07 Aug 4 Business Tools That Automate Optometry Practice Management
In the past few years, eye care professionals have experienced the rapid acceleration of advanced EHR and practice management systems, imaging technologies, and AI-powered tools that automate routine practice management functions. Automation is moving at warp speed.
Adapting and implementing automated tools can be difficult at first, especially after so many years of following the same process at your practice. If it works, why change it, right?
What if these advanced business tools help you relieve workloads and stress at your practice and improve the patient experience? Now, those are the changes you can get excited about!
In this blog, we explore four business tools to help you automate your optometry practice management processes.
View MaximEyes.com Patient Engagement Video
1. Save 2–4 minutes per patient with online appointment scheduling.
A patient’s initial interaction with your practice could come from a Google® search or an advertisement they saw online. The next step they would take would be to schedule an appointment.
Patients prefer flexible digital interactions:
- In 2024, Pew Research reported that 97% of American adults across all demographic groups own a cell phone. As a result, patients expect flexible digital interactions when it comes to their eye care.
- A recent study stated that over 67% of patients prefer booking appointments online, and 40% usually schedule outside business hours.
- About 94% of individuals are likely to choose a new healthcare provider if they offer online booking options.
Providing patients with the flexibility to schedule their appointments online will boost interest in your practice and allow you to form meaningful, long-lasting relationships.
For instance, MaximEyes.com’s all-in-one optometry EHR software and integrated patient engagement tools allow your staff to customize the resource schedule and quickly view, manage, and reschedule patient appointments.
“Our patients love being able to schedule their appointments online. We notify patients via text and email about upcoming appointments and remind them when their eyewear is ready for pickup.” Davis Capaccioli, OD, Peak Eye Care
2. Speed up office flow with digital patient engagement tools
Patient engagement systems help you manage time-consuming front-office tasks so you can focus more on your patients and run a successful business.
Finding the right patient engagement tools that work with your eye care practice management system isn’t one size fits all. You need a patient engagement system that connects all the dots and generates a positive return on investment so you:
- Easily stay in touch with your patients using a patient portal.
- Recall inactive patients.
- Connect with patients via voice messaging, emails, and texting 24/7.
One feature of a patient engagement system is the patient portal. Patient portals provide appointment scheduling, secure access to patient records, and online bill pay. This accessibility minimizes administrative challenges for your staff with automated tasks that are easier to review, such as online patient intake forms.
“My favorite feature is automatically transferring eyeglasses and contact lens prescriptions from MaximEyes.com to the patient portals when I sign off on the exam charts. These timely responses allow me to easily share electronic health information and comply with the FTC eyeglass and contact lens rules.” –Rebecca Verna, OD, Modern Optometry
3. Create a digital-friendly experience with online patient intake forms.
Now that you have scheduled appointments, it’s time to prepare your patients with all the paperwork you need before and during their visit. It can be exhausting and time-consuming for your staff to re-enter patient information from paper forms during check-in.
Transitioning from paper to digital patient intake forms creates a positive experience for everyone. For example:
- Pre-arrival information: Collect patient demographics, insurance data, and medical history before the patient arrives, allowing you to provide a faster check-in process.
- Reduce paper form misplacement: Avoid misplacing paper forms containing protected health information (PHI).
- Customize online forms: Easily design and customize intake and consent forms to match your office’s branding.
- Secure and HIPAA-compliant: Guarantee patient privacy with secure, HIPAA-compliant forms that include two-factor authentication.
- Eliminate handwriting issues: Avoid deciphering messy handwriting and reduce data entry errors with digital submissions.
- Eco-friendly and reduce germ spread: Reduce paper use to save money and reduce waste. Digital forms also reduce the need for shared pens and clipboards, minimizing germ transmission.
- Integrated efficiency: To maximize efficiency and reduce paperwork, combine digital intake forms with an all-in-one EHR and practice management system.
“Our practice strives to be as paperless as possible and focuses on a green initiative. The built-in patient intake and consent forms within MaximEyes.com create a positive, time-saving experience for staff and our patients.” –Brad Bodkin, OD, Modern Optometry
Why is improving patient flow important for your eye care practice? The patient flow impacts staff performance, patient experiences, and revenue growth. For helpful tips, check out our blog, How to Improve Patient Flow from Check-in to Check-out.
4. Build trust and loyalty with reputation management tools.
Online reviews and social media comments can significantly affect your eye care practice’s reputation. A single negative experience shared online can damage your business reputation for years. This is why you should actively monitor what patients say online to maintain good patient relationships and protect your practice from false reviews.
So how can you automate reputation management?
Using tools like MaximEyes.com’s Reputation Management with patient engagement features makes this process easier by automatically sending patients surveys and reminders, making sure you receive continuous feedback and responses to any negative reviews. An effective reputation management should offer several benefits, such as some of the following:
- A proactive online reputation approach.
- Consistent monitoring of patient satisfaction.
- Better communication to improve patient retention.
- Patient service recovery to address unhappy patients.
- Gain new insight into how patients feel about your practice.
By prioritizing reputation management, you build trustworthy relationships with current patients, attract new patients, and improve the patient experience.
Automate Your Eye Care Practice with MaximEyes.com
When properly optimized, eye care practice management and EHR systems drive strategic decisions and quality improvements. These powerful systems enhance patient care and deliver long-term value-added benefits to your practice.
Most importantly, your EHR system should continually explore, evolve, and embrace new business technologies that enhance office efficiency.
Book a demo with a MaximEyes.com representative or request more information. Don’t wait to automate your practice!
If you are a current MaximEyes.com customer, email inside@first-insight.com for more information on adding patient engagement tools to your system.