How to Increase Efficiency in Patient Care

The health care industry strives to improve quality of patient care while delivering services more efficiently to increase profit margins. As insurance reimbursements drop, health care providers must find ways to increase productivity without compromising patient care. Technological advances have made a large contribution to increased efficiency in the delivery of medical services. There are several practical ways to increase efficiency of patient care.

Things You'll Need

• Digital imaging equipment
• Electronic medical records software
• Handheld personal digital assistant

Show More

Instructions

• 1

  Convert paper charts to EMR -- electronic medical records. There are many different software programs on the market that can be used to accomplish this. Documentation is required after every patient encounter and time is spent handling the chart, finding the correct section and physically writing a note. EMR allows the chart to be accessed from any computer rather than walking to the nurse's station to obtain a chart. The correct section of the chart can be found quickly and the note is typed. Drop-down boxes and checklists make EMR even more efficient. Personal digital assistants can be used to allow documentation while you are physically in the patient's room. EMR allows health care providers in different areas of the hospital to communicate more efficiently as well -- for example, physicians can access blood work results immediately after they are entered at the lab.

• 2

  Purchase digital diagnostic equipment like digital x-ray machines. These operate like their traditional counterparts, however instead of using physical film, the images are captured digitally. Immediately after the x-ray is taken, it appears on a computer screen for interpretation. These images can then be accessed by other health care providers within a particular medical system or e-mailed to providers outside the facility. These images are often copied onto a CD that the patient can take with them for their own records as well.

• 3

  Integrate ancillary services into your medical office. For example, x-ray machines that are physically located within a physician's office allow the doctor to order an x-ray and interpret the results at the same patient visit. This provides more efficient follow-up care -- determining the course of treatment or making referrals to other health care providers. In addition, some orthopedic doctors employ physical therapists in their office which allows a patient to begin physical therapy immediately after it is ordered.