How doctors benefit from Electronic Medical Health Records
Healthbridge Clinical integrates with Healthbridge Billing ensuring you’ll have all the right tools to help you manage your practice’s scheduling, clinical records, billing & much more.
All patient information is digitally filed & organised for quick access. No more shuffling through paper files & no more space occupied by filing cabinets.
After completing your diagnosis, applicable medication, procedures, consumables are proposed for you to confirm & converted into an invoice. No more having to write down what was done during the consult for staff to bill.
Patient data such as blood pressure, height, weight & BMI are automatically trended, for easy proactive patient care.
Healthbridge Clinical is built on cloud technology with smart AI to ensure your data is made easy, kept safe & secure, & easily accessible from anywhere in the world.
Healthbridge Clinical integrates with Healthbridge Billing ensuring you’ll have all the right tools to help you manage your practice’s scheduling, clinical records, billing & much more.
All patient information is digitally filed & organised for quick access. No more shuffling through paper files & no more space occupied by filing cabinets.
After completing your diagnosis, applicable medication, procedures, consumables are proposed for you to confirm & converted into an invoice. No more having to write down what was done during the consult for staff to bill.
Patient data such as blood pressure, height, weight & BMI are automatically trended, for easy proactive patient care.
Healthbridge Clinical is built on cloud technology with smart AI to ensure your data is made easy, kept safe & secure, & easily accessible from anywhere in the world.
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How Healthbridge Clinical works with Healthbridge Billing to support your practice prior, during & post consultations:
Schedule appointment & check benefits
Patients can easily book appointments via an online patient booking platform. The appointment is recorded & managed in an online calendar with automated patient benefit checks that will let you know what the patient’s medical aid will & won’t cover. An automated SMS appointment reminder will be sent prior to their appointment.
Check in patient
On arrival patients are checked into a virtual waiting room. This allows you to see how busy your waiting room is, helping you to manage appointment time accordingly. Medical aid membership details can be quickly validated.
Access patient digital file
From the patient’s digital file, you can view the patient’s executive summary which contains important clinical information, including allergies & chronic conditions. You can also view the patient’s previous visits from the patient timeline including previous clinical notes, diagnoses, procedures & medication.
Capture consult
Capture patient symptoms & examination notes quickly using clinical note templates.
Diagnose & confirm procedures, consumables & medication
Capture the diagnosis & the system will propose procedures, consumables & medication – you simply confirm them. Your selection is automatically converted to billing instructions that can be sent directly to medical aids, or saved to be sent later by the practice.
Create sick notes, scripts & referral letters
Set up follow-up visit SMS reminders. Create sick notes & referral letters.
Bill & reconcile
Receive real-time claim responses, indicating what medical aids will or won’t cover. Claims are automatically reconciled, saving you & your staff hours of precious time.
Collect & remind
Send SMS & email payment reminders to patients on outstanding amounts. Effortlessly accept digital & card payments from patients. Using Bulk SMS, you can send more general customised notifications per patient or to all your patients, for things like flu vaccination reminders.
Analyse lab results
Receive electronic pathology results & send patients SMS notifications of test results.
Review
View comprehensive practice business insights reports & charts including clinical, end-of-day, month-end & other financial reports.
Looking for more information about our EHR?
Download our Healthbridge Clinical & Billing product brochure.
Here’s why over 5 000 medical professionals have signed up with Healthbridge
Capturing clinical notes is as easy. Plus with cloud-based technology, no data gets lost
Dr. Doorgha
General Practitioner, Springs
I am now able to have more eye contact with patients as less handwriting is needed
Dr. Lottering
General Practitioner, Pretoria
A great paperless management system that enables you to do quick note capturing with easy access to prior patient details, allergies, etc.
Dr. Sandy
General Practitioner, Randburg
Making the move to a paperless practice has an equal benefit for both your practice & your patients. However, because patients often have a limited understanding of what a paperless practice means for them, it is important for you to engage your patients in a conversation around health information technology, & in particular their electronic medical record (EMR).
Fortunately, the majority of patients who are insured with either Discovery Health, Medscheme or Metropolitan, will be familiar with EMRs & may already have granted you access to those records. However, not all patients will know about the benefits of EMRs.
