The total U.S. healthcare expenditure in 2015 was $3.2 trillion. That’s a lot of money – enough to buy Apple Inc. three times over. By 2026, healthcare spending is projected to reach $5.7 trillion. Needless to say, healthcare businesses stand to benefit from this rapid growth however they still have to respond to inadvertent obstacles coming with it.
We’ve run dozens of interviews with SignNow customers working in the medical industry. Below is a compilation of common healthcare business setbacks along with solutions that SignNow clients came up with to overcome them, protecting their patients while maintaining growth.
Appointment no-shows
An Accenture study indicates that by the end of 2019, 66% of US healthcare systems will offer digital self-scheduling, enabling the majority of patients to book appointments online. To solve the problem of appointment no-shows, consider implementing digital scheduling methods.
Let your patients complete intake forms digitally, from anywhere. This saves time for your business as well as money on form processing. Moreover, using e-signature solutions has proven to cut useless costs and save businesses up to 20$ per document.
The process for creating a digital intake form is simple: create or upload a form to the SignNow online document editor, make specific fields fillable and then distribute the link so that patients can complete and sign your intake form on any internet-connected device, at home or on the go.
Negative patient-doctor introductions
Allow patients to submit forms digitally, well before a deadline. With all the necessary information in your hands before a patient arrives, doctors can focus on making a positive introduction instead of sifting through documents while the patient is in the waiting room. By going paper-free with SignNow, you’ll be able to maximize your staff efficiency while saving time on printing and faxing. We’ve estimated that signing documents in person will free up an additional 1 to 3 hours per week.
Long-winded financial discussions
The average 65-year-old couple may pay up to $260,000 out of pocket for health care services over the course of their retirement. Moreover, that doesn’t include long-term care expenses.
Discussing costs and finances with your clients doesn’t have to be an uncomfortable chore. Make this part of your doctor-patient interaction easy using a different approach:
- Only discuss costs in advance and over the phone. Patients can feel ambushed if they’re confronted with a massive price tag within minutes of arrival.
- Send bills electronically and document financial discussions via email.
Learn how easy it is to send any document for signature in this video tutorial:
Lengthy diagnoses
Sometimes it takes more time to make a proper diagnosis. The Centers for Disease Control have estimated that at least 30% of prescriptions for antibiotics are unnecessary. This happens because doctors don’t have enough time for decision making. With SignNow, your staff will have more time and less room for error when documenting diagnoses.
Instead of processing forms manually, share the records in a secure cloud storage. With proper tools for team collaboration, you can set permissions and manage the records without breaking the bonds of doctor-patient confidentiality.
When patients need expensive treatment or costly medical procedures, talking with insurers to verify information can take hours. Getting prior documented authorization takes time. SignNow reduces the time-to-authorization period. Prior Authorization Request Forms or any other form can be completed and submitted in minutes. No more extended phone sessions with insurers.
Expensive document delays
Physicians often operate in 15-minutes windows for seeing patients with litanies of issues. For patients making repeated visits for various treatments, you can simplify the process by keeping your documentation handy and accessible. Primary care physicians are responsible for tens of thousands of dollars per month in revenue. Stop storing your documentation physically and save up to 20$ per document with SignNow’s secure cloud storage.
Insurance verification
The process of verifying patient health insurance is all about checking active coverage with their insurance company or the eligibility of his or her insurance claim verification. Verifying health insurance during peak hours can take up to 30 minutes per call. With SignNow, you can go digital and save that 30 minutes by verifying insurance digitally as well as submit any additional forms in seconds.
Electronic signatures became legal in the US in 2000 and are considered to be legally equivalent to handwritten signatures per the ESIGN Act. That’s why thousands of hospitals and medical organizations around the world use e-signatures for patient onboarding, medical, billing and consent form processing. All signatures added in SignNow are legally binding under the ESIGN Act.
Get accurate client data and save money – no more checking for errors, redoing signatures or printing and signing documents in person. With SignNow, all documents you complete and sign meet HIPAA security standards. SignNow offers one of the most secure e-signature solutions available with SOC 2 Type II encryption, ensuring the security of your collected and stored forms. Keep your business and patients protected with SignNow’s solutions for healthcare professionals.
