Optimizing Patient Care with Efficient Back-Office Processes

By James Thumma, VP of Sales and Marketing, Optical Image Technology, Inc.

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In order to function at peak efficiency, every healthy organism has to have an intricate network of interrelated systems operating in tandem. The relationship between some systems is readily apparent. Without a working cardiovascular system, for example, human neurological functions would quickly break down. The same interdependence holds true for other systems to which most people give little thought. The endocrine system, the lymphatic system, and the integumentary system seldom capture our attention unless our health is somehow compromised. Frequently, if something goes wrong with one system, a domino effect is initiated through which other systems can be jeopardized. Even if it works behind the scenes, no singular system is expendable—if one system is weakened or damaged, disease can eventually overtake the entire organism.

These covert metabolic systems serve as a metaphor for administrative offices within healthcare organizations. When patients interact with hospitals, practices, and clinics, they have the expectation that they will receive the best care possible. They rarely give any thought to the processes that have to happen behind the scenes in order to make this expectation a reality. Accounting, compliance, registration, human resources, and credentialing have little to do directly with improving health or saving lives. Yet without optimized efficiency in back-office healthcare processes, patient service can be put at risk.

Leveraging Your Technology Investment

When considering technology upgrades, healthcare organizations are usually inclined to separate clinical from back-office solutions. Initially, this thought process seems logical: billing departments have little use for HL7 technology or electronic medical records (EMRs). By the same token, the medical professionals within your organization would much rather focus on patient care than on the technicalities of HIPAA, Medicare, or HCFA.

However, when you consider the complexity of your organization, and how interrelated departments are dependent upon efficient communication and access to much of the same information, it soon becomes apparent that there are great benefits to implementing a software system that will improve both clinical and back-office processes. A robust electronic document management system (EDMS) will respond to the needs of both areas, integrating the flow of information so that all of your departments are able to function at peak efficiency. An EDMS addresses the needs of your healthcare enterprise in three specific areas: access, process management, and system management. Its implementation will enable your organization to save time, save money, facilitate regulatory compliance, and ultimately provide better patient care and service.

Access: Reducing Paper Throughout Clinics, Hospitals, and Private Practices

An EDMS enables your organization to electronically capture, index and store patient information such as EOBs, checks, CMS 1500 (HCFA) and UB-92 forms, as well as e-mail messages and faxes. Digital records give your authorized staff the ability to access vital patient information with the click of a mouse. Storage areas overflowing with alphabetized patient files are a thing of the past, as is lost or duplicated paperwork. An EDMS stores patient information in a centralized reservoir that is accessible only to authorized users. Patient privacy is protected, and files are no longer lost or misplaced. Different departments can access files simultaneously, from any Internet browser. A robust EDMS streamlines revenue cycle management, increasing productivity and efficiency. It also has the ability to integrate with line-of-business (LOB) applications, allowing extraction and sharing of critical data.

The same storage reservoir can also be used to house your organization’s internal information. This includes, but is not limited to, employee hiring, termination, and research files, credentialing and certification information, personnel records, and any other non-clinical information that helps the organization run more efficiently. Accounting, payroll reports, job applications, and other documentation that is integral to the efficiency of your back-office operations is immediately accessible. Hospitals can even use an EDMS to store research records and to automate the credentialing process. Eliminating the paper brings significant improvements to the overall efficiency of daily operations, as it provides instant, secure access to information. At the same time, it protects privacy and reduces the potential for errors that is inherent within a paper-based system.

Process Management: Optimizing Efficiency with Automation

After paper transactions are replaced with an EDMS, organizations have the ability to optimize their processes with automated workflow. Any paper that comes into the facility can be immediately scanned and indexed for easy retrieval. With automated workflow, scanned and stored information can then be electronically routed to the appropriate personnel for processing, which means that job applications no longer have to be photocopied and distributed manually. When application materials are received, they can be forwarded electronically to the appropriate personnel for review.

Workflow ensures that the right work goes to the right person at the right time for processing. Furthermore, a robust workflow product will prompt the user with processing options and provide him or her with the tools needed to do the job. Those personnel who are in charge of hiring decisions can view material simultaneously, from any Internet browser. When applicants are hired, automated workflow can be configured to create an electronic file and forward the new employee’s information to the HR department.

An EDMS that is equipped to incorporate Web documents can further simplify back-office processes. Some electronic document management systems include an electronic form designer that allows your organization to design and route forms received via the Web. Your clinic, hospital, or practice can create forms and post them on your organization’s Website. The completed forms can be configured to be forwarded to the right people for processing immediately after they are submitted. If your EDMS has electronic signature capabilities, processing is further simplified and integrity is assured. Decision-makers can indicate approvals or denials with the click of a mouse before forwarding materials to others for further processing. Back-office procedures which can take weeks using paper-based methods are reduced to days using a robust EDMS with workflow and form-designing capabilities.

Systems Management: Helping the Drive Toward Compliance

Sophisticated electronic document management systems have audit capabilities that enable organizations to ease compliance measures and to continually perfect their processes. An EDMS’s audit trails provide quantitative evidence that shows which people have accessed specific documents. Audit trails demonstrate that your clinic, hospital, or private practice is taking measures to comply with state and federal regulations, and enable your back-office staff to devote more time to their administrative duties as opposed to compliance measures.

By the same token, an EDMS also helps with disaster recovery preparations and overall systems management. Backups of your electronic patient and employee records can easily be stored off site, allowing operations to continue with only minimal interruption in case of a flood, fire, or other disaster. An EDMS even permits you to automate retention and destruction schedules of specific documents, which can further help with compliance measures.

Monitoring and reporting tools that are built into the system enable administrators and managers to oversee your EDMS proactively and to streamline it for optimum efficiency. If you notice bottlenecks or slowdowns in your automation process, administrators can easily re-route or reconfigure the process before a shutdown occurs. Systems management tools that are built into an EDMS ensure that back-office productivity is optimized. At the same time, they help to facilitate regulatory compliance so that your staff is able to devote more time and energy to patient service.

Integrating Back-Office and Clinical Processes

In addition to improving the efficiency of your back-office processes, a robust EDMS has the capability to integrate your entire healthcare facility. An EDMS can store and manage staff and administrative records. Concurrently, it can interface with medical applications via HL7. This allows your organization to store and add documentation to electronic medical records (EMRs). Information that is stored in legacy systems and LOB applications can be extracted and shared. Furthermore, an EDMS ensures that privacy, security, and overall management requirements that are mandated by law are executed.

Back-office processes may not be at the forefront of patient care, but they are nonetheless indispensable to the efficiency of your organization. Consider the relationship between your administrative and your clinical processes when you evaluate software upgrades. An integrated approach ensures that your entire organization runs smoothly and that patient care is optimized.

To review customer case studies, or to find out more about how EDMS can help your organization optimize back-office processes and improve patient services, please contact Optical Image Technology (http://www.docfinity.com) at 814.238.0038 or email info@docfinity.com.