Inadequate Staffing

One of the most obvious effects of overly lengthy processes is inadequate staffing. If an employee’s time is being stretched thin because they have to complete too many tasks at once, then they won’t be able to do their job as effectively as they could if they had enough staffing. If a single employee is responsible for cleaning the entire hospital, stocking the supply closets, and updating the inventory management system, they’ll inevitably fall behind on one of those tasks. At best, patients will notice a slight decrease in the cleanliness of their hospital rooms. At worst, they’ll be at risk for contracting an infection because the staff member didn’t have time to properly sanitize their rooms. If an employee whose job is to update the inventory management system also has to complete patient billing, then a patient’s paperwork might not be processed accurately. The same goes for medical records. If a single employee is responsible for inputting every detail from each patient’s chart, there’s a chance that tiny but vital details will be missed.

Duplicate Responsibilities

Yet another negative effect of lengthy processes is that they often result in redundant responsibilities. For example, if one department is responsible for scheduling patient appointments and another department is responsible for updating the online calendar, there’s a chance that both departments will input the same information. This can happen when multiple departments have overlapping responsibilities. For example, a department responsible for scheduling doctor appointments also schedules patient appointments, and a department responsible for updating the online calendar also maintains the departmental calendar. In these situations, it’s important to note the differences between the two types of calendars. A calendar used for scheduling appointments is often used for internal purposes only. On the other hand, a calendar used to update patient appointments is often used for external purposes, such as posting the appointments online for patients to view

Manual Tasks That Are Time-Consuming and Tedious

Depending on the type of industry a person works in, completing manual tasks might be a regular occurrence. However, many healthcare employees find themselves trapped in a never-ending cycle of manually entering data, reviewing charts, and more. Manual tasks that are time-consuming and tedious include manually entering data into several different systems, manually reviewing patient charts, manually taking inventory of supplies, and manually logging time. Manual data entry is often necessary when the process that feeds data into a system doesn’t work correctly. For example, an inventory management system might not recognize when a box of gauze is used up, so an employee must manually enter the information. When manually reviewing patient charts, an employee must read through each chart and manually record information. For example, they’ll need to check each chart and manually record the patient’s ID number, allergies, and any other pertinent information. When manually taking inventory of supplies, an employee must manually count each item in the supply closet. This includes manually counting each box, bag, and jar of each type of supply. When logging time manually, an employee must record how much time they spend on each task in the day. This is often done on paper, but some companies have moved to electronic logging systems (ELPs) to make the process easier.

Loss of Patient Data Accuracy

Accuracy is crucial when it comes to healthcare data. But, when a single employee has to manually enter information into several systems, there’s a higher chance of inaccuracies creeping in. This is especially true when that employee is responsible for entering information quickly and accurately. For example, an employee may incorrectly record a patient’s name, birth date, allergies, and other information when manually inputting data. This can happen when they’re rushing to enter data and don’t take the time to double-check each entry. When it comes to an employee manually entering data into several different systems, there’s a higher chance for inaccuracies. For example, the employee may incorrectly record a patient’s allergy information in one system, but correctly record it in another system. This data discrepancy can lead to the wrong type of treatment being administered during an emergency.

Waste From Discrepancies in Data

Healthcare providers often use data as a benchmark for patient care. For example, if one hospital’s patient-to-nurse ratio is 6:1, and another hospital’s patient-to-nurse ratio is 9:1, they’ll use that data to determine which is the better hospital. Unfortunately, when hospitals are using data that isn’t accurate, they’re just wasting time and money. For example, if two departments are inputting the same information into different systems, there’s a chance that the information will be inaccurate. When two departments are inputting the same information into different systems, there’s a chance that the information will be inaccurate. But, if two departments are inputting different information into the same system, there’s a chance that the data will be inaccurate. For example, if one department is responsible for manually entering data about a patient’s allergies and the other department is responsible for manually entering data about a patient’s allergies, there’s a chance that one department will incorrectly record the information and that the other department will correctly record it.

