Patients’ Experience Improved through Comprehensive Managed Services Package

Project Overview

Pediatric Orthopedic & Scoliosis Associates (POSA), based in Annandale, VA, treats adult and pediatric orthopedic conditions for over 13,000 patients annually in the DC metro area. Disjointed systems coupled with outdated work habits had POSA personnel across all departments feeling frustrated and overwhelmed with paper-based tasks. From obsolete tape-recorder dictation and transcription practices, to growing concerns over HIPAA compliance and accessibility to vital patient records, to valuable time spent trying to locate misfiled documents – POSA was ready to be treated for their own symptoms. “This office was notorious for generating paper.” Lorraine Trouton explained. “We needed to identify and incorporate a system that would expand with the continued growth of the practice, yet not increase the paper volume. The implementation of the selected system had to be seamless in order to allow the patient flow to continue uninterrupted.”

Solution

Meridian workflow consultants are CDIA+ certified, offering a vendor-neutral approach to the design and implementation of a document lifecycle program. Using best practices and technologies, our credentialed experts illustrate our unbiased, customer-oriented business philosophy. The result is an a-la-carte - yet all-inclusive - catalog of document management remedies.

After thoroughly evaluating POSA’s environment, quantitative data and workflow observations were summarized. The findings included current spending of each process studied, opportunities for improvements, and preliminary recommendations. Introducing change to any environment is commonly met with resistance. Therefore, a phased-in implementation was recommended to ensure that all affected employees were proficiently tested and trained on each component before integrating the next. It was agreed upon to start with the workstation networking, server installation, document management system, digital transcription equipment and finally networked, color, multifunctional hardware.

The workstation networking was initially transparent to the staff until they were made aware of the features and benefits. “We were able to get buy-in from some not-so-early-technology-adopters by starting out with improvements to the backend systems” said Trouton. “This was a large enough undertaking without having to counter staff reluctance. During this time, Meridian’s solutions contact became a very familiar face in the office. His role as a resource among our staff really optimized our investment.”

Print Fleet Management

• Remote monitoring of Network Peripherals
• Automated Meter Collection
• Proactive Supply Shipments

Meridian Solutions Package

• MicroPress System Support
• Network & Connectivity Repair
• Technical Troubleshooting
• Version Updates & Patches
• 24/7 Helpdesk

Meridian Hardware Maintenance

• Priority Response Times
• Uptime Guarantees
• Preventive Maintenance
• Afterhours & On-call Service Available

Results

• Physicians can spend more time with patients
• 10 day - 2 week turnaround time is reduced to approximately 4 days for complete dictation -
  ERM/EDM cycle
• Better managed and expedited insurance claim process
• Complies with HIPAA, DEA and Sarbanes-Oxley
• Health information is more tightly controlled, yet more readily accessible to those who need it
• Accelerated access to patient records from minutes or hours to seconds
• Scalable platform accommodates growing storage needs and backup & recovery requirements
• Reduced costs associated with retrieving, printing, copying and transporting health information.
• Reduced paper record storage costs
• Outsourced shredding services no longer necessary
• Avoid costly shipping charges to offsite transcription group
• Hardware is refreshed every three years
• Solution allows the addition of new components to the system with minimal purchases of new
  hardware and software