Despite the advent of digital technology, outdated systems and a lack of communication between departments still contribute to costly and time-consuming bottlenecks within medical practices.
Oracle NetSuite’s Kate Daniels and Hyrum Gray join this episode of the MGMA Business Solutions podcast to discuss NetSuite’s revolutionary enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions. This set of digital tools can help practices better integrate their often-outdated systems and more easily plan for the future.
Daniels is NetSuite’s Senior Director of Franchises, Associations and Buying Groups (FAB), and Gray is a Solutions Consulting Manager. As Daniels explains, NetSuite has become the preferred cloud-based ERP provider for the healthcare industry, as it also ensures HIPAA compliance and adherence.
“We’re finding that MGMA members are maximizing the integrations that we offer with hundreds of different, gap-filling SaaS products,” she explains “Members are adopting NetSuite en masse because it’s the way to scale your operation. They’re delighted to have an option available to them that takes them out of the world of never-ending spreadsheets and analog, slow, cumbersome systems.”
Getting Operations Out of its Silo
Gray says that NetSuite’s value comes from its ability to help bridge the worlds of healthcare operations and accounting, which have traditionally been siloed away from each other. Highly detailed statistical information can be instantly analyzed, without the drudgery of traditional manual reporting.
“The one thing that NetSuite really does well is take data from the EMR and the patient billing platform and bring it in, in a segmented way: Which department, which provider or physician, which pay type, which insurance carrier,” he explains. “It can also bring in inventory data – what was used during the patient visit and when it left the central supply warehouse.”
One of the NetSuite solution’s major benefits is the quantum leap it takes from the physical processes that are still common in healthcare paperwork. Earlier in her career, working with a privately held clinic focused on HIV and tuberculosis infection prevention in the developing world, Daniels struggled with such antiquated practices.
“I was shocked by the dearth of strong backend systems in this clinical setting, back in 2005 – we were managing [so much information] on a massive Excel spreadsheet,” she says. “I think we can all agree that would be an irresponsible and perhaps a bit risky way to manage confidential patient information today.”
“The extent to which you want to protect and steward information and the patient continuum of care, is inextricably linked to your systems and the tools you have to back up those processes,” she says.
Overcoming Bottlenecks and Planning for the Future
Existing technology – or a lack of technology – may also be holding medical practices back, Gray explains, when it comes to setting a path for the future. That’s especially important for state- or federally-funded nonprofit healthcare organizations, whose resources are more limited.
“Clinics, hospitals, FQHCs really want to be able to plan and forecast, based off of head count, visits and the inventory they have on hand,” he says. “If you know that you need to start hiring more people, how are you going to plan and budget for that?”
An automated and unified platform can also be beneficial in helping workflows and reducing bottlenecks. Gray recalls recently working with an organization which still had four separate teams on the procure-to-pay (P2P) process on four separate systems with manual, handwritten invoices between purchasing, invoicing, inventory and care providers on every transaction.
“None of them could view what the other team was doing. With NetSuite, that is standard functionality – you can automate that process. It really makes everyone in the organization more efficient, and this drives better care in the end.
Change Management Leads Success
There’s often resistance to the implementation of new systems in a healthcare workplace. Daniels emphasizes that a digital transformation journey needs to be led by people, not by tech itself. She has worked with many customers who’ve discovered that new tools only work when people and processes are carefully integrated at the front end, so a carefully staged implementation process and adoption management are equally important.
“Any change management journey begins with ensuring you’ve got the right people on board. People have to feel like this thing you are shifting is going to improve their jobs, the output of what they’re doing and their impact. Technology should be the last part of a broad and thoughtful process.”
Change also takes time, and Gray encourages his healthcare clients to build a learning curve into the rollout of any new and all-encompassing digital tool.
“Don’t rush the implementation, and get your people practicing and learning it immediately, before it goes live,” Gray adds. “A lot of people are so excited to get onto a new system that they rush that process. They need to slow down, and take the time to really implement the software, and do it right the first time. Hopefully that’s the foundation that lasts a decade-plus that you’re using that software.”
Assess Your Team’s Real Needs
Before considering a new, digital solution, Gray says it’s critical to work with your operations teams to figure out the problems they face and how they might best be addressed. That can help customize an appropriate solution to operations issues, to make the best of what will be a considerable investment.
“Your community of healthcare providers and practitioners is another really rich resource of recommendations and ideas, as well,” Daniels says. “Words to the wise, tips and tricks, things they wished they’d asked or done earlier on – they have a vested interest in ensuring there’s good connections made between members and the information shared.”
Resources:
- Learn more about Oracle NetSuite - visit here
- Connect with Kate Daniels on LinkedIn
- Connect with Hyrum Gray on LinkedIn
Additional Resources:
Email us at dwilliams@mgma.com if you would like to appear on an episode. If you have a question about your practice that you would like us to answer, send an email to advisor@mgma.com. Don't forget to subscribe to our network wherever you get your podcasts.
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