Best Medical Practice Management Software

What is a Medical Practice Management Software?

Medical Practice Management or MPM software is specifically designed to help healthcare providers streamline daily activities, improve efficiency, and ensure compliance. Besides saving time and money for medical facilities, MPM software also makes them safer, more organized, and agile.

Medical practice management systems can help hospitals, private practitioners, clinics, and other healthcare providers manage their administrative, financial, and reporting functions. Though MPM software can vary a lot from each other, most of them possess the following capabilities:

• Recording patients' information
• Scheduling appointments
• Processing payments from patients
• Billing Management
• Medical Inventory Management
• Registration and tracking of patients
• Generating reports for staff
• Submitting insurance claims

The above functionalities help MPM systems improve the efficiency and speed of health services, provide easy and accurate accommodations to patients, and integrate multiple functions and their data. This allows physicians and medical staff to concentrate on more critical tasks, reduce paperwork, improve service quality, and save time.

Types of Medical Practice Management Software

Most medical practice management solutions offer features like patient management, scheduling interfaces, medical records management, billing, and patient management. Depending upon their deployment and server type, MPM solutions can be classified into three types:

1. On-premise/Desktop solutions:

Used mainly by smaller clinics and practices, a small group of users uses these solutions on a single computer where all medical data is stored. A select few hold access to insights in the facility, and the software’s data-handling prowess is limited.

2. Client-server solutions:

Generally used in big practices and hospital chains, these solutions allow multiple users from multiple locations to remotely access, update, and share information through an on-site server. Huge volumes of data can be stored in the server, accessed securely by medical and administrative staff.

3. Internet/SaaS-based solutions:

These MPM solutions cater to many users who can access data over the internet. Users do not require to download any software on their systems, and there is no need to purchase a server. As a result, these solutions are cost-effective and easily accessible.

Components/Features of Medical Practice Management Software

All medical practice management software has the same goals - to utilize resources better, manage the healthcare facility, and automate menial tasks. Combining several modules and features, they help in reducing wastage, identify opportunities, and boost productivity.

Given below are some of the key features of MPM software which can completely revamp the tempo of your workplace:

1. Appointment Scheduling:

The use of technology in appointment scheduling greatly simplifies and streamlines the process of patients' allotment. Several MPM software has come up with online patient portals, allowing patients to view physicians’ schedules and schedule appointments themselves. Patients can easily look up and book available schedules through color-coded appointment interfaces (much like hotel-booking websites) and choose to get automated reminders for their appointments.

Time is precious for both patients and physicians. Medical practice management software allows patients to check doctors’ availability and fill-out patient intake forms before visits. This also helps in planning schedules beforehand, reducing no-shows, and preventing double-booking.

For desk staff, MPM software helps find time-slots, track patients individually, and organize information for the physician's reference. Additionally, they allow staff to adjust schedules and create custom forms for registration. The staff can also book rooms and medical equipment to carry out medical tests or scans for patients.

2. Pre-registration:

MPM software also helps take care of necessary pre-registration protocols before appointments are made. Information regarding patients' insurance validity and eligibility can be searched through the database in seconds. You can also check the medical benefits that patients have and check their medical history, allowing the practice to prevent misunderstandings caused by medical coverage gaps.

3. Billing/Accounting:

Another great advantage of using MPM solutions is that it ensures insurance claims’ accuracy. The software can trace the insurance agency that covers each of their patients and their health coverage, ensuring that there are no surprises for patients regarding their coverage.

MPM systems allow payments and claims to happen in batches and can help you pull up statements in command. Multiple electronic payment options can be integrated with the software, and adjustments, co-payments, and deductions can also be handled with the software.

Medical practice management solutions can also update themselves according to changing medical regulations in different areas. With the help of the 'billing rules engine', you can easily incorporate the latest billing rules for your software. You can also utilize them for sending e-bills, processing cards, collecting payments, generating patients' ID, and processing health claims.

4. Patient Database:

MPM software can be used to capture patient information like name, address, contact details, doctor's name, insurance details. It keeps track of medications that patients are currently using and their allergies if any. This helps prevent harmful interactions caused due to manual errors or overlooking. They can also detect if a drug’s dosage is incorrect and offer medical staff suggestions before prescriptions are provided.

Besides storing medical information, MPM systems keep track of patients' demographics and offer educational materials, thus playing an active role in keeping them healthy.

5. Communication:

MPM software also facilitates better communication between patients and practices by offering multiple communication channels and automated reminders. With improved communication, adjustments in schedules, medications, and information can be adjusted swiftly from both ends. Moreover, staff can also notify and share data with each other through internal messaging.

