Automation Technology enhance revenue cycle management

Automated technology has been changing healthcare for decades. In the last year, we’ve seen automation affect revenue cycle management in significant ways. 

Automated technology isn’t going away. Your competitors are already automating processes you didn’t know you could automate. If you aren’t continuously searching for new things to automate, you risk falling behind. 

How can automated technology enhance revenue cycle management? Which automated technologies are your competitors using for RCM? Keep reading to find out. 

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Can Automate Repeatable Processes 

As Revcycle explains, robotic process automation (RPA) is one of the biggest areas of growth for automation in revenue cycle management – and healthcare overall. 

RPA is the use of specialized computer programs to automate repeatable processes. 

Your organization can use robots or bots to execute repeatable processes. Instead of forcing humans to execute repetitive, simple processes over and over again, you can get a bot to do the same job.  

RPA reduces human error, giving employees a virtual helper. It reduces frustration in the office, and it ultimately impacts your bottom line by optimizing revenue cycle management in countless ways. 

Artificial Intelligence Can Solve Complex Problems 

Artificial intelligence is more complex and powerful today than ever. It’s not just about teaching computers to recognize patterns and execute commands; artificial intelligence involves machine learning, where AI systems get smarter over time by learning from each process.  

Artificial intelligence has plenty of use cases in revenue cycle management. It’s still in the early stages of adoption, but analysts expect AI to be widespread in the RCM industry within the next five years. 

Some of the areas where AI can help with RCM include: 

• Estimating out of pocket costs in real time based on changing factors 
• Checking claims status 

• Analyzing EHR notes to spot errors or gaps 
• Optimizing schedules 
• Predicting availability of patients, providers, payer representatives, and others 

These opportunities are the tip of the iceberg. Within ten years, it’s possible AI could dominate revenue cycle management, replacing many of the jobs performed by humans today – and making life easier for healthcare organizations across the country.  

Automate Daily Tasks Across the Organization 

Automation can enhance simple and complex processes across your organization. It doesn’t just change one or two processes: it can revolutionize your organization and how it operates.  

Automation can save money, reduce human errors, and improve performance at every level of your organization. 

Some of the potential areas of growth for automation in revenue cycle management include: 

• Increase revenue by simplifying processes and minimizing overhead expenses 
• Decrease denials 

• Speed up prior authorizations and claims 
• Remove repetitive processes that ruin optimization at every level of the organization 
• Decrease full-time equivalent positions by automating tasks that were once performed by humans 
• Eliminate mouse clicks, keypresses, and other steps associated with simple, daily processes 

We’re only beginning to see the potential of automation and revenue cycle management – and the future already looks bright.  

Automation and RCM: A Perfect Match 

There’s a reason why automation is one of the biggest trends in healthcare: it’s one of the best ways to optimize your organization from top to bottom. 

Automation is particularly valuable in revenue cycle management. Automation solves crucial inefficiencies in RCM, including human error, repetitive processes, and other issues. 

Why is automation a perfect match for RCM? Here are some of the unique traits that make RCM ripe for disruption by automation:  

Resource Intensive Processes: Automation can save money in RCM. RCM is resource-intensive by nature. Automating a single process saves resources. Automating multiple processes, daily processes, and other systems can lead to significant savings. 

Endless Transactions: RCM is transaction-heavy. Staff must perform multiple customer transactions to receive payment. The more transactions there are, the more opportunities there are for automation to save time and money.  

Complex, Manual, and Repetitive Steps: The best processes to automate are processes that are complex, manual, and repetitive. RCM is filled with these types of processes. There are plenty of areas for human problem solving in RCM, but there are also plenty of repetitive processes to automate. 

Danger of Human Errors: Human errors cause problems in any field. In medicine, human errors can be deadly. Human errors chip away at optimal revenue cycle management. Automation, when implemented correctly, can reduce human errors – or at least make them easier to spot.  

For all of these reasons and more, automation is increasingly disrupting healthcare, and we’re particularly seeing the effects of automation in revenue cycle management.  

Schedule an Automation Consultation with HMI, LLC Today! 

Automation can’t solve everything. When implemented strategically, however, automation can optimize revenue cycle management in numerous ways. 

RCM is ripe for disruption through automated technologies like artificial intelligence, robotic processing automation, and more. Automation reduces human errors, speeds up complex processes, and reduces complicated systems to a few simple steps. 

If you aren’t already taking advantage of automation in healthcare, then you risk falling behind.  

At HMI, LLC, we have a proven track record for implementing automated processes in complex healthcare organizations. Contact HMI, LLC to discover RCM automation opportunities within your organization.