential updates create perpetual data flux. Manual update processes can’t keep pace, leading to “ghost networks” that undermine consumer confidence and delay access to care. 

The usability and awareness gaps

Even when data is accurate, consumers struggle to use provider directories. One in five finds directories difficult to navigate, often because search functionality, user experience or information architecture don’t match how people actually look for care. With 51% of directory users now accessing directories via mobile devices, healthcare organizations must deliver responsive, intuitive experiences or risk losing engagement entirely.

Finally, a meaningful portion of consumers have never used a directory, with some unaware that one even exists.  

Poor experiences reduce usage and familiarity, leading consumers to rely on other methods for finding care. From the member’s perspective, if the directory has been wrong before, they’re less likely to trust it in the future.  

What Consumers Do Instead — and What It Costs Healthcare Organizations

When provider directories don’t meet consumers’ needs, they turn to personal recommendations. Seeking referrals from doctors, family members and friends is the primary way people find new providers, according to the survey. While these sources offer reassurance, they often lack critical information that directories can provide, such as network participation, provider credentials and specialization.  

Reliance on informal channels creates financial and operational challenges for organizations: 

• Call centers field higher volumes of inquiries about network status and coverage. 
• Consumers may select out-of-network providers based on personal recommendations, causing surprise medical bills and poor healthcare experiences. 
• Digital engagement metrics remain low despite significant investments in healthcare portals. 

The survey demonstrates that consumers want reliable provider information, but they’re not confident they’ll find it in directories. Healthcare organizations can close this gap, but it requires more accurate and complete provider data paired with a better user experience. 

The Path Forward: Accuracy, Access and Awareness 

Modernizing the provider directory experience requires a comprehensive approach that addresses three important dimensions. 

Build trust through provider data accuracy  

Provider directory accuracy problems are fundamentally a data management problem. Provider information changes constantly, lives across fragmented sources and requires continuous validation to remain reliable. Manual processes can’t scale to meet these demands. 

LexisNexis® Provider Data MasterFile™ and LexisNexis® ProviderPoint® support directory maintenance through a powerful referential database of critical provider and healthcare facility data. Provider Data MasterFile™, refreshed daily, is the gold standard for provider information. ProviderPoint® cleanses existing provider records by identifying inaccurate, duplicate and incomplete data, creating a “golden record” of information. 

These solutions improve operational efficiency through reduced manual updates and costly call center use. And consumer trust rises when they can access accurate provider directory data to make important care decisions, such as finding a specialist or confirming network participation. 

Reduce friction in the user experience

Accuracy alone won’t increase directory use if members can’t easily access the information they need. With 51% of directory users now searching on mobile devices, organizations must deliver experiences that are both secure and seamless, a balance that often creates friction at healthcare portal login. 

Identity Verification Solutions from LexisNexis Risk Solutions support account creation and login experiences without compromising security. Intuitive, customizable layers of defense adapt to risk levels while maintaining an exceptional user experience.  

Provider directory ease of use matters. A cumbersome login experience is often the point where members abandon digital tools and make a phone call instead. Healthcare organizations can increase directory engagement while protecting sensitive patient and member data by making access more effortless. 

Drive awareness and engagement 

Even the most accurate, user-friendly directory delivers little value if consumers don’t know it exists or understand when to use it. The survey reveals a significant awareness gap that targeted, personalized education can close. 

LexisNexis® Keep Contact enables more effective patient and member outreach by ensuring organizations can actually reach them. The solution cleanses duplicate and inaccurate profiles while enriching records with current, comprehensive demographic information.  

Solving the directory awareness gap requires actively helping patients and members understand how provider directory tools can help. Timely, relevant outreach can drive adoption, transforming underutilized directories into valuable resources that support better healthcare decision-making. 

Deliver on the Potential of Provider Directories 

Consumers recognize the value of provider directories, but the experience often doesn’t live up to the promise. The gap between expectation and reality shows up in inaccurate provider data, poor usability, and persistent reliance on informal referral channels that lack the critical information consumers need. 

References:

1.  LexisNexis Risk Solutions. (2023).  Provider Density Trends: Primary and Specialty Care [Data Brief]