Benefits of Healthcare BPO: Improving Patient Care and Operational Efficiency

For those running a healthcare organization, maintaining operational efficiency while providing excellent patient care is a difficult balance yet critically important. Patient satisfaction is paramount, and organizations must take extra care to ensure satisfaction to maintain a positive patient retention rate. With that said, although healthcare organizations have goals to help people, they still have a business to run, which means creating operational efficiencies to reduce costs is also essential. To achieve these goals, many organizations engage in healthcare BPO.

What is Healthcare BPO?

Healthcare BPO (business process outsourcing) empowers healthcare organizations to focus on their core competencies in providing medical treatment and care because an outside company handles business processes. The healthcare BPO service focuses on administrative, accounts receivable, and customer service tasks.

Additionally, healthcare BPO services are current with the latest regulatory requirements, data security requirements, and processes, ensuring that the facility is always compliant. When healthcare organizations tap into BPO services, they outsource time-consuming and technical administrative processes, freeing up their staff and time to provide the highest quality of patient care.

Common Healthcare BPO Services

Not all healthcare BPO services are the same. Some offer a suite of services, while others allow healthcare organizations to pick what they need. Choosing a reputable company that has an experienced team, high standards, and a reputation for excellence is important. Here are the core services that healthcare BPOs often provide:

Billing & Coding

Medical billing and coding are specialized fields that require specific training and knowledge. Not everyone can handle the task and ensure that it is completed efficiently and accurately. Healthcare BPO allows for more efficient operations by handling billing and coding for healthcare organizations, eliminating the need for in-house staff and space for the department to work. It also helps reduce or minimize errors, contributing to positive revenue cycle management.

Claims Processing

Claims processing can be tedious as it requires tracking and vigilance to ensure the claim is processed in a timely manner. Additionally, companies offering healthcare BPO are informed on the latest legal requirements, which keeps healthcare organizations in compliance with healthcare regulations. With a staff with expertise in claims processing, healthcare BPO can help streamline the claims process, allowing for quicker reimbursement and fewer claim denials.

Customer Service

Customer service can be overlooked at healthcare facilities focusing on medical care only. However, patients deserve the ability to easily and quickly schedule or change appointments, inquire about their bills, or respond to other inquiries. By engaging with a healthcare BPO provider, healthcare organizations can improve customer service by reducing wait times, allowing for more responsive interactions, and meeting patients’ needs from all perspectives. 

Medical Transcription

Medical transcription is another area where healthcare BPO services can help. With dedicated staff trained in medical transcription, healthcare providers can rely on receiving accurate, timely transcriptions that relieve the healthcare staff of tedious administrative work. Instead of having stacks of paperwork waiting to be transcribed, BPO professionals can quickly, efficiently, and, most importantly, accurately transcribe notes so they are accessible in a timely manner. In some cases, this can be handled with generative AI that correctly interprets voice notes.

Electronic Health Records Management

Healthcare BPO can also help with electronic health records (EHR) management by cross-checking data entry for accuracy and providing secure storage. Additionally, healthcare organizations can expect EHR records managed by a healthcare BPO to be easily accessed, properly updated, and secured in compliance with the current regulatory requirements.

How Healthcare BPO Improves Patient Care? 

When healthcare organizations do not have to worry about tedious, time-consuming administrative tasks, they can focus on providing exceptional patient care. With less overhead and more streamlined processes, the organization works more efficiently, so time and money are not wasted.

Furthermore, patients still have access to their providers and have simple needs, like rescheduling an appointment, addressed without waiting or dealing with overwhelmed office staff. Things like appointment setting, insurance questions, and inquiries about their bills are answered quickly and efficiently without detracting from the healthcare services provided by the organization.

How Healthcare BPO Improves Operational Efficiency?

When experts in claims processing, medical billing and coding, and records management handle those tasks with fewer errors, fewer denied claims, and fewer delays by streamlining processes, healthcare organizations can enjoy operational efficiency. Overhead costs, unnecessary staff, and bloated budgets can negatively impact a healthcare organization’s ability to serve its patients. Healthcare BPO reduces all those factors, creating a smooth, streamlined operation.

Overall, less time is needed to fix errors, resubmit claims, and process claims. This means that claims can be processed faster, reducing the reimbursement turnaround time. Utilizing BPO leads to operational efficiency and reduced costs.

General Benefits of Healthcare BPO

Healthcare BPO generally offers scalable products that can grow with your healthcare facility as needed, or it can offer flexible service in the event that operations need to be scaled back. Office staff is less stressed, operations work more efficiently, and as a result, healthcare providers enjoy patients who return and don’t hesitate to recommend based on a positive experience.

Ultimately, healthcare BPO provides a number of benefits to healthcare organizations. Some of those benefits include but are not limited to access to the best and latest technology, reduced overhead costs, and empowerment to focus on the healthcare services they specialize in.

Consider Healthcare BPO for Your Facility

Interested in learning more about improving operational efficiency and improving patient care? Making the leap to using a healthcare BPO may be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Contact Credence Global Solutions to see how healthcare BPO can benefit your healthcare organization today.