October 30, 2009

NCR takes kiosks to private practice

DULUTH - NCR has moved into the smaller, private practices with its self-service kiosk solutions. Orlando Internal Medicine, an eight-provider practice, is expediting the collection of patient co-payments, deductibles and payer reimbursement through its use of self-service solutions from Greatwater Software and NCR Corporation.

"All providers face the challenge of improving the speed and efficiency of payment collection, particularly at a time when patient bad debt continues to increase," said Pradeep Vangala, M.D., president of Orlando Internal Medicine.

In January 2009, Atlanta Medical Center, part of Tenet Healthcare, installed patient check-in kiosks. Through the end of July 99 percent of patients successfully accomplished their check-ins, with an average time of 4 1/2 minutes.

Through its automation of the patient registration process, Orlando Internal Medicine enables patients to quickly check in for medical appointments, make co-payments, sign consent forms and update health history information, resulting in reduced wait times and increased collections. The process also minimizes routine administrative tasks and paperwork for office staff.

The PatientPoint solution will be provided by Greatwater, an NCR reseller focused on extending the benefits of patient self-service solutions to physician practices. Greatwater is building upon the leading NCR MediKiosk hardware and software platform to deliver additional applications to physician practices, such as prescription adherence management and clinical trials enrollment.

"Greater accessibility to self-service solutions provides physician practices with a means to improve daily operations and transform care delivery," said Don Shaver, CEO of Greatwater Software. "By taking advantage of the many benefits that self-service provides, practices of all sizes can improve cash flow and increase patient satisfaction."

Posted by staff at October 30, 2009 08:11 AM