5 Steps to Streamline Patient Access
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The document outlines five steps that health systems can take to streamline their patient access operations and see significant financial and operational improvements. The five steps are: 1) placing all referrals and orders electronically, 2) scheduling directly with patients, 3) integrating revenue cycle steps throughout the ordering process, 4) closing communication loops with providers, and 5) gaining insights through analytics. Implementing these steps can help health systems increase revenue, improve operational efficiencies, enhance provider and patient satisfaction, and strengthen their networks.
5 Steps to Streamline Patient Access
- 1. FIVE STEPSto Streamline Your Patient Access Operations Highlights for Delivering Financial and Operational Improvements
- 2. Five Steps to Streamline Your Patient Access Operations 1 2 3 4 5 Place all referrals and orders electronically Schedule directly with patients Integrate revenue cycle steps throughout Close the communication loop with providers Gain insight through analytics More than ever before, the entire patient access experience – from referral all the way through care and payment – is critical. SCI Solutions gives health systems a concrete path forward to optimize vital provider network processes with five specific steps that health systems can implement quickly to see dramatic results. $ 1
- 3. Step 1: Eliminate paper-based, patient-dependent workflows Place all referrals and orders electronically O Orders are submitted via a web-based application or EMR system integration O Workflow tools and worklists enforce rules for completeness O Authorization processes start before the order is submitted O All orders reside in a single repository, accessible across the health system anytime With Step 1: 2
- 4. 2012 2014 73% 2013 67% 60% Step 1: Eliminate paper-based, patient-dependent workflows Place all referrals and orders electronically Providers Drive Growth in Electronic Orders Percentage of All Orders 3 “People frequently ask me how I got so many physician offices to use electronic orders. I simply explain that I let the benefits speak for themselves. Regardless of practice size, the increased efficiencies, time savings and full benefits are recognized immediately.” — Frankie Grant, Physician Liaison, Northeast Georgia Health System
- 5. Step 2: Cut the middleman in the ordering and scheduling process Schedule directly with patients from electronic referrals and orders O Schedulers at the hospital, clinics or specialists contact patients directly O Scheduling process includes: » Specialty screening questions » Patient preparation instructions » Financial responsibility information » Directions and parking information With Step 2: 44
- 6. Step 2: Cut the middleman in the ordering and scheduling process Schedule directly with patients from electronic referrals and orders Before After Cut Scheduling Time Dramatically 5 “A big benefit to specialists is the ability to integrate complex patient screening procedures into the workflow to assure a fast yet thorough process. And, patients are staying within our network.” — Mary Godwin, Baptist Health Care Patient Access Manager 7Mins 2Mins
- 7. O Workflow tools check for completeness, including diagnosis and procedure codes O Medicare medical necessity checking (Part A and Part B) and prior authorization management start immediately O Patients are pre-registered to verify demographic and insurance information — using integration with the hospital HIS — and to alert them to potential financial responsibility With Step 3:Step 3: Move billing to the front of the process Integrate revenue cycle steps early, during ordering $ 6
- 8. 2009 2014 $ Increase POS Collection Rates Step 3: Move billing to the front of the process Integrate revenue cycle steps early, during ordering 7 With the goal to obtain an order prior to scheduling and complete pre-registration and financial liability processes prior to the patient arrival, Northeast Georgia Health System increased point-of- service collections from $258,000 to more than $7 million over 5 years. $7Million +
- 9. Step 4: Close the communication loop for coordinated care Better communication leads to better provider satisfaction O One “source of truth” for all referrals and orders O Health systems use electronic correspondence to provide regular updates to providers O All parties can stay abreast of the status as orders move from received to scheduled to registered With Step 4: 8
- 10. Step 4: Close the communication loop for coordinated care Better communication leads to better provider satisfaction 9 On average, SCI clients see an 85% 98% conversion rate from referral to scheduled procedure. More than half are scheduled within 24 hours. and up to a “Northeast Georgia Health System has significantly improved physician loyalty and patient experiences.” — Frankie Grant, Physician Liaison, Northeast Georgia Health System
- 11. Step 5: Use your data to continuously improve Gain insight through analytics O Rich Dashboards provide insight into how the physician community is performing O Drilldowns and Filters enable users to transform tables and graphs into drill down reports to get the details needed on any measure or metric O Self-Serve Data Access lets users quickly access the data they need and view it the way they want it by simply dragging and dropping metrics for their own analysis O Referral Management provides timely actionable insights into outpatient orders and physician referral patterns With Step 5: 10
- 12. Use Visual Dashboards for Analysis Step 5: Use your data to continuously improve Gain insight through analytics 11 “It’s very easy to identify trends, and drill down to the correct provider. I can check out the Top 10 group every time I log in.” — Joe Imbruglio, Manager of Revenue Operations, Health First
- 13. Benefits: O Competitive differentiation by offering the best patient access experience for referring providers and their patients O Increased revenue through incremental referral/orders from community providers, plus reduced network leakage from employed physicians O Operational and financial improvements that streamline patient access, reduce errors and lost orders, and improve reimbursement O Better physician and patient satisfaction Take Action Implement Five Steps that will Streamline Patient Access 12
- 14. 1 2 3 4 5 Place all referrals and orders electronically Schedule directly with patients Integrate revenue cycle steps throughout Close the communication loop with providers Gain insight through analytics $ Take Action Implement Five Steps that will Streamline Patient Access Get started today. Visit scisolutions.com 13
- 15. About SCI SCI Solutions improves the health of the healthcare system by enabling provider networks to gain economic value through better community- based care coordination. SCI operates a cloud-based service for a network of approximately 600 hospitals and independent providers including, diagnostic imaging centers, physician groups and post-acute organizations. SCI connects health systems beyond their traditional boundaries to their community partners in ways big IT systems can’t. Provider networks utilize SCI’s service to coordinate patient care transitions, schedule patients, automate referrals and manage orders. An integrated and easy-to-use business analytics toolset identifies opportunities and monitors performance. As a result, healthcare organizations experience increased outpatient revenue, better coordinated care and greater physician satisfaction. 866-472-4338 scisolutions.com