The need to contain costs and implement revenue cycle best practices has never been more important or urgent in the healthcare industry. An increasing number of provider organizations are investing in robotic process automation to simplify workflows, automate manual-intensive processes and personalize patient experience.

Leveraging the power of robotic process automation (RPA) cuts back on the time and resources spent on extensive, long-term digital transformation efforts. As repetitive, rule-based tasks can be automated through RPA it has become an essential aspect of the digital road map of healthcare organizations.

What is RPA?

RPA is a technology that mimics and automates the back-office tasks of workers. It extracts data, auto fills forms and provides intelligent routing of tasks. It integrates across various products. Robotic process automation has been implemented in various industries and can be truly transformative in the healthcare setting as there are several operational processes that can be automated through RPA.

According to a study by Gartner, close to 50% of healthcare providers will invest in RPA over the next three years.

Unlocking the true value of RPA

Healthcare organizations struggle with fragmented and time-consuming administrative responsibilities. Deploying RPA orchestrates and accelerates routine tasks that require little specialization. Employees can focus on highpriority tasks instead of being stuck in the hamster’s wheel of everyday work. It adds tangible value to healthcare organizations and supercharges the revenue cycle.

The Benefits of Robotic Process Automation

Simplifies Medical Record Management

Every single patient encounter produces several data points and medical records. It is essential to capture and organize this information to ensure data quality. RPA uses pre-set compliance and coding integrity programming to manage huge volumes of medical data and prevent PHI leaks. It extracts data at supersonic speeds and can help healthcare organizations in transitioning from legacy systems to more advanced EHRs/ PMS/ Medical billing systems. Manual data management throws open the door for errors and oversights this can be prevented to a large extent through RPA.

Optimizes Claims Data

Medical claims consist of hundreds of diagnostic and procedure codes. Incorrectly coded claims result in claim rejections, denials and claim resubmissions- in other words even more complexity and workarounds. RPA technology enables quicker claim edits, enhanced cash flow and fuller reimbursement. It paves the faster route to better efficiency and weeds out manual processes.

RPA bots help in streamlining the AR process and identify overlooked pockets of revenue in the AR portfolio. It optimizes revenue capture and reduces days in AR.

Automates Intake and Other Patient Access Functions

RPA bots post patient information in EHRs and other systems. They crawl multiple sources to extract, unify and update medical records into patient charts. Through applying machine learning engines to patient documentation RPA vastly improve the accuracy of patient information. Non-electronic insurance payments and other payer information can be posted digitally effortlessly. Most RPA bots are built in a low-code/no-code environment and can be deployed quickly. They are programmed to work in an environment that have the lowest barrier of entry into external systems such as EHRs.

Improves The Patient Financial Experience

Who likes surprises? Definitely not patients awaiting their medical bill. RPA technology automates the front-end revenue cycle and offers improved cost predictions. It offers real-time estimates of the patient bill based on the insurance coverage details of the patient and billing codes. This significantly boosts the patient financial experience. Studies prove that discussing payment information prior to service helps in increasing point of service collections by 60%.

Let’s Talk Tech

SolvEdge is a tech-first healthcare revenue cycle management company with over 20 years of experience in the space. We believe in falling forward and adopting the best of technology to drive operational and financial results. Do you feel that your healthcare organization requires more than an off-the-shelf solution? We can help you out. Talk to our team today.