Benefits of Using an Online Appointment Management System in the Healthcare Industry

The growing demand for healthcare services has prompted the technology-driven society to look for innovative methods of providing medical facilities without compromising the quality of the services. Hospital/clinic administrators are facing challenges while keeping up with these expectations of the patients. Online appointment management system, a new technological innovation, is a lifesaver in such circumstances. These tools simplify the booking procedure by empowering patients to schedule appointments within a few clicks from any web-connected device.

Here are some benefits offered by online appointment management systems that strive to provide the best healthcare management experience to patients and healthcare providers-:

No need of hiring personnel

Online appointment management systems automate many essential tasks without the help of an additional person. Therefore, it saves time and is also pocket-friendly because there is no need to recruit extra human resources for appointment scheduling, reminding patients about their scheduled bookings, and managing patient records.

Appointment Booking Options are Available 24x7

Earlier, patients could only book appointments during a clinic's operating hours. They had to take some time out of their hectic schedule to call for booking an appointment. But online appointment management systems have enabled patients to visit a clinic’s website and directly book appointments round the clock. They only need to check a doctor’s availability and book an appointment at a convenient time.

Comfort of sharing concerns with doctors

Due to time constraints, many people are unable to make phone calls for booking appointments. Some patients may also be embarrassed to share their concerns over the phone. Hence, they seek clinics and hospitals that provide online appointment scheduling. Such hospitals/clinics, therefore, experience huge footfall at all times.

Reduction in no-shows and double bookings

Online appointment management systems send booking confirmation emails to patients, right after their appointment has been confirmed to curb down possibilities of double bookings. They also ensure to reduce no-shows by delivering automated reminders via email and SMS so that patients never miss an appointment.

Reduction of empty appointment slots

A vacant appointment slot is concerning since it results in a loss of revenue and time for doctors. A huge benefit of using an online appointment scheduling system for healthcare practitioners is that it can effortlessly fill empty appointment slots. Patients can cancel appointments from the link embedded in the booking confirmation email. As a result, the next patient in line will be able to take their appointment slot. Other patients can quickly look up their doctor's availability and plan an appointment that works for them.

Easy and Secure Online Payment for Patients

Long queues for cash payments at hospital/clinic counters create unnecessary chaos and irk the visitors. Online appointment management systems are user-friendly that offer secure online payment policies where patients can co-pay or pay in advance using credit/debit cards or payment processors such as PayPal, and Stripe.

It is highly convenient because people can make payments from anywhere and at any time, regardless of the operational hours of the support staff. The customer payment history gets permanently saved in the cloud, and the administrative staff can access it at any time.

Minimize Burdens of Administrative Work

The support staff of a hospital/clinic administration spends nearly three to five minutes answering one phone call every day for scheduling appointments. Imagine the number of your staff's precious work hours wasted behind such manual booking processes. Your support staff could easily use that time to complete more urgent and essential tasks. In such cases, switching to an online appointment booking system can save time for other crucial jobs like assisting patients physically present in the hospital/clinic.

Patients also don't have to worry about calling the hospital in advance to schedule an appointment. Instead, customers can self-schedule appointments based on their doctor's real-time availability using online appointment scheduling tools.

A Unified Information Management System for Handling Patient Data

Online appointment management systems are preferred over traditional register books for patient management. These systems can securely store piles of patient records such as contact information, clinical history, previous appointments, and medical test reports. These cloud-based systems act as a single point from which the hospital/clinic staff can update, manage and access data at any moment. So, patient information would not get lost in the dump, unlike a register book.

Furthermore, some online appointment management systems include tools for reporting and analyzing patient information. These reports can be downloaded, printed, and used for making essential health care decisions. It cuts down on the number of duplicate data inputs for the same patient.

Great chances for email marketing

Most online appointment scheduling tools integrate with email marketing apps such as MailChimp and Constant Contact. These integrated apps help send promotional emails such as discounts on blood test packages, free consultations, and other healthcare packages. Information on vaccination drives can be quickly communicated to thousands of patients using this feature.

Try an online appointment management system such as Picktime that offers a wide range of benefits for patients and hospital/clinic management staff for free. It is accessible via any web-based device and does not require any installation. Picktime provides an online calendar for tracking scheduled appointments, services, and the availability of medical resources. It acts as a centralized information management system that securely saves patient records in the cloud that can be accessed and updated at any moment.

Patients can enjoy a better booking experience as they are allowed to self-schedule appointments at flexible hours using the Picktime-enabled Booking Button on the clinic/hospital's website. They can also enlist their requirements, concerns, and clinical history in the customized online booking forms. Patients can pay the consultation fee online using credit/debit cards, PayPal, Stripe, or Square and instantly receive automatically generated invoices in their booking confirmation email. Picktime also provides comprehensive statistics on revenue, appointments, patients served, and many other things vital for making business decisions.

Hurry up and sign up on Picktime today for free.