The management of hospital processes broadens the view of managers about the functioning of health organizations. Through this, you can map all the activities that each employee of the institution develops – from the assistance to the back office -, in addition to monitoring the performance of that work (if it complies with the established standards.). It is about seeing the whole without forgetting the responsibility of each one in the performance of his functions.
Technology can facilitate the implementation of process management since both the methodology and its objective are understood. The concept directs management practices through control and planning actions, in addition to evaluation and review, to focus on the achievement of goals and also in the reduction of errors that may affect the operation of the hospital and impact on patient care.
The implementation of healthcare management consulting in India promotes various changes in the health organization, from identifying opportunities, defining investments in certain areas to reducing costs and storage, increasing production capacity and reducing response time.
Having access to this global vision of hospital processes enables the manager to identify what needs more attention at that time and, thus, optimize the execution of work – that directly reflects patient satisfaction. However, for this, it is necessary that employees understand their role in each process, and understand how errors and complications affect the functioning of the organization.
Therefore, it is essential that the hospital project consultants in India encompasses all the hospital equipment, which should be trained and involved in the fulfillment of the activities by the established goals.
Essential technologies
Technology can be seen as aligned with the implementation of hospital process management, since it has the potential to streamline and optimize access to data, and organizes them in a systematic way only on one platform. In particular, four computerized systems are essential for organizations that wish to computerize the practice of the methodology.
The first is the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), a system that concentrates all the necessary information for the monitoring of the hospital’s processes in one place and, thus, allows quick and easy access to the data.
Already the Patient Electronic Health Record (PEP) compiles the care history of each, and includes the specialists who attended him, the tests he performed, prescription drugs, among others. It also has the potential to optimize the verification of data in healthcare processes, which facilitates the identification of complications and correction of courses.
The finance and billing systems – which can integrate the ERP – are also technological tools that can be used to support process management. They help directly control the activities carried out in the hospital and, by concentrating the data in the same place, help to locate errors that can compromise the financial balance of the health organization.
Finally, the fourth and last essential technology for process management are the supply management systems, which act directly in the control of the dispensing of medicines and other materials, which avoids shortages or expiration of medicines.
It is important to remember that, for the full use of technologies, it is essential – again – to involve and train all employees of the institution. Without the correct complement of the digitized data in the systems – by physicians, nurses and others related to both assistance and other hospital activities – the ability to optimize process management is lost.
Regardless of the technologies chosen, process management has the potential to organize routines and help the hospital balance the quality of attention to the finite resources of health organizations.