Palmetto Gastro & Hepatology moves from paper to the all-in-one Gastroenterology suite and KlaraⓇ to transform workflows and enhance patient care and communication
BACKGROUND
Palmetto Gastro & Hepatology aspires to become the leading gastroenterology practice in the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA). Despite being a small practice, they cater to a substantial volume of patients at their combined office and Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC), facilitating easy access to a range of GI services.
The practice relied on paper-based workflows for many daily tasks and struggled with high call volume and voicemail backlog. Recognizing the need for enhanced efficiency and time-saving features, the group transitioned to gGastro®’s GI suite and Klara which led to outstanding results. Sabbaak Waraich, IT Lead, shares the benefits the change has made to the practice and its patients.
gGASTRO: A PRIZED FEATURE
When I first joined Palmetto, the practice was mainly using paper with a lot of manual tasks. When we adopted gGastro we were able to eliminate our paper-based processes. This change has made our workflows a lot more efficient and saved time across all practice operations.
One of our providers consistently sees at least 27 patients daily and completes their documentation by the end of the day. Leveraging the Quick Notes feature, they maintain 5 to 8 preconfigured templates for various scenarios, which has drastically cut down documentation time with each patient. Even when handling complex cases, they spend less than thirty minutes on administrative tasks if they have to finish their notes after hours.
Having an all-in-one system offers effortless communication between our ASC and office. Uploading images and sending tasks is easy and quick for our providers to do and our staff to see. Retrieving patient profiles is fully integrated, and we can promptly assign tasks to clinical or front desk staff within gGastro.
gGastro has many more advantages that we have been able to leverage. We can pinpoint areas of inefficiency within our practice and gain insights into patient interactions and their journey history through analytics. From an administrative standpoint, this provides invaluable insights for identifying areas for enhancements.
KLARA HAS CHANGED THE WAY WE COMMUNICATE
As a small practice, one of our primary challenges was managing incoming calls and voicemails. In the field of gastroenterology, patient touchpoints are frequent and we were inundated with calls. So much so that we were missing many phone calls, which led to missed patient requests and a large inbox of voicemails. Since our staff could not get to these voicemails throughout the day, they had to take time after hours to return calls, which often resulted in phone tag with patients. We needed to find a different way to manage our call volume because we were drowning.
We looked at alternative solutions before ultimately opting for Klara. We liked the two-way messaging feature and felt that it was the best solution for our patients and practice. Klara was easy to implement and training staff was smooth. They adopted it easily and it has been a complete change to our day-to-day interactions.
Since integrating Klara, we can manage patient requests in seconds, which used to take us all day to keep up with. Whether it’s a simple prescription refill or a scheduling question, responding through Klara has simplified our workflow and we no longer miss crucial patient communications.
Patients have responded positively to Klara’s adoption, appreciating the ease of quick communication, where they can respond at their convenience. For patients preferring phone calls, we opt them out of Klara and make a note to follow up accordingly.
A COMPLETE OVERHAUL
Our front desk uses gKiosk™ to process patients, making patient check-in and check-out an easier experience. Before ModMed, our medical assistants manually transcribed from our paper-based charts into patient profiles. With gKiosk, this information is pre-populated, reducing that excess data entry time. This gives our front desk staff the attention to handle more calls, address patient questions and stay current with our referral queue. We also offer the option to complete the paperwork before the appointment via the patient portal. This speeds up the intake process and allows extra time for those patients needing it.
Having ModMed coupled with Klara has transformed our operations and streamlined many processes. We’ve been very happy with the outcomes our practice has experienced and continue to enjoy the benefits of adding Klara to our gGastro suite.
To learn more about the products Sabbaak Waraich discussed, please request a demo at modmed.com/gastroenterology or call 561.235.7505
The statements and conclusions contained herein reflect the opinions of Sabbaak Waraich and not those of ModMed. ModMed makes no representations or warranties as to the accuracy of any such information. Results may vary depending on medical practice size, product usage and other variables.
