Let’s face it—no software is perfect, especially when you’re auto-indexing medical records. Mistakes happen all the time. And the system you use to file your patient records is no exception.
In fact, 1 in 10 patients who access their medical records online requests a correction. Missing or incorrect information can lead to all sorts of issues, including overlooked conditions, misdiagnoses, or prescriptions given without knowledge of a patient’s allergy.
Most of the time, a mistake is minor, like a typo in someone’s contact information. But even small discrepancies can have dramatic impacts. An ECRI study showed that out of 7,699 events across 181 healthcare organizations, 9% had patient identification errors that resulted in temporary or permanent harm, including two deaths.
Patient record mistakes can also damage your organization’s operation, like reimbursement delays caused by incorrect coding. And if documents get filed to the wrong patient record, it could slow clinical communication and patient care.
3 issues of auto-indexing medical records
Let’s review some of the primary problems many healthcare organizations face when using their automated filing software.
Issue #1: Difficulty reading scanned documents
Low-quality documents can create challenging situations for most indexing software. Glares, blurs, and distortions can make it difficult for technology to read what’s on a document. There can be a number of causes for these issues, but regardless of the reason, your best option may be to start fresh by requesting a new scan.
Issue #2: Trouble with handwriting
Technology and systems learn more and more with every document given. When it sees something new for the first time, it might be unsure how to read the text. This is especially true for anything handwritten. Since every person’s handwriting is unique, there’s no consistency to help the technology learn quickly. It can get there eventually, but mistakes often occur during the learning process.
Issue #3: Different formats and text types
Unstructured documents with no form design or barcode make automatic classification almost impossible for your software. The tech doesn’t understand what it’s looking at, so it can’t classify it. Other difficulties include text on colored backgrounds, different fonts in the same line, and the use of tables and charts.
How to overcome the challenges of automated indexing software
Thankfully, some organizations can significantly reduce or nearly eliminate these issues. The secret? Don’t rely entirely on your software.
The best way to ensure your documents are filed accurately is to have highly-trained experts standing by to serve as your safety net when the software gets tripped up.
That’s what you’ll find with SmartFiler. Our human experts watch over your auto-indexing of medical records 24/7, ready to jump in whenever the tech needs a little help. If a tricky document comes in, they’ll review it personally and get it correctly filed within your EHR.
That’s how SmartFiler helps you earn an accuracy rate of up to 99.99%. And it all happens in as little as four hours.
Reach out to us to learn more about how SmartFiler and our indexing experts can help keep your patient records accurate. We’re always eager to help.
Let’s Connect
Ready to Consider Optimization of Your Chart Management? We Can Help.