The healthcare sector is facing pressure to move to digital systems, both from regulatory authorities and from the general public. The government is pushing for digital systems so as to make the functioning of hospitals and other healthcare systems more transparent. The public is becoming more aware of their healthcare requirements and options and is demanding more efficient and accessible healthcare systems, and the healthcare providers are becoming more aware of this need. Many healthcare IT firms are trying to fulfill this need, and are providing a variety of software services. Let’s try to understand the different types of healthcare software used by various healthcare providers.

EHR

Electronic health records or EHRs are used for storing patient information in a digital manner. It is used by hospitals and clinics to store the complete medical history of a patient. Government health regulators in many countries are moving forward with plans to make electronic health records mandatory.

These records provide a secure and easily accessible way of storing medical records compared to paper-based records. Electronic records do not have the risk of loss of medical history or being illegible or destroyed over a long period of time. It also prevents duplication of medical records, since there is only one file that is modified over time.

Electronic health record software is used in both clinics and hospitals and usually comes integrated with hospital management software and practice management software.

Practice management software ( PMS)

Practice management software or clinic management software is used for managing clinics. Depending on the requirement of the clinic, software with various combinations of features is available. Generally, they contain appointment management, billing, and electronic health records. Software with integrated lab and pharmacy management features is also available if there are labs or pharmacies associated with the clinic. Practice management software helps to streamline the workflow of a clinic, gets error-free documentation, manages appointments and billing, and makes the system more efficient.

Specialized systems are available for dental care, ophthalmology, and other specialty clinics, with customized prescription management and health records.

Queues in the clinic can also be managed by the system, either on the basis of tokens or on the basis of appointments

Hospital Management System ( HMS )

Hospital management system has almost all the features described above, and more. They are a fully integrated system capable of managing the entire hospital. They are capable of managing appointments and electronic health records for both inpatient and outpatient departments. They are used for managing doctors’ schedules, surgeries, other procedures, and all the aspects related to them. They are also capable of handling the labs and pharmacies attached to the hospitals. The HMS systems can also manage the rooms, marking rooms as occupied, unoccupied, undergoing maintenance, etc, making it easy to allocate rooms and beds for patients.  

Hospital management systems are often linked to the websites of the hospitals and patients can use them to book their appointments, get access to their health records and treatment plans, and manage their prescriptions. These days they also come with apps for patients that aid the patients in these same tasks much more easily through their smartphones. Alerts are provided through SMS services for follow-up procedures, vaccinations, etc in some hospital management systems.

Due to the integrated nature of the HMS, all the procedures done in various departments of the hospitals, all the tests done, medicines administered, and prescribed are tracked, thus allowing easy comprehensive billing.

Laboratory information management systems ( LIMS )

Lab information management systems, as the name implies, are used to manage the functions of a lab. It will have provisions for sample collection, inventory management, accounting functions, and provisions for machine interfacing with the lab equipment.

A good lab information system will provide full automation and ensure error-free results, with alerts for abnormal results. With machine interfacing, data from the instruments in the lab are directly read by the software, and accurate records are made against the sample data. In the case of LIMS systems integrated with the hospital management system, provisions may be there to add the test results to the patient records. Stand-alone systems are also available for use by independent laboratories.

The Laboratory information management system helps lab technicians to achieve a smooth workflow and better quality control. From the point at which the sample is collected, till the results are delivered, samples are tracked using the software, which means that any technician in the lab can find out what to do with a sample at every step of the way, thus avoiding issues with sample management. The system also prevents errors, thus improving the credibility of the lab.

Billing software

Billing software has been used as part of hospitals and clinics ever since accounting went digital. Even before EHRs came, accounting software was being used in many hospitals.

Billing software helps to manage insurance claims and provides a smooth accounting of medical bills. The entire medical costs of all the patients can be easily accessed and organized in an efficient manner using billing software. Though they come along with hospital and practice management systems these days, they are still available as stand-alone systems. 

Leveraging telemedicine to profitable practice helps in enhancing patient retention, increasing revenue, and delighting your office staff. The advantages can be quickly gained through the option of telemedicine. 

Powerful financial incentives for the providers and intense consumer requirements for the service are the two critical things that drive the sharp spike in the field of telemedicine technology. 

Both private payers and legislatures are allowing the arise of telemedicine by representing parity laws and policies in telehealth. They identify the requirements to expand access to care while leveraging healthcare resources effectively.

How do make use of telemedicine to improve profitability?

There are many reasons to list why influencing telemedicine can bring more profit to you. In this blog, let's check out a few steps that can be used for influencing telemedicine into a more profitable practice.

Hold your current patients and amuse them:

There are numerous healthcare options available than before for the patients to choose from. There are a different number of urgent care facilities, retail-based walk-in clinics, and thousands of online opportunities. These variations to in-office care are prominent with patients, especially for regular issues like flu, skin conditions, other ailments, colds, UTIs, and more as they are inexpensive, quick, and convenient. The practices which provide video visits provide the patient with the essential benefits of seeing their routine provider, with the added convenience that telemedicine brings. 

Decrease No-Shows and Cancellations: 

Practice profitability is hard when any of the appointments are missed. They are also bad when considering the outcomes of patient health. A good number of the reasons why people cancel or show up at the last minute are withdrawn by telemedicine. Patients need not consider taking time off work, transportation, or arranging for childcare. 

Grab good patient outcomes: 

It's easy for patients to follow up on the next visit through the recommendation process in telemedicine. They are an accurate tool for lifestyle coaching, post-hospitalization care, and medication management. Compliance and increased patient management system lead to smaller unnecessary complications as well as help in better case management. 

Make a profit with telephone calls:

Most of the payers do not compensate for the provider's telephone but rather only follow-up calls. Few conversations like medication checks and reviewing test results will not be paid if it's done over the phone. Most of the exchanges become counterpoised by adding videos. Making use of the video also makes these relevant encounters and make them understandable to the patients. 

See More patients: 

In-office care is not much effective when compared with online visits using telemedicine. Practices that influence video will see several patients every day with identical providers. Most countries and states need insurers to compensate providers for visiting telehealth at an equal rate similar to in-office care. It's also recognized that most of the insurers follow this set of rules in the states that do not need it. It indicates that most of the visits are performed every day or week, and this can have a substantial impact on the profit and revenue along with the added cost. 

Enjoy an excellent Life Balance/Work:

May practices that provide visits through video find that the reliability it offers has a full impact on well being of the provider. Few of them prefer to move some appointments to the weekend or work from home for a few hours. The providers are provided a chance of enjoyment to take care of their tasks during the workweek, and the patients also appreciate the prospect to get attention outside of regular hours in the business. There is no extra office expense if there are hours extended or else the visit can happen from anywhere. 

Boost employee satisfaction:

Video visits are mostly preferred by medical office workers as they make the office run flexibly and smoothly. They also alleviate a few administrative works by making every patient come to their office. The waiting rooms are quieted and less crowded with fewer patients in the office, and there is not much risk of grabbing the illness from the already present patients. This extra time provides extra office staff to work on the practices and strategies at work. The team also gets an advantage when the practice is growing or gaining more profit. 

Video technology can be the best game-changer in the coming years, which implementing an efficient program. Office workers, providers, and patients all win when the practice of telemedicine is thoughtfully applied with the right education and technology.

For More Information Visit MocDoc Digital Healthcare Solutions.