HOW TO REDUCE TURNAROUND TIME (TAT)
Are you planning to open your own hospital or invest in the same? In this article Hospaccx Healthcare Consultancy has done a brief article on increasing the patient turnaround time in an efficient manner.
INTRODUCTION
TAT is the measure used to determine the time between the hospital billing for services and the hospital receiving payment for those services.
We all know the more patients you see a day, the more revenue your practice makes. But the real question is how do you safely treat more patients without making them feel rushed or unimportant?
8 Simple Ways to Decrease Patient Turnaround Time
- Gather patient information before their scheduled appointment
This tip may seem like a no-brainer, but there’s always room for improvement. Does your office staff gather insurance information and patient history when they schedule an appointment?
Are referrals and patient records always ready and waiting in-office when the patient arrives? Are patients asked to complete and/or send in all necessary forms before their appointment? All of this data and paperwork collection takes time.
Allowing patients to fill out any forms on their own time and having all their paperwork ready before the appointment prevents delays at check-in.
2. Delegate documentation to other trained staff
Whether you’re still adjusting to a new EHR system, or lack the speed of a professional typist, your time should be focused on interacting with patients instead of completing time-consuming documentation.
Try implementing a team care model where a clinical assistant takes on some additional documentation tasks like collecting patient history, managing prescription and test orders, and even taking notes during the doctor-patient visit.
While adopting this new workflow may take some adjustments and training, it can help prevent you from getting bogged down in more administrative tasks and ensure you’re spending most of your time providing high-quality care to your patients.
3. Use secure messaging
If you use an ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD (EHR) system, you likely have access to a secure messaging feature that provides an alternative way to communicate important information to your patients.
While you may think of secure messaging as “just another thing to manage,” it can actually increase office efficiency and raise patient satisfaction. Dr. Rachel Franklin describes here how secure messaging decreased the number of phone calls her practice received, eliminated “phone tag” or problems with reaching patients at a call back number, and allowed physicians and staff to respond quickly to patient queries.
As an added bonus, your patients will love the increased access to their doctor.
4. Create a policy for no-shows and late arrivals and stick to it
If you haven’t already decided on a policy for dealing with patients who don’t show up or arrive late for their appointments, now’s the time. Set a time limit for late arrivals.
If a patient is more than 30 minutes late, let them know you’ll need to reschedule. Charge repeat offenders a cancellation or late fee to motivate them to show up on-time.
Make sure to give all patients advance notice of your policies in as many ways as possible (brochures, emails, verbal notice in office and on the phone), and consider giving a free pass and a warning during the grace period. Emphasize that you’re doing this because you value their time as much as yours.
5. Design a survey to identify bottlenecks
Sometimes it’s hard to pinpoint exactly where your daily schedule is running off course. Try handing out a simple survey that tracks each patient’s timeline from arrival to exit. How long are they spending waiting in the reception area or exam room? How long is their visit with the doctor?
Remember to use this survey across different days and weeks to get an accurate picture of where the consistent problems are. This method also shows your patients that you value their time.
6. Implement a mobile queue solution
Mobile queue tools are a great way to keep wait times down and patients happy. Applications which give projected wait times and allow patients to let your staff know if they’re running behind.
Before they come into a care facility, patients can join a virtual waiting line that updates them on their “position” and enables them to grab lunch or relax at a nearby coffee shop while they wait.
Keeping in constant communication with your patients gives them greater control over their time and helps you manage patient flow.
7. Embrace telehealth solutions
Telehealth solution can streamline patient records gathering, prevent no-shows or late arrivals, and cut the average office visit time in half.
Plus, virtual treatment options provide convenient in-home physician access to your patients, effectively eliminating time spent traveling to the office or sitting in the waiting room.
Telehealth solutions may be the path to a no-wait future care model.
8. Provide a comfortable reception area
Sometimes, even using all of these tricks may not be enough to the keep wait times down. At the very least, make sure your waiting room provides a pleasant space for your patients.
Stocking it with magazines and comfy seating, providing complimentary coffee and tea, and offering free WIFI or TV entertainment can go a long way in optimizing patient satisfaction even when the wait time isn’t ideal.
SOME OTHER TIPS TO KEEP IN MIND
- Assign a check-in clerk whose sole duty is to check in patients.
- Give patients a medical history form that is self-explanatory and easy to fill out.
- Assign a medical assistant to take vitals and prep charts. This way, there will be no delay in charts being brought to the back clinical area.
- Post an order board in a common area to prevent delays in patients waiting for common office procedures such as injections.
- Implement an efficient Practice Management system that seamlessly guides you between check-in and checkout without a hitch. PMSs that process pre-insurance checks are useful too as they facilitate the check-in process.
- Request resident physicians to review patient charts prior to patient visits.
- Make sure your EHR is easy-to-use and fast to navigate. This will decrease the amount of time the doctor spends inputting data and increases his or her time talking to the patient.
- Finally, align your practice with a culture of service. Clinical staff that is aware of and cares about service and patient satisfaction will work to improve patient flow.
CONCLUSION
Hospitals continue to face rising costs ranging from building expenses to staffing to admin costs related to billing. While hospital administrators frantically search for ways to plug costly leaks, they might be overlooking one of the biggest solutions: turnaround time (TAT). Thus, it is really essential to reduce TAT in an efficient manner
It is a superficial macro level study. For more details kindly contact Hospaccx Healthcare business consulting Pvt. Ltd on Hospaccx.india@gmail.com or hospaccxconsulting.com
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