Constant Change is the Only Constant

A final negative effect of lengthy processes is that they often lead to constant change. This is especially true when an organization is adding new technology or switching up procedures. When an organization is undergoing constant change, it can be difficult for employees to keep up. For example, an organization might decide to implement an electronic medical record (EMR). Unfortunately, an employee may be uncomfortable using the new system or they may take longer to become familiar with it than the organization would like. This can lead to growing frustration on both sides. Additionally, an organization may decide to use a new software system for scheduling appointments. Unfortunately, an employee may be more comfortable with the old system. This can result in employees taking longer to manually input appointments and feeling less efficient than they did with the old system.

Conclusion

The healthcare industry is filled with lengthy processes that can negatively affect employees if they aren’t streamlined. It’s important for healthcare providers to work with their employees to improve processes and help employees become more efficient so they can spend less time on manual tasks and more time providing the best care possible.

Let’s Talk Results

Create tangible workflows for your Coding team upfront

The most basic way to optimize the coding workflow is to create clear workflows. In a typical workflow, activities are ordered from the most to the least critical and take the longest time to complete. You can use workflow diagrams to visually represent your workflow and create a “to-do” list for each activity with the order of completion. You can also create workflows for team members that have different roles and accountabilities to reduce the time spent on overhead tasks. If your workflow is unclear, your coding team will spend time on activities that do not benefit the organization. In addition to creating workflows for coding activities, you can use the same approach for other team members such as transcriptionists and data entry personnel that have different roles and responsibilities to create workflows that reduce common overhead.

Automate non-value-adding tasks

Many times, activities that do not produce high-value output are manually performed due to the time and effort required to perform them correctly. Such activities can include documenting and logging patient information, adjusting clinical settings, learning new processes, and performing repetitive tasks. If you have staff members with specific roles that perform non-value-adding tasks, they can be automated to increase your team’s productivity. For example, if your medical coding team has a transcriptionist, you can use transcription software to turn transcription work into structured data. The software can automatically transcribe logs and logs into structured data to reduce the time spent on transcription and increase the time spent on coding activities. Automation can be done manually or with automation software.

Collaborate with other team members to identify bottlenecks

While it is important to create workflows, you also need to collaborate with team members to identify bottlenecks in their workflow and reduce those bottlenecks to free up time for value-adding activities. If a member of your coding team has a high workload and low productivity, you can use their workflows to identify bottlenecks in their workflow and create workarounds to reduce their work time and increase their productivity. For example, a medical coding team has a member who takes the longest time to enter data. After analyzing the workflow, you notice that she has to log into the computer system, enter the data manually, then transfer the data to the program. You can create an automated workflow to reduce the time she spends on overhead activities. The workflow will transfer data from the computer to the medical program and require her to just confirm the data transfer. If you do not find suitable workarounds, you can remove the bottlenecks in that workflow and increase the time for value-adding activities for that member.

Add in more frequent reviews and feedback loops

If you are managing a project or working from a formalized process, you can add more frequent reviews and feedback loops to check the progress of your team members. The most basic form of this is to ask your team members for their feedback on their workflow and the activities that take the most time. You can also have a formal feedback loop to collect this feedback from your team members to see if they are happy with their workflow. If you are managing a project based on project management software, you can create dashboards to visualize the key metrics that indicate the progress of your projects and tasks. You can use these dashboards to identify areas that require adjustments and create workarounds to increase the productivity of your team members. If you are not using structured project management software, you can create workarounds to determine how you can use visual dashboards to collect feedback and facilitate better workflow.

Takeaways

In order for your medical coding team to increase productivity, you need to create workflows that reduce overhead activities and collaborate with team members to identify bottlenecks in their workflow and reduce those bottlenecks to free up time for value-adding activities. If you are looking to increase your working hours, you need to start by creating a workflow that reduces waste in your workflow and automates non-value-adding tasks. You can then collaborate with team members to identify bottlenecks in their workflow and create workarounds to reduce their work time and increase their productivity. With these tips in mind, you will be able to maximize your time as a medical coder while minimizing waste.

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