Patient care is, of course, the main aim, goal, and achievement of healthcare. There are a hundred and one different things that a skilled member of a support team can do to ensure that their work supports the general care of the patient, so let’s run through some key streamlining points here.
Proactive Record Sharing
Medical recruiters are increasingly looking for medical scribes and similar professionals to ensure that an organization's records are well-kept and well-made. Some great methods and tools can ensure that the care achieved through these notes is streamlined.
By sharing patient information, providers can make sure they have a more complete medical history, reducing the risk of medical errors like prescribing the wrong medication. With access to a patient’s entire medical history, it’s easier to avoid unnecessary duplicative tests and procedures, saving time and reducing costs.
In the UK, the NHS gathered data to show various benefits of electronic health records, including admin savings, admission savings, IT savings, and nursing time saved. Nurses can save time “during face-to-face pre-operative assessments”, with patients providing some information before their appointments.
Of course, staff must adhere to security and privacy rules to maintain the confidentiality of patients’ information. In the US, healthcare providers must follow HIPAA compliance rules and protect patient data by encrypting electronic health records (EHRs), implement access controls, and only share information when necessary.
Enhancing Efficiency
Proactivity is perhaps the best way for any person or organization to enhance the efficiency with which they do things. While it can be difficult to forecast future events at any time, being able to do it in a healthcare environment can allow you to suggest proactive actions that could benefit all involved.
For instance, if a patient is being seen that has a recurring issue with their knee, it may be wise to consider the problem proactively. Speak with the doctor concerned ahead of the appointment and ask what the likely causes or treatments are. This can allow you to do a little fact-finding ahead of time and offer key terms and recommendations. While stepping in as a diagnostician is certainly not necessary, it could be a good idea in the above case to proactively retrieve contact information for a physiotherapist, a bone specialist, and a joint specialist.
This proactivity can enable you to work more quickly when the patient has been seen, and the doctor has made their final decision.
Informing Patients
One of the big things that impacts the efficiency of any healthcare organization is the unpredictability of people. You can engage in a massive amount of work and planning for a patient, only for the patient to forget their appointment or surprise you with a new piece of key information they had previously forgotten.
While some of this is simply human nature and cannot be altered, some of it is manageable. For instance, you might consider contacting patients ahead of upcoming appointments and reminding them of the precise date and time that they should be concerned about. They can greatly increase the chance that the patient will actually show up.
Forbes reported on a study that found no-shows costing the US healthcare system over $150 billion each year. Writer Sachin H. Jain pointed out that missed appointments directly affect individuals’ health: when someone misses their appointment, the continuity of care is interrupted, medication isn’t monitored as efficiently, and preventative services and screenings may not be delivered on time. Illnesses may go untreated and become chronic conditions. In short, anything support staff can do to ensure a patient arrives for their appointment will go a long way to improving healthcare and saving the system money.
Structured Record-Keeping
Effective record-keeping is a cornerstone of high-quality healthcare. While maintaining a professional style and format throughout all notes and memos is good practice, it can be a great idea to structure your record-keeping to best suit the recipient of the information.
For example, different specialists will be more concerned with different pieces of information about a patient with knee trouble. For example, a bone-focussed orthopedist will be more interested in underlying osteoporosis, while a physiotherapist may be more interested in the potential hyperextension of the joint. After taking notes, consider reformatting the record to appeal to the recipient. Always include all information, but enhance readability where possible. Reorganizing notes to draw attention to the most relevant details for each specialist can mean essential information is not overlooked, while also improving the time efficiency of the team.
Takeaways
Streamlined patient care relies on proactive, organized, and informed support staff. By sharing comprehensive patient records, engaging in proactive planning, and reminding patients of their appointments, support teams can significantly improve care delivery. These practices reduce medical errors, prevent missed appointments, and enhance the entire healthcare system’s efficiency. Support staff can contribute to better health outcomes and more effective healthcare services.
