Technology has played a critical role in advancing modern health care. The rise of consumerization culture has prompted medical providers to respond to changes in consumer behavior by developing new strategies to enhance the patient experience while increasing their bottom line at the same time.
ServiceNow health care has inspired medical providers to improve the important facets of their operations to enhance patient outcomes. This makes it easier for clinical practices to incorporate technology into their workflow and manage their practice in one convenient platform.
Embracing modern health care is one of the best ways to succeed in the healthcare industry. To get you started, here are ways to modernize your medical practice.
Simplify data collection
For most medical practices, the patient admission process involves handing patients a pen and a clipboard attached with multiple documents as soon as they come to the clinic. Afterward, the clinic staff will scan or enter the information manually on the computer. The problem with this approach is the time-intensive process and the likelihood of committing data errors.
Many practices are now switching to digital forms by making patients fill out necessary information through a tablet device. Patient intake becomes simplified instead of relying on physical documents and manual encoding. Meanwhile, those who want to omit the patient intake process on the day of the appointment instruct patients to fill out an online form before they come to the clinic.
Real-time data recording
Data empowers modern health care. It is dependent on data and can only be fit for purpose if delivered accurately and on time. Medical practices are prone to making errors in recording patient symptoms, which ultimately leads to misdiagnosis and administration of the wrong treatment.
Traditionally, doctors rely on paper charts to record information. If the patient requires to be seen by other doctors, the attending doctors have to ensure proper circulation of charts. This approach increases the chances of misplacing the charts if they constantly move from one physician to another. It often happens when the patient changes physicians or consults a different doctor.
In this case, paper charts play a critical role in keeping patient records up to date and monitoring diagnosis and treatment details. This results in a longer waiting time to claim test results, which increases the levels of anxiety in patients.
Modern medical practices have streamlined the recording process in the form of electronic health record systems. It serves as a digitalized version of paper charts maintained by the provider and includes critical administrative medical data, such as demographics, medications, health history, complaints, and progress notes. Doctors can easily enter patient information into a system that other physicians can access. They can also use their mobile device to update patient conversations in real-time, which facilitates accurate reporting because they no longer need staff to transcribe notes.
Telehealth services
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth services were only limited to patients with mobility issues and those who couldn’t consult their providers face-to-face because of geographical distance. When COVID-19 hit the world, patients chose to stay at home while clinical practices were only available for emergency cases.
The COVID-19 pandemic prompted the rise of telehealth. This technology-based solution facilitates the real-time connection between patients and health providers using a digital device. Embracing telehealth into your private practice brings meaningful patient opportunities by giving people the time to look after their health at home. If you can monitor them remotely, it’s easy to monitor their progress and provide accurate treatment.
Enhanced patient experience
Patient experience plays a vital factor in driving the success of any private practice. This means patients shouldn’t only be cared for physically and ensure their experience is enjoyable and satisfying. There are many ways to improve the patient experience, such as offering entertainment in the waiting room, updating patient intake experience, enhancing check-in procedures, and leveraging after-care services.
Outdated systems are a common problem in medical practices. If you want to bring your practice to the forefront of health care, you have to rethink the entire workflow in a way that’s tailored to patient and provider’s needs. Streamlining the system from appointment scheduling to providing treatment will give more room for you to focus on facilitating quality patient care instead of the traditional system that is prone to errors and misdiagnosis.
Any medical practice is complex, which explains why there’s no standard rule for achieving the perfect healthcare setting. But through modern technology, physicians can take critical measures to further improve patient experience and keep their business striving. By following the steps above, you will find it easier to survive the rapid changes in health care and foster a successful transformation of your practice.