We’ve answered a few EMR FAQs to help you have an informed discussion with patients about the kind of information that gets stored, whether it gets shared & with whom & how they can use it to improve their health & wellness.
Patient EMR FAQs answered
What is the difference between an PHR, EMR & EHR?
Patient or Personal Health Records (PHRs) is information that you keep about test results, reports & your treatment. PHRs can also be used to schedule appointments & monitor your health by tracking metrics like weight, body mass index (BMI), how much you exercise, blood sugar levels, cholesterol tests & more. EPRs allow you to upload documents, prescriptions & notes. Making this information available to your healthcare professional can optimise (and personalise) the care you receive.
Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) are a digital version of the clinical notes that your healthcare professional makes when you visit the practice. Typically, only that healthcare professional has access to those notes unless you have given consent for your records to be shared with other healthcare professional as part of your treatment. An EMR contains a patient’s medical history, diagnoses & treatments by a particular healthcare professional, nurse, specialist, dentist, surgeon or clinic. This information remains with the practice & will not be shared, except possibly with other healthcare professionals who are treating you, or with your medical aid if you’ve given your informed consent.
An Electronic Health Record (EHR) is also a digital version of a patient file, but is a broader view of the patient’s medical history. EHRs include much more information about your entire medical history, such as hospital stays. EHRs are designed to be shared with other providers, & allow authorised users to instantly access a patient’s EHR from across different healthcare services. You can consent to sharing this information with your healthcare professional to help them optimise & co-ordinate your care.
Why does storing my medical record digitally matter?
Securely storing your EMR is important for a number of reasons, including keeping a reminder/record of important information that could otherwise be lost. For example, EMRs enable your healthcare professional to:
- Store you &/or your family’s medical histories
- Have a record of what medications you are taking, the dosage, any previous side effects of medication & allergies
- Store the results of any laboratory tests, such as blood tests, radiology reports, scans, & any investigations into your condition.
- Discuss your medical scheme benefits & how the consultation will be covered.
Having this sort of up-to-date information readily on hand will help your healthcare professional provide the best possible care.
How can an EMR benefit me?
- Better care: Treating healthcare professionals are able to offer you better care coordination if they have access to the same, up-to-date information. This means fewer duplicate tests, lost results, data capturing errors, etc.
- Better diagnosis: More complete & up-to-date information means more accurate diagnoses.
- Better communication: By using EMRs, prescriptions &/or doctors’ notes are printed and/or emailed reducing the likelihood of interpretation errors or losing important information (& no more deciphering illegible handwriting). EMRs are also used to send SMS reminders from the practice about your next scheduled appointment or annual health screenings.
Does an EMR store my patient information securely? Is my information safe?
Electronic records of any nature, be it health-related, financial or otherwise, is valuable to cybercriminals. But professionals or organisations that store digital information are legally obligated to take reasonable measures to ensure that information is kept securely, & not shared or leaked unlawfully.
The National Health Act makes it an offense for anyone to share your information without your consent. The only exceptions are when the law or a court order requires disclosure, or if non-disclosure represents a serious threat to public health.
In terms of the Protection of Personal Information (POPI) Act, an entity & all its employees are obligated to treat all personal information as private & confidential & they may use the information only for purposes they disclose to you when collecting the information.
When should I give consent to access my Electronic Medical Records (EMRs)?
According to POPI, you should be told about the kind of information being stored about you, how & why it might be shared, & with whom. Giving consent to your doctors, medical schemes & other providers is one way to ensure that you are enabling the best possible care for yourself.
Speak to your healthcare professional or medical aid for more information about your electronic medical records (EMRs) & how you can use them to improve your health.
Healthbridge is a leading provider of Electronic Medical Record (EMR/EHR) / Electronic Clinical Notes & medical billing practice management software in South Africa
We save healthcare professionals time & money with cloud-based clinical/Electronic Medical Record (EMR) & Medical Billing practice management software. Healthbridge caters for a wide range of healthcare practitioners & industry specialists (Paediatricians, Gynaecologists, Physicians, etc). This includes General Practitioners (GPs), Allied Healthcare Professionals, Specialists, Optometrists, Dentists, start-up practices, Hospitals, Bureau providers & Corporate clients in a range of industries including pathology, radiology & optometry.
