Over the last 10 years, we have seen a mass technological migration from paper charts to Electronic Medical Records (EMR) or Electronic Health Records (EHR). Additionally, we have seen the development of “specialty-specific” software for inventory management, human resources, billing, and collections. (Excuse me, I meant “Revenue Cycle Management.”) Yet despite all the innovation, how does it explain what many in the industry call “software fatigue?”
“I think the problem for years has not just been the high cost, which has been inhibiting for many like us, but also fit and compatibility,” says Jordan Olsen, Administrator for an outpatient surgical center in Southern California. “We very recently added our first EMR platform after looking at quite a number of systems for several years. We didn’t want to be on paper, but it was hard to rationalize the exorbitant costs of most of the other platforms that we didn’t choose. Plus, once we finished vetting the candidate systems, some of them were actually going to make more work for us than remaining on paper charts!”
Essentially, this has been the industry’s dilemma: For example, how does a small, one O.R. facility go “paperless” when they don’t have the staff or resources of a three, four or five operating room surgery center? Even the bigger ASCs complain about either cost or service – or both.
“There is a lot of good technology out there and has been for a number of years now, but many of my colleagues complain of software fatigue,” says Warrie Layon, Administrator for a LA-based ASC. “The problem for me has been size and scope. Some platforms price their software “per OR” and others “per user” but, more often than not, the cost proposals felt much bigger and broader than what we really needed or even wanted or could afford,” he added.
The other issue fueling this perception is the additional costs of supplemental software often not bundled with EMR products. “If you really want to go paperless, you need subscriptions to five, six or even seven different platforms; some can API connect, but most don’t,” added Layon. “In the end, it’s very hard to manage and very cost prohibitive, hence my feeling of exhaustion,” he said.
That was the founding principle behind the launch of OutPatientPro.com: Provide the growing ASC, OBL and outpatient/ambulatory industries with bundled, customizable software options for a price that’s affordable while providing domestically based customer service that is easy to communicate and work with.
“When we imagined what we could do to positively impact those who work in the outpatient industries, we drew upon our own collective end-user experiences working in ASCs,” said Gary Sparks, COO of OutPatientPro. “Many centers have four or five subscriptions to various platforms that do not interact with each other or require manually entering patient data into each platform, then manually culling and manipulating the data. It’s a real hassle for many users,” Sparks said.
Those experiences – with all the added work and wasted time – left us at OutPatientPro feeling a strong need to create “a better way” that is logical and convenient from the end-user point of view. Our software is designed to minimize keystroke input and make the workflow of those using our software more efficient. Whether you need software or if a facility has already invested in software(s) from other providers, we can provide affordable integration and interoperability services. “Bottom line: We hope to improve healthcare workers’ lives inside and even outside of work,” Sparks added .
“That’s why we work with them,” Layon said. “At the end of the day, I want the best software, but service is just as important and OutPatientPro’s team is US-based. I have one account rep who will personally handle any issue that might come up and the hassle is completely eliminated. It’s that simple.”
For more information about all the products or services at OutPatientPro please contact our Client Services team at 866-677-7608, email us at info@outpatientpro.com or go to our social media on all platforms @outpatientpro.
