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World Sight Day (12 October 2017), is a fitting occasion to congratulate a clinical practice who have the foresight to enact a digitisation strategy for their medical records.
Moreton Eye Group saw the need to move beyond the traditional paper files. The ultimate vision? A paperless practice.
“The aim is to be rid of paper altogether,” says Moreton Eye Group Clinical Manager, Lesley Henderson.
The motivation for undertaking a digital scanning project was two-fold. Minimising storage space was a primary driver, particularly with the building of a new site underway.
The most pressing motivation was a need to simplify logistics between multiple practice sites. Though all three sites of Moreton Eye Group are equipped with extensive diagnostic equipment, it is not unusual for a patient to attend multiple sites over a course of treatment. The need for excellent information flows between the sites was hampered by not having electronic health records.
Moreton Eye Group has a transport service for paper files that operates daily between the three clinics. Even this dedicated service doesn’t meet the need for patients who need to be seen at short notice. These urgent appointments necessitate the faxing of files between sites, a time-consuming process that results in disruption to efficient workflow for administration staff and the ever-present threat of delays to patient care.
With patient records digitised, there will be no need for manual transport of files. Even within the one clinic, Henderson notes that an added benefit will be the ability for multiple people to access one file at a time. “It’s not always just the doctor who needs a chart. The optometrist, orthoptist, registered nurse or administration staff may need the chart at the same time,” says Henderson.
Once it was clear that electronic files were the way forward, it was time for Moreton Eye Group to enact their vision.
An initial attempt to complete the scanning of medical records in-house was unsuccessful. “It wasn’t an efficient use of staff time,” says Henderson. This experience led Moreton Eye Group to set their sights on outsourcing the scanning to a digital scanning service specialist. Their choice was crystal clear. “Avantix came to see us immediately; they were so switched on and responsive,” says Henderson.
Avantix have enjoyed working on this project with Moreton Eye Group, who use a practice management system supplied by Dox. “Avantix and Dox have worked together with Moreton Eye Group to deliver a highly efficient solution that caters to all types of information; both structured and unstructured,” says Duncan Lord, Avantix CEO.
While improvements to patient care and staff efficiency are primary outcomes, the medical record digitisation project will also realise financial returns. In addition to the savings being seen through the reduction of storage in the new building and reduction of transport costs, there will be savings in other areas. “The physical elements of a patient’s chart are surprisingly expensive,” says Henderson.
Moreton Eye Group’s digitisation strategy reduces risk, increases flexibility and streamlines day-to-day practice. This enables the group to be more responsive to the needs of both patients and physicians.
Avantix offers back scanning and day forward health record scanning for hospitals and day surgeries looking to migrate to electronic medical records (EMR).
Persons interested in learning more about Avantix’s professional scanning services for the health and medical sector (including more detail about the Moreton Eye Group project) can visit the website at www.avantix.com.au
Release ID: 249256