CareNotes

The Benefits of Dictation and Transcription Solutions for A Facility

August 5, 2022

This is a guest article by Brent Lauinger, the EVP of business development of Cascade MD, and OHCA Business Partner.


As organizations come out of the pandemic, there’s no question there will be obstacles to overcome as they try to get businesses back to pre-pandemic levels. Perhaps the hardest hit industries are skilled nursing and long term care facilities. In a recent NPR report, it’s noted that almost 250,000 jobs have been lost in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and this sector lags behind other healthcare industries in terms of overall recovery.

Workers are overburdened and stressed which creates a vicious cycle and makes a bad situation even worse.

In the current healthcare climate, there is no one silver-bullet solution that will improve the overall situation. However, there are incremental changes that can be made to reduce the amount of time spent on clerical tasks. One of those areas is clinical documentation by utilizing medical dictation and transcription software to improve efficiency.

Every time a resident in a facility receives some form of consultation, treatment, or care, their electronic medical record must be updated. Notes are often captured in real-time, but it can sometimes be hours or days before that information is entered into an electronic health record, often via manual data entry. Taking as much as 20 minutes to update a single record, due to time constraints, this task is often done after-hours, significantly increasing the chance of human error and inaccurate data. Not to mention the requirement of overtime to complete the task on an already exhausted workforce.

Taking advantage of medical dictation and transcription solutions can substantially increase the efficiency and quality of information populating electronic health records. In addition, utilizing technology to input this information greatly reduces the amount of time it takes for patient information to be entered into an electronic health record.

Regardless of the dictation and transcription solution, there are a few things to keep in mind while navigating the available options.

1. Does it integrate with the facility’s current electronic health record?

If a dictation and transcription solution doesn’t integrate with the electronic health record, same efficiencies may not be realized. Many current solutions can integrate directly into an organization’s electronic health record (ie. PointClickCare) to automatically populate details of the visit including progress notes, practitioner notes, and vital signs.

2. Is additional hardware required to make it work (ie. Dictaphones)?

Adding new hardware typically means an upfront cost to purchase that equipment, and additional training to operate. Many solutions can be installed on existing provider devices (phones and tablets) so no equipment purchases and hardware training are required.

3. Can it do more than just voice-to-text?

Voice-to-text is great, and by itself can have its benefits, but what else can the solution do? Look for options that not only do voice-to-text but can also analyze that dictation and perform meaningful tasks with that information. If a physician records vitals, is it manually inputting those vitals, or is the software solution “smart” enough to understand what has been said and populate the relevant fields within an electronic health record with no manual data entry?

4. How easy is it to implement? Does it really improve the operational process or is it a lateral move?

The goal of implementing a dictation and transcription solution is to alleviate the time investment required for documentation. Most facilities have standard processes and want to make sure whatever solution being used is capable of mirroring and enhancing those processes. Whether it is custom note types that a physician or clinician may use (ie. SOAP), or approval workflows, many current technologies can incorporate these processes. Also important, look at the training requirements to get up and running. If it is complex, the costs associated with training may negate the benefits.

Takeaway

Implementing dictation and transcription at a facility is becoming less of a “nice-to-have”, and more of a “must-have”. Advancements in dictation technology and available solutions enable you to alleviate some of the administrative burdens and are a viable option to take on some of the workload freeing up crucial staff resources and hours.