We offer the best medical billing & EMR/EHR software pricing
As a healthcare professional, you want to provide the best treatment for your patients. However, we understand that the admin burden behind the business side of running a medical practice can be overwhelming. This is why we have been developing innovative technologies & medical billing software solutions / medical practice managment software & EMR /EHR software to manage & support the business side of medical practices since 1999. As one of the leading medical billing systems & EMR / EHR companies, the dedicated staff here at Healthbridge work hard to minimise your admin burden by offering face-to-face consultations, superior client support & an optional medical bureau admin service to manage your claims admin, all at fair pricing.
The Healthbridge team is also well-trained, experienced & knowledgeable. We are committed to seeing our client’s businesses succeed. There are plenty of training videos & manuals to watch & download from our website. To further add to our services, healthcare professionals & admin staff can book training sessions with our skilled Business Consultants. We will show you how to benefit from the full potential of Healthbridge medical practice management software & Electronic Clinical Notes.
Although we offer the best medical billing solutions / medical practice management software & outsourced billing services, we provide so much more business value to your practice. For example, registering with medical aids is crucial for any medical practice. We will assist you with the process & ensure that payments are not delayed. Plus, with our medical billing software, not only can you send your claims electronically & in real-time, but you can also check patient benefits upfront with our Benefit Checker. This means that your admin staff will be aware of any possible co-payment amounts prior to your patient’s consult & can invoice & collect from the patient before they leave your practice. By using the top medical billing software systems & Electronic Clinical Notes software available in South Africa & collecting payments owed before the patient leaves, your practice is guaranteed to be more productive, with better cash flow.
Our clinical / EMR / EHR / Electronic Clinical Notes software services enable healthcare professionals to have more time for patients. Our cloud-based clinical app – Healthbridge Clinical – makes it possible for doctors to run a paperless medical practice. All electronic data is stored on a cloud-based server & can be accessed any time of day, from any device.
Healthbridge Clinical helps medical practitioners monitor a patient’s health. Important information about medical conditions, weight, blood pressure & much more can be stored & referred to whenever needed. However, should you wish to continue physically writing notes, Healthbridge Clinical, makes it easy for medical practitioners to use a stylus pen.
There are other affordable complimentary products that can improve your business operations and the patient experience. That is why Healthbridge has joined forces with specialised technology partners to ensure your practice is equipped with everything you need. For example, Healthbridge has integrated with RecoMed – South Africa’s leading online patient booking platform. This means that patients can find your practice online through the RecoMed platform and book appointments with your practice. These appointments are then integrated back into the Healthbridge online calendar.
Other partners Healthbridge is affiliated with include SuperSwipe (credit card terminals) and Discovey HealthID to mention but a few.
As you can see, there is an abundance of benefits to realise when deciding to implement our outstanding services at your practice. “Work smarter, not harder.” This will be true of your business when you come to Healthbridge for assistance. Not having to be at the office to access patient files is convenient & can be very useful in emergencies. As a doctor, you can prepare for appointments in advance & don’t need to rely on your admin staff / receptionists to find your patients’ yellow files.
Through automations & streamlined electronic processes, precious time and resources that were dedicated to billing, sending and managing claims or writing invoices can be saved. The cost of our medical billing solutions, EMR / EHR / Electronic Clinical Notes & practice management software is reasonable and clients know that value for money is guaranteed. Best of all, everything can be done from an integrated, digital, cloud-based platform.
Our medical practice management software will increase productivity & revenue in no time. With us you can expect competitive medical billing software pricing & exceptional service. Experience in the field, along with new-age technology designed specifically for the medical industry, is definitely a key factor when it comes to attaining success & gaining a competitive advantage.
To get more efficient systems in place at your medical practice, contact Healthbridge today. We will gladly assist you and give you more detailed information about our reputable EMR / EHR? Electronic Clinical Notes solution & medical billing software.
Resources for you
Running a practice isn't easy. Here are a few resources about EMR / EHR that we have compiled to help make the business side of your practice more manageable
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