We all know the term 'doctor's handwriting'. Poorly scribbled prescriptions have a drastic impact on patients' lives, and it's much worse than you can imagine. In 2006 alone, prescriptions with bad handwriting caused over 7000 deaths. MPM software helps avoid such blunders with its e-prescription module that enables physicians to digitally input their drug recommendations.

6. Reporting:

The advanced reporting features on MPM software help organizations easily extract and analyze data related to business performance and patients. This can help predict trends, make business forecasts, and identify internal problems.

MPM systems help users create and extract different types of reports and take calculated risks. Such software offers multiple visualizations that are easy to decipher and act upon, making it easier for doctors and medical staff.

Benefits of Using Medical Practice Management Software

Modern medical practices swear by MPM systems since they offer the following benefits to healthcare facilities globally:

1. Workflow/Process Optimization:

The biggest advantage of using MPM software is improved efficiency in workflow. They streamline multiple processes within a medical facility enabling it to offer exceptional services to patients and minimize errors. With everything in sync, staff and patients' management becomes a breeze. Moreover, it provides you with oversight and insights into your daily business performance, helping you make necessary amends before it's too late.

2. Automation of tasks:

MPM solutions save a lot of time for medical facilities by automating menial or repetitive tasks. They can help maintain adequate inventory levels, remind patients about visits, and offer custom alerts and reports.  This helps save money, avoid confusion, and improve profitability.

3. Quality healthcare:

With more time on their hands and better business insights, medical practices can greatly improve the quality of their services. MPM software also helps businesses remain compliant with the latest rules and offer top-notch healthcare services.

4. Swift billing and reimbursements:

Medical practice management solutions drastically reduce reimbursement times by offering quick payment authentication. Insurance and other details of patients are verified through the software before confirming the appointment schedule, filling several crucial gaps in claims' data.

Another positive aspect of MPM systems is that it offers them access to patients' previous medical and financial data reducing to-and-fro between departments. Most such software comes with dedicated POS (Point of sale) and e-commerce modules to further simplify the payment process.

5. Better Compliance:

Most medical practice software are built around healthcare protocols and regulations. They can be fed with newer protocols almost instantly, ensuring better adherence to set standards. Thus, business losses due to lawsuits and manual errors are reduced to a minimum.

6. Improved Documentation:

Medical documentation is slowly becoming paperless, thanks to MPM software. The use of software helps in better documentation and record-keeping of financial, claims-related, and medical data. Today documentation and record-checks can be done through multiple devices. Patients' data is backed-up safely with the use of electronic health records (EHRs) and can be instantly analyzed to gain insights.

7. Accurate Results:

MPM software completely eradicates the need for practices to guess or make blind estimations. They help update and integrate various groups of patients’ data like insurance, medical history, billing, medicines prescribed, etc., ensuring that you always have the latest data to base your decisions on. Additionally, they automatically correct manual errors during entry, provide shortcuts to crucial data points and provide timely alerts to medical organizations.

8. Flexibility and scalability:

Another phenomenal benefit of using MPM systems is the flexibility they provide. Data entry is possible from different corners of the globe, allowing you to address and resolve business problems from anywhere. They are also scalable according to the growing needs of an organization. Depending upon the services, storage and functionalities needed, MPM software can be modified as per users' needs.

9. Better user satisfaction:

Both medical staff and patients are benefited from the use of practice management solutions. For patients finding doctors, booking appointments, registration, and accessing medical records becomes much easier with software. Medical staff also find MPM software useful since they streamline workflow, automate tasks, and improve productivity.

Choosing the Right Medical Practice Software

The type of practice you have and the number of patients it caters to are good indicators of the type of MPM solutions you will need. To find the best medical practice management software you must also evaluate the type of patients you cater to and their demographic. Besides the price, you should also check out the functionalities and reports being offered, and tally them with your practice's unique needs before zeroing in on the software.

Since there is a growing number of MPM solutions available today, it is wise to check out the type of compliance standards they are built around before implementation. You can also do a free trail-run of the software on your premises and read software reviews before making a final choice.

MPM software has garnered worldwide praise due to its efficiency, user-friendliness, and flexibility. If chosen correctly they can help reduce needless expenditures, improve customer experience, and revitalize your practice with months of implementation.

Latest Trends in Medical Practice Management Software

The global market for MPM software is estimated to reach $ 894.5 million between 2020-2024 with a CAGR of 6% (Source: Businesswire). The year 2019 saw the highest growth in the number of hospitals adapting to the software. Around 35% of the market growth is likely to originate from North America alone. The stringent healthcare policies in the area are a prime contributor to this trend.

The current market for MPM software is fragmented with multiple providers catering to small, medium, and large industries. Although internet-based solutions are generally preferred nowadays, many organizations shy away from them due to the risk of patients' data confidentiality clauses.