Hospital management software development: Modules, features, and main benefits

20 Feb 2020

When you run a hospital or clinic, you need to manage multiple processes. Patient registration, scheduling, and billing are only a few of them. Your business suffers if at least one of these processes is improperly managed.

So you need to find an effective approach to hospital management. What solutions are there? For starters, you could hire more staff. In theory, by assigning more people to every process, you can manage more tasks at the same time. But in practice, you’ll face growing labor costs and an increase in errors.

In this blog post, we’ll focus on hospital management software, which offers a digital approach to managing all of a hospital’s processes, reducing errors and increasing patient satisfaction.

We’ll guide you through the essence of hospital management software and show you how it can increase patient satisfaction and your medical center’s revenue.

What is a hospital management system?

To deliver quality medical care, it’s important to synchronize the work of multiple departments. However, the traditional paper-based approach to maintaining records does not ensure synchronization. Plus, the chance of inaccuracies in paper records is always high. Not to mention the difficulty of finding a particular record at the right time.

To ensure synchronization, your healthcare unit needs a hospital management system (HMS). The first HMSs were geared towards keeping patient records and tracking inventories. Modern versions are more advanced, collecting and integrating volumes of clinical, operational, and financial information. An advanced HMS can be customized to fit the needs of any hospital.

In the image below, you can check out how many hospital processes an HMS can help you manage:

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Source: capterra.co.uk

An HMS offers benefits for both hospitals and patients. Scroll down to learn more about a hospital management system’s advantages.

Key advantages of hospital management software

Easy access to data. Hospital management software stores all patient data in an electronic format: medical history, methods of treatment, tests results. The system ensures that these records are available at any time, so doctors don’t have to make special requests or wait long for answers.
Cost-efficiency. With a patient management system, hospitals don’t need to hire more staff, allowing them to keep down labor costs.
Reduced scope for error. What is the cost of errors in medical records? It can be the difference between dying and making a full recovery. Yearly, such errors contribute to 200,000 deaths. An HMS reduces the number of errors caused by illegible handwriting and missing or duplicate records.
Better patient experience. Hospital management software works not only for you. An HMS is patient-oriented, making interactions with your medical center/hospital less stressful for patients.
Better staff interactions. Hospital software improves cooperation and teamwork. For example, laboratory staff in charge of medical tests can use this software to share test results with a doctor in minutes.
Improved revenue management. Even though hospitals serve people, profitability is important. It requires a fortune to run a hospital. An HMS brings revenue management to a new level. With hospital management software, managers can receive fast and accurate financial reports. This gives them a feeling of control over how the business is running.

What processes can be automated?

Let’s consider the automation of staff, patient, and account management in detail.

Patient management

Care management begins from the moment a patient enters the hospital for treatment. Hospital staff can keep track of all reports and activities on paper. But this approach is error-prone and inefficient. An HMS provides paperless automation of patient management.

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Source: capterra.com

An HMS integrates appointment scheduling, diagnoses, patient information, prescriptions, reminders, and physicians’ notes. Even with a growing amount of data, an HMS can provide instant access to medical records and quick query results.

Staff management

Efficient staff management is one of the key components of a successful workflow. Hospital management software integrates data and makes records available to all members of hospital staff: nurses, doctors, pharmacists, lab workers, and administrative staff.

An HMS tracks available doctors and their work hours. The system then creates a schedule for every employee and manages the capabilities of facilities. It also helps hospitals arrange appointments for both staff and patient convenience. How?

Hospital management software allows you to set the duration of appointments. On average, an appointment lasts from 30 minutes to one hour. An HMS divides admission hours into appointment slots for every doctor.

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Source: Doctor Dashboard by SATHISH KUMAR

In the past, doctors had to do a lot of paperwork. With an HMS, they spend less time on documentation and more time treating patients.

But automation doesn’t only speed up and improve doctors’ jobs. Hospital managers can use an HMS to control all interactions in a facility. With analysis of how staff work, managers can outline ways to improve performance, such as by holding regular mini meetings, offering rewards, and investing in modern tools.

Billing management

An HMS automates the whole billing process and includes features that allow a hospital to apply the right charges, generate financial reports on overall profits, and track payments electronically.

The software also stores patient payment details. An HMS generates insurance claims and sends them to medical insurance providers. When a patient is discharged, it adds up the expenses, generates a final bill, and issues automated payment reminders.

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Source: capterra.com

Do you plan to develop an HMS to automate most of your hospital processes? Check out what hospital management system modules can become the backbone of your software.

Modules and features of healthcare management software

The modules you can include in your hospital management system aren’t limited to these seven. But they cover the main needs of hospitals, staff, and patients.

Do you intend to develop management software for your hospital or clinic? Send us a message. Our tech advisors will get in touch with you to discuss the details.