SOFTWARE SELCETION
Use the right tools for the job
By Paul B. Bindell, DC

If you have ever tried to tighten a screw with a butter knife, you know it can be done. But the job won’t be done well. Using the right tools gets the job done right and fast. Using the wrong tools invites slipshod workmanship and problems down the line.

Your computer is a tool. So is its software. You need the right programs to do the work correctly and efficiently.

The benefits of picking the right “tools” are obvious: Paperwork diminishes. Filing becomes a thing of the past. Patients are not lost because of missed appointments. And balances due may be forgiven but are never forgotten.

The right practice-management software enhances office efficiency. Your staff has time to concentrate on recalls, reactivation, collections, and marketing. You spend more time on patient care, either seeing more patients or having longer visits.

And you have time to spend with friends and family.

The big question is how to select the right program.

1. List what needs to be done. These are the functions the software should be capable of performing.

2. Review software candidates. Look at the programs that appear to perform the functions you want and find out what other jobs the program can do. To what extent will each function enhance your practice?

3. Check out company reliability. How long has the company been in business? More than 10 years tells you that it has withstood the challenges of time and that it has a solid program; less than two years may suggest it is untried.

Does the company update its program regularly? Upgrades should be made to benefit the user. And does the company offer ongoing support? Help should be available when you need it.

4. Look for an integrated program. Integrated programs minimize the number of entries that must be made. An integrated program shares information used in office management, SOAP notes, exam reports, and narratives.

Here are examples of how an integrated program works:

• Exam and diagnosis. With an integrated program, you enter the diagnostic code one time. It appears on all other documentation — notes, insurance forms, bills, etc.

If you use different software programs that do not share information, the diagnostic code must be entered into each one, which increases the possibility of data-entry error. Re-entry also is inefficient.

• Patient management. With integrated programs, when the patient checks in, his or her account appears on the computer in the adjusting room, and/or on your wireless pocket PC.

You examine, adjust or treat, and enter information as you proceed. By the time the patient leaves the adjusting room, the front-desk computer shows the charges to enter.

• Recordkeeping. Integrated programs guard against costly problems by matching daily progress notes and billings. Under Medicare, a doctor can be fined up to $10,000 for each date on which billings and notes do not agree. An integrated software program can warn the billing clerk whenever notes and billings do not match.

This does not happen with separate programs. Charges must be entered manually.

5. Test the program. See how the program works. Install and use a demonstration copy; review it online; or use the program in a colleague’s office to see if it does what you want and need it to do.

Because of the many intricate capabilities of some software programs, test the software with a company representative who knows how to activate each feature. You can do this either in a telephone conversation with an online demonstration or in person.

If the company representative cannot demonstrate a feature, be wary. This may be a signal that either the software does not have that capability, or technical support may be wanting.

Choosing the right software is critical to getting the job done fast and efficiently. The right software streamlines your office and makes it flow smoothly; it gives you time to concentrate on and enjoy the things that are important.

Paul Bindell, DC, is a 1975 graduate of Palmer College of Chiropractic, and practices in Rockaway, N.J. In 1991 he began Life Systems Software (www.lifesystemssoftware.com) to give the profession reliable computer programs based on real chiropractic practice. He can be reached by e-mail at drpaul@chiropad.com.