Describe about the Benefits of Display Queueing Management System.
The outpatient trend in the United States health sector has been on an increasing since the beginning of the 21st century (Barton, 2009). Most patients prefer getting treatment in a single day then return home (Kaufman, 2007). However, commercial department indicates that the outpatient revenue is always below the budget (Halvorson, 2005). This demonstrates that health care suffers due to the inadequacy of funds to sustain the influx criteria described by outpatients. Healthcare management is only effective if patients get services required without taking much time waiting. There will be less burden of costs incurred to offer services. A less cost means that budget for outpatient is properly defined regardless of whether a patient has a Medicare or Medicaid. Nurses and other relevant staff members do not feel oppressed by the burden over responsibilities among others (Barton, 2009). Healthcare sector should ensure responsibility separation between the nurses and doctors attending to outpatients. This will create a culture of financial accountability, and this can encourage faster service delivery as well as promotes specialization of duties. Thus, whenever, a patient arrives, depending on the area of test and results, a responsible health officer takes over to provide treatment. In this paper, a deep analysis of and explanation of the financial environment in specialized outpatient department will be done to illustrate how the installation of Queue Display Management System (QDMS) will assist in cost reduction of providing services including decreased staff manpower need, reduced patient waiting time as well as reduced staff overtime compensation.
The outpatients register reveals that visits and gross charges, health services, insurance facilities, medical equipment, and pharmaceuticals are of value to financial environment. Health services in a health care comprise of those who provide health services to patients. Health insurance is a cover or an obligation to a patient can use to pay for the bills accrued after getting medical attentions. Based on the responsibility definition, the staff should embrace teamwork. Through teams or groups, there is a convenient way of delegating responsibilities (Barton, 2009). Health officers can disseminate roles with ease knowing well the need of faster service delivery about budgetary issues. Upon the provision of services, outpatients should realize the quality of healthcare services through increased safety and improved favorable healthcare conditions. (Williams, 2008). Such programs motivate outpatients to visit healthcare often in case they have a health problem with the appropriate amount required for such medical attention. Outpatient department can improve their revenue collection to necessitate their budget if they perform the following;
Take a statistics on their visits: Taking records and data on the rate of outpatients’ inflow to a facility is an important practice. It helps predict the demand requirement and budgetary calculation geared to outpatients. The service gets prepared to handle its patients without the emergency need for either drugs or any other relevant services required (Margret, 2009).
Register patients: A facility should register its patients such that a database is used to know who are to have a check-up visits, drug collection, and doctors’ appointments among other needs. Registration helps in calculation of the money spend, money collection and revenue trends in the healthcare. Therefore challenges of income groups can get solved.
Utilize gross collections: Payments from outpatients can be pooled depending on the kind of treatment each receives then sort them by putting similar payment situations together. Thus revenue collection gets defined to help the management to estimate the groups and to predict an estimate of outpatient revenue.
Aims: To analyze and explain the financial environment in specialized outpatient department.
Objective: (i) To illustrate how the installation of Queue Display Management System (QDMS) will assist in cost reduction of providing services.
(ii) To show that QDMS installation will reduce staff manpower need, reduced patient waiting time as well as reduced staff overtime compensation.
Queue display management system is a system used to control the number of people queueing for payment and for services related to health issues. It offers a scientific approach to solving the queuing problem in hospitals. More often it is applicable when the system cannot have the number of people in line get served. Health facilities have many people to care for; they have to line up in case a traditional system is applicable, a process through which most of the patients get tired or worse in health status. Therefore, QDMS is used as a faster and shorter way of solving problems related to outpatient demands. It captures the time per individual waiting and the health conditions of those waiting for services. Arrival rate, service rate value of serving the patients are also factors considered in this system.
There are various queue systems that a facility dealing in outpatients can apply to control problems connected to high customer demand. One is the FIFO (First in First Out) which is the concept of queue most fair to patients. It considers patients depending on their arrival (Mohamad, (2007). The first patients are served first and leave first. It enhances a sense of equality and time bound. The other type that can be implemented is the SPF (Shortest Processed First) which involves offering services to patients who have less complicated issues. The procedures required to solve the problem is evaluated and if of less complication, medication is delivered first. It is not a fair system to employ. It leads to roars among the patients a situation that can worsen one’s condition as well as discourages their willingness to visit the same facility.
Based on the two options, FIFO seems to be most preferred since it is even fair to all patients than SPF. Therefore, the facility can install this type of QDMS through defined procedural steps which will help solve the under budget menace which is rampant with outpatients. Moreover, the facility can have a ready financial stability to cope with the patients demand wherever there is a need (Margret, 2009). The management will be motivated to exhaust all relevant sources of revenues for implementation. It requires detailed information on the status of each patient in the record and their proffered means of settling bills after treatment. This can enhance financial viability in the healthcare.
