Medical practices can face hefty costs associated with last-minute cancellations, no-shows, and unused time slots. Empty scheduling capacity slots cost an average of $200 per hour. Unfortunately, this also increases patient wait times at the clinic which can frustrate patients and harm your practice.

The Advantages of Online Appointments for your Practice and Patients

  1. Convenient – Patients of today expect hospitals, clinics, and healthcare providers to automate scheduling and offer the convenience of online appointment scheduling from the comfort of their homes. Patients prefer an online booking platform from their doctor that offers them complete ability to schedule, reschedule and cancel their appointments. Nobody wants to call at the clinic and waiting to be answered. Online appointment scheduling also helps your front office staff members to focus on other patient services rather than answering high-volume patient calls.
  2. 24/7 Availability – The online patient appointment scheduling system is available round the clock, so busy patients who don’t have time to reach you during your practice hours can easily book an appointment by visiting your website. This offers flexibility to schedule an appointment with the healthcare provider at any time. It is advised that you advertise your practice online so you can build up more patient traffic to your website which will ultimately convince them to book your medical services.
  3. Fill in any appointment gaps – Every practice wants to keep their schedules full and this exactly what online patient scheduling does. Through online patient scheduling, patients can see you sooner due to any last minutes changes in your schedule which eventually helps to fill appointment gaps and ensure your practice revenue doesn’t go down.
  4. Keep patients satisfied – Online scheduling and booking facility helps to improve patient satisfaction and enhance their overall experience even before their actual visit. This is particularly critical for patient retention and to pull more patients to your medical practice or clinic.
  5. Tackle the issue of no-shows – A good online scheduling software system also have the robust features of automatic reminders in the form of text messages and emails which can help reduce the issue of no-shows and late cancellations. Busy patients will also appreciate the automatic reminder alerts from your end.

How does automated patient scheduling work?

Automated Patient Scheduling helps to monitor your appointment scheduling routine without the involvement of your staff members. If cancellation occurs, the appointment scheduling software will automatically look for patients who have appointments shortly and then consider who is best for the available time slot. Automated texts will be sent to eligible patients, and the first patient who replies wins the slot.

Why automating your patient scheduling process helps your practice?

  1. Streamlines processes – The Patient Scheduling EMR Software makes things simple for everyone involved in the care process. Front desk staff that have a heavy influx of booking calls can free themselves up for other important activities such as greeting patients at the clinic and having a nice conversation with them. By freeing up staff with the help of automation their productivity and efficiency levels can go up.
  2. Reduce wait times in the waiting room – Online patient in-take form facility helps to reduce wait times at the clinic and the digital intake forms can be easily stored and retrieved when needed.
  3. Aids seamless communication – The patient scheduling software system also helps your practice easily communicate with patients through third-party apps. Patient and provider communication is facilitated on a secure and HIPAA-compliant messaging platform.

Conclusion

By automating your scheduling process you can streamline the daily tasks of your medical practice and keep patients happier and satisfied with a fulfilling patient experience. Adding an online booking system is a good investment for your practice as you will attract more patients to come and visit you.