Healthcare providers make countless decisions every day. Some are routine, such as which medication might benefit a patient most, while others happen in life-or-death situations. To provide the best care in any circumstance, caregivers need accurate, actionable data to guide their decisions.
Having current, complete data in the healthcare setting does more than drive optimal patient care. It also fuels efficient business operations and streamlined workflows. That results in the best use of staff time along with higher employee satisfaction and retention, as well as other positives, such as fewer rejected claims and faster reimbursement from payors.
None of this is news to providers; they are aware of the need. Nonetheless, many still rely on outdated, legacy fax-delivery systems. Everything from actual fax machines printing paper copies to space-consuming fax servers that require maintenance. These are not optimal solutions from a cost and efficiency standpoint. More importantly, they are increasingly unable to meet state and federal regulators’ mandates around data security and storage to allow participation in health data exchanges and value-based care and reimbursement programs.
Providers need fax to succeed — but demand newer, better solutions
The way forward? Secure, reliable digital cloud fax. This technology takes a cumbersome, opaque data-delivery process and replaces it with one that is safe, secure, and transparent. Providers can easily view where their data is, how it’s being used, and see how it’s moving from initial intake all the way through integration with internal operating systems and external platforms such as electronic health record (EHR) systems.
A recent Concord Technologies survey analyzed the current state of hospital and health system fax utilization, as well as providers’ satisfaction with their current fax platform. The results showed that fax is everywhere in healthcare. It’s a trusted delivery source, and it’s firmly embedded into operations. At the same time, respondents were vocal about the need for newer, digital fax technology that they can trust to meet HIPAA and other compliance standards. They also want a single fax solution that looks ahead and can use other development technology to improve data delivery and integration.
Fax has long been a vital element in the healthcare data ecosystem. For it to continue properly supporting the care continuum, however, there needs to be change. Read more about what the survey respondents had to say here:
Learn how Concord can help healthcare payers.