We're proud to announce that PetalMD won the Optimizing Innovation Technology Award at the TELUS Health Innovation Gala for its Petal Booking Appointment Management System for medical clinics! More specifically, the prize was awarded for the solution’s Central Intelligence module, which impressed the jury by effectively responding to the following criteria:
- Produce a measurable positive impact on caregiving
- Generate a high satisfaction rate among technology users
- Has the potential to be adopted by many front-line healthcare facilities
How Does the Award-winning Technology Help Medical Clinics?
Petal Booking's Central Intelligence module addresses a modern conundrum for medical clinics: the multiplication of appointment booking channels available for patient use.
Since the number of digital health applications and services continually grows, patients can make an appointment not only by speaking to administrative staff and doctors, but also by calling an automated phone line, visiting a clinic's website or using external web portals. In such a context, managing the time slots of each physician on the different appointment booking channels becomes more and more complex.
By centralizing the appointment booking channels use by patients, the Central Intelligence module automates several tasks related to the management of a physician’s time slots and availabilities. For example, each appointment confirmation, modification or cancellation is made immediately in the Central Intelligence module, then in the electronic medical record (EMR). This way, the administrative staff avoids manual data transcription and also the risk of double booking.
But the most innovative aspect of this technology is the data collected and how it can be used to effectively manage healthcare services.
When Data Allows for an Optimal Answer to Patient Demand
In order to adjust physician time slots offered on each of the appointment booking channels, clinic managers need to have granular information concerning which channels are used by their patients. The same thing goes for clinics who want to invest their resources in the right places and provide services that meet patient demands. They need to know how busy the clinic is, when, and for what types of services.
At present, many clinics are "blind" from a data point of view, because they lack both the time and the tools to get a clear vision of patient demand. Fortunately, medical clinics that use Petal Booking now have access to reliable data on patient wait times, peak use times, the most popular appointment booking channels, the number of appointments, unused time slots, excess requests, and much more. This is all accessible thanks to the technology incorporated into the Central Intelligence module.
With this data, medical clinics ensure that every time slot available on the many appointment booking channels are allocated accordingly to rules that reflect patient demand. These rules are based on the source of the request (the channels), the type of medical practice, physician availabilities, as well as other criteria calculated by algorithms. Through the Central Intelligence module, clinic managers can also measure the adoption rate of the different appointment booking channels and adjust the medical services offered to better meet the needs of patients.
Video
(french only)
Comment des cliniques médicales sont parvenues à améliorer l'accès à leurs soins de santé en digitalisant leurs processus?
Medical Clinic Case Study
For an in-depth look at how Petal Booking can improve the management of medical clinics and thus increase access to healthcare, we invite you to download the case study below.
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