Managing documents from various healthcare sources, whether electronic or paper, is an essential component of any successful hospital. A reliable document management system that captures, stores, and retrieves both electronic and paper documents can help a facility’s operations. A document management system that can also double as a policy management approval, at the same time as a review system can save the organization a great deal of time during audit or survey.
1. Security
Your documents security, especially those containing sensitive details, can often put the facility at risk. By utilizing a reliable management system, you will have full control over those who can access and when they access those documents. The access can be controlled at the folder level of different individuals and departments. Besides, you will have details of when certain documents were accessed and how they were modified through automated alerts and system messages.
Document management systems provide a unique level of protection. Every folder in the facility’s system benefits from a detailed chain of custody in which the worker names and timestamps are assigned automatically at every processing stage.
Facilities can further protect and preserve sensitive patient information by giving access rights to individual records. For instance, the billing department will only need to see the information relevant to payments and insurance. Medical providers will have access to pertinent healthcare information, but they can’t see information regarding insurance and fees.
2. Make easy Transitions
A well-designed document management software can enable a healthcare facility to easily take incremental steps to reap immediate benefits to the workflow system without making it a large project. Various healthcare facilities opt to implement their documents to manage the system in phases. This enables them to realize immediate advantages and begin taking advantage of additional features over time.
The facility can start small batches of current files and incorporate more bunches that are managed electronically. Then they can begin phasing the most recent files to the system. Lastly, they can add automated retention guidelines and enjoy the time savings.
3. Avoid HIPAA Penalties
The facility can incorporate the compliance feature that reflects its policies to ensure that they easily stay within the HIPAA’s guidelines and rules. Through document protection, automatic retention, and role-based security, hospital management can ensure that only individuals authorized to view can see them.
Besides, a reliable electronic document management system provides off-location backup solutions that ensure the facility has the records as long as the HIPAA requires. Do you require a reliable document management system? All you need is to visit contractsafe.com and get a top-quality hospital document management system – ContractSafe. ContractSafe ensures that all the document changes are up-to-date, and the relevant audit logs maintain a record of every individual and action who has accessed the hospital records, hence providing excellent transparency.
4. Reduced errors due to fast Processing
Typically, physical records must be hand-carried between buildings, departments, and individuals for processing. This can take hours or sometimes days to accomplish. The same documents can be assigned to correct departments, individuals, or building for processing in seconds by adopting a document management system.
Besides, separate departments can process the relevant records for the same file simultaneously. For instance, the billing department can update the financial details while the healthcare worker is updating the medical data. This increases efficiency substantially.
5. Avoid Disaster
A software-based document management solution includes a secure backup and a reliable disaster recovery plan. Having a digital archiving system in place will ensure that the documents will be protected from floods, water, or other natural disasters. Besides, since the document management system centrally stores the documents, the facility will avoid all the risks associated with the physical records being misplaced, lost, or misfiled.
6. Happier Patients
Adopting a hospital document management system provides a range of benefits, all of which will directly benefit the facility. Reduced costs, errors, privacy leaks, and processing times can make the healthcare facility more streamlined and productive.
When these benefits are distilled in their essence, another advantage emerges: the less money and time spent on administrative paperwork, the more resources the facility’s staff can devote to services and add value to the facility. As a result, the facility will have healthier and happier patients.
7. Storage Space
From boxes to file cabinets, the space your documents take up can be quickly utilized. Having reliable document management solutions can free up those documents that require to be kept as hard copies can be stored easily in the less expensive vault.
8. OST-Saving
The apparent advantage of having a software-based document management solution is the cost. Healthcare facilities that switch their record-keeping and documents systems can dramatically cut their expense in the following ways:
Reduced Staffing Expenses – With reliable document management software, you don’t require numerous workers to retrieve physical documents. All sensitive information becomes securely accessible electronically.
Reduced Equipment and Materials – With well-designed document management software, your facility; can purchase less paper and fewer fax machines, photocopiers, printers, and ink cartridges – which some are expensive to purchase and manage.
Fewer Retrieval Charges – Various filing services usually involve substantial costs every time you request or return documents. Therefore, digitizing your facility enables you to search your hospital’s records without going through an intermediary.
Reduced Storage Requirements – Various healthcare facilities must commit entire floors to document keeping. This means that small space for value-added services such as medical treatment. When the facility digitizes its physical records, it can store all the files using on-site servers that need much less space. Even some of the hospitals use cloud storage that needs zero room.
Switching physical records to the digital platform may seem to be a daunting task, as many facilities delay transitioning as they perceive the process as challenging. However, adopting a reliable document management software is a cost-effective strategy that provides cumulative advantages.
Time is valuable and time saved is a benefit of the document management system that often translates into increased facility production. More efficient document retrieval can boost employee morale and improve the patient’s satisfaction. Also, the document management solutions are more scalable to meet the changing needs of the facility.
