Last updated on Friday, 22, May, 2020

Patients influx is increasing day by day, making it harder for the healthcare providers and staff to manage the load. One of the most common and important tasks to manage in a clinical or a hospital setting is appointment scheduling. Calling people over the phone for their appointments is tiring and time-consuming for the staff members. Also, it is not feasible for everyone to pick up the call on time when they are being called, which can cause them to miss the appointment. It is much better to schedule your appointments with the online appointment scheduling system.

The online appointment scheduling system is a software or an application by which people can schedule appointments by themselves and it reminds them automatically to attend the appointment. In this article, we are going to discuss how to increase clinical productivity by using an appointment scheduling system? How it helps in reducing missed appointments and how can it save your time and reduce workload as well?

What is an online appointment scheduling system?

To start with the benefits of the appointment scheduling system, we should know what it is and how does it work? It is also known as an online scheduler or an online booking application. With it, the patient opens the web page or application of a particular clinic or hospital, enters the whole detail and click on the option of “book now”. In this way, they can book their appointments with ease of their schedule, without the need of any staff member. Moreover, the patient can book the appointment from anywhere with the help of a tablet, computer, laptop, or even mobile.

What are the benefits of an online appointment scheduling system?

Automated reminder

The appointment scheduling system sends reminders to the patient in the form of text messages or emails before their appointment. It helps in keeping it in their mind and reduces missed appointments. It is extremely beneficial for those who are so busy or those who forget things easily. The appointment scheduling system acts like your personal assistant, who keeps you updated and reminds you of your appointments.

Reduces the cost

It reduces the need for staff members who work manually, thereby reduces the cost spent on scheduling appointments. Since appointment scheduling manually creates a lot of pressure, many times the administrator has to hire extra staff for that or the staff needs to do overtime. Due to this reason, the budget spent on the whole project is increased and can be saved way more by the help of the appointment scheduling system. It also helps in saving the money by reducing “no shows” at the appointment time. Since it sends automated reminders, to make sure that the patient would be present on time.

Available 24/7

People, when booking their appointment through a phone call, have to contact the office within a designated time. With the help of online appointment scheduling, they can book their appointments anywhere, at any time. It eases the patient to schedule their appointment according to their routine or even in a busy schedule.

Easier to update details

Many appointment scheduling software offer to save the patient’s full history. It could include all the lab reports, medication history, ongoing medications, diagnosis, comorbidities, and other details. This makes it much easier for the staff to manage all the data, rather than maintaining and searching for files manually. It also makes it easier for the healthcare provider to review the case and diagnose or prescribe. It is so beneficial when the patient is in follow up at a dermatologist’s clinic or a dentist’s clinic since they need to review what has been done in the previous visit.

 Conclusion

The appointment scheduling system should be selected after proper research and analysis. You should opt for one which would be the best choice for your setting because nowadays there is much software with different features in it.  Also, keep in mind that it is difficult for the elderly to book their appointment online, so you should also have a facility to book the appointments via phone call. Many people prefer to talk and confirm, rather than online dealing, so it would help them as well.

But after all, the online appointment system is a new future because it has many benefits. It would help you in saving money, time, and energy. It would help in processing things smoothly, without any errors and disturbances. People would not easily forget their appointments and will be there to see their doctor on time. With it, people can book their appointments from anywhere, anytime. For more information, visit Instacare.