Women Obstetrics & Gynecology Streamlined Operations and Enhanced Patient Experience with Kyruus Health
Women Obstetrics & Gynecology (Women OB) is a returning Kyruus Health customer. After exploring and deploying other solutions, Women OB chose to come back, attracted by our expanded offerings and the addition of online scheduling capabilities. Most notably, the ‘Arrive’ feature streamlined the patient check-in process, enhancing their front desk operations.
They partnered with Kyruus Health to overcome challenges with their outdated and inefficient patient scheduling, check-in, and intake processes. By implementing Kyruus Health, the practice streamlined operations by automating key tasks, reduced staffing costs, and empowered patients with self-service tools, ultimately leading to increased efficiency, higher revenue, and a better patient experience.
WOMEN OBSTETRICS & GYNECOLOGY AT A GLANCE
Women Obstetrics & Gynecology is a busy specialty practice located in Nashville, Tennessee. The practice has a diverse team of healthcare providers, including physicians, midwives, nurse practitioners, and a physician assistant. They see over 5,000 patients a month across two offices, with a tech-savvy patient demographic ranging from teenagers navigating puberty to women in menopause embracing a new chapter of life.
Snapshot
- Nashville, TN
- 14 providers
- 2 locations
- EHR: athenahealth
THE CHALLENGES
Before implementing Kyruus Health, Women OB faced several challenges with their front desk processes:
Poor Patient Experience
The previous solution’s portal login requirement and frequent errors resulted in a cascade of negative consequences: increased wait times, reliance on paper forms, and ultimately, a disrupted workflow that frustrated both patients and staff.
Inefficient Staff Experience
Women OB had previously used other solutions where the processes were time-consuming and cumbersome for both patients and staff, requiring multiple steps and often leading to long lines at the front desk.
High Costs
Like many busy practices, Women OB faced the challenge of managing high overhead expenses due to the need for a large front desk staff to handle traditional, often inefficient, patient intake processes.
These challenges underscored the need for a more streamlined and patient-friendly approach to front desk operations, a common goal across the healthcare industry. Women OB sought a solution that would improve the patient experience, increase staff efficiency, and reduce overhead costs.
“Kyruus Health has revolutionized how we operate in practice- it’s been pretty amazing. It really changes the playing field not only for your patients but for your staff and your entire operation.” – Frances Laux, Practice Manager
THE SOLUTION
To overcome these challenges, Women OB chose Kyruus Health to streamline their front desk workflows. They were particularly interested in the self-service capabilities, which allowed patients to schedule appointments online, fill out paperwork prior to the visit, and check-in once they arrived at the office using their mobile phones. This eliminates the need for patients to call to schedule an appointment during office hours and physically come to the front desk which results in a reduction of burden on staff.
Too often, practices find themselves settling for inefficient solutions due to fear of implementation time and resources. The practice experienced a smooth and easy implementation process. They completed the training and went live within 30 days, 5 weeks ahead of the typical implementation schedule. This included an integration with their existing athenahealth EHR and enabled them to become operational quickly.
An additional benefit emerged from Women OB’s ability to use Kyruus Health to send documents to patients on demand, such as informational materials and medical record releases. This feature further enhanced communication and convenience, making the overall experience more patient-friendly.
“The implementation was a breeze. We didn’t have any difficulties getting the forms that we needed, and for the most part, it was very hands off for our practice.” – Sarah Pearce, Revenue Cycle Coordinator
THE IMPACT
- 92% of patients used the self-check in process at their visit
- 77% of patients completed their digital pre-visit steps prior to their appointment
- 70% of patients checked-in digitally without standing in a waiting room line
- $144,000 reduction in staff costs in one year
Since implementing Kyruus Health just six months ago, Women OB has seen significant improvements in several areas:
Drive Workflow Efficiency for Front Desk
Women OB has been able to create front desk efficiencies, allowing more time to provide personalized guidance to patients regarding insurance and financial matters, efficiently schedule follow-up appointments, and offer assistance to those needing directional information, optimizing the front desk experience. With 92% of patients adopting the self-check-in process, the administrative burden and wait times have been significantly reduced, allowing staff to focus on more personalized patient interactions.
Reduced Staffing Costs
Patients’ proactive pre-visit engagement through Kyruus Health enabled Women OB to reduce their front desk staff from six to two, yielding approximately $144,000 in annual savings. This reduction was achieved through attrition and by re-allocating staff to critical tasks such as improved insurance verification, proactive billing follow-up, and support for surgery scheduling. This restructuring created a more efficient business office, with staff expanding their expertise.
Enhanced Patient Experience
Patients are happier with the self-scheduling and check-in processes because of the convenience. They can now schedule and check-in from their mobile phones, eliminating the need to call to schedule appointments and wait in line at the front desk when they arrive. Over 1,000 appointments were scheduled online within a six-month period, showcasing the ease and accessibility of online booking for patients across 14 providers. Additionally, 70% of patients utilized digital check-in, bypassing traditional waiting room lines and enjoying a smoother, more streamlined on-site experience.
Increased Revenue through Passive Collections
Kyruus Health has significantly improved Women OB’s revenue cycle through enhanced passive collections. While previously limited to portal payments for existing bills, Kyruus’ workflow now encourages pre-registration and check-in payments, as well as securely storing credit card information for automated post-service collections. In just six months, this streamlined process has helped Women OB collect over $170,000.
“We are able to reallocate the efforts of people on the front desk to doing more meaningful things like being available for patients.” – Frances Laux, Practice Manager
LOOKING AHEAD
Women OB plans to continue using Kyruus Health to improve their operations and experiences. They are particularly excited about using the HIPAA-compliant two-way texting feature to communicate with patients in real-time, allowing them to send appointment reminders, updates, and other important information directly to patients’ phones.