Healthcare facilities mostly get funds from various categories of people and organizations to facilitate their service provision. The potential revenue sources include individual ability to pay, payment is made by another body or person (Third party), using Medicaid system, using Medicare means, self-insurance and insurances by commercial firms. However, a larger proportion of the funds come from other bodies which are not patients. They can be grants from countries or individuals, contributions by organizations, support from tax system among others. These non-patients sources are always triggered or driven by the government. Due to Medicaid and Medicare programs, a high percentage of health facilities expenses is solved by the programs. Therefore there should be no much money problem, and instead, health services should ensure that service delivery to outpatients either through ambulances, indoor treatments, workplace medication maximized efficiently. Through the use of Medicare, time management is realistic if a proposed system of payment is embraced. Use of PPS defined a computerized rate of payment where payments to more than health facility can be made once. Furthermore, it provides a possibility of not paying for related services.
Contrary to the use of PPS, restructuring financial department is another way of improving outpatient services at reduced costs. Ambulatory care should be aimed due to its high value in the provision of such services by fixing and building them inaccessible areas. Accessibility reduces the tendency of health officers traveling to admit services to people. Technology is also important. It creates a possibility of integrating data a process that eliminates more labor force. It allows patients to access the system, acquire information and know the right body to consult. Lack of technology puts heath facilities at pressure to the employee, more people to provide information to patients and also directives about their problems
Multiple queues; this system compel patients to take a ticket from a machine then queue randomly without a defined system (Silicones, 2016). The service is offered depending on the number of tickets registered on the system.
Single queue if applied, it discourages and leads to in-turn kind if service delivery (Mohamad, 2007). However, people get assured that they are to be served due to its visibility process.
Head queue; this system incorporates a single queue. The next person in line is required to do a single queue to eliminate any space or gap that may arise at service provision.
A good queuing system for a health facility that can improve its service delivery by reduced affordable costs must have the following qualities;
It must be fair to the patients or customers by not favoring or discriminating on the patients
The management of a queue system should be systematic in such a way that no party feel to complain
The queue process should be defined by outlining its beginning and ending, a definition that has to be known by clients.
Patients should not be left frustrated on the queue without entertainment as a companion.
QDMS leads to improved productivity when used in a healthcare facility. Dealing with the system increase the pace of service delivery is achieved, a process through which less number of employees is required by the facility. It provides an opportunity of concentrating on other pressing issues. Thus health facility enjoys both faster, efficient operation and reduced costs incurred. Lower cost is contributed by the fact that less personnel is required (Silicones, 2016).
Use of QDMS minimizes patients’ time to wait. The system being faster, contributes to a growth of hope among the patients. They believe of receiving attention as faster as possible thus relieve their tension and pressure that can rise due to excess waiting time. They got out satisfied and encouraged to come back again and again whenever they have medical challenges. In the long run, a facility’s reputation is build.
Another advantage of QDMS is the increased satisfaction and patients’ retention levels. Satisfaction obtained due to faster and effective services increases the patients’ level of satisfaction as well as increasing a possibility of not losing them to a different facility (Silicones, 2016).
Also, QDMS permits informative waiting period where the queuing system allows patients to know how long they will wait in line before being served. This builds confidentiality of waiting to get services as well as a firm commitment. Information displayed on the system updates waiting for patients in the relevant areas to consult in case of new discoveries on drugs, disease, and equipment. Before a patient is attended to, he/she can figure out through information displayed a problem solution mechanism or preventive mechanisms.
QDMS will also enhance monitoring of performances in the healthcare facility in which it is installed. It outlines every health officer’s performance, and the number of people attended to (Silicones, 2016). Thus for performance reasons, a manager can use the queue system to track such records.
Installation of queueing display system comes with a lot of advantages to a facility dealing with outpatients. It reduces time wastage, the cost incurred, and customers’ frustration. It also improves performance level, facility’s reputation growth, service delivery, customer satisfaction and monitoring ability. When all qualities of a good queueing system are implemented, effectiveness and efficiency in performance cannot be an option.
References
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Halvorson, G. C. 2005. Healthcare Tipping Points. Healthcare Financial Management. 17-19.
Kaufman, K. 2007. Taking Care of Your Organization’s Financial Health. Healthcare Executive, 15-18.
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Mohamad F.B. Alias (2007). Front Desk Customer Service for Queue Management System. University of Malaysia Pahang.
Nursing and Allied Professionals Workforce Survey (2014). Healthcare Workforce: New Roles for a Changing Healthcare Delivery System. (GNYHA).
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Sandrick, K.M. 2008. Super CFO: Hospital Financial Leaders Soar to New Leadership Heights. Healthcare Financial Management. For current information on how the internet affects health and the provision of health services. The journal of Medical Internet Research.
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