9 ways to improve patient flow and generate more revenue in your medical practice

---

The good news: Overall, patient wait times are decreasing thanks, in part, to lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. The bad news? Most patients still wait an average of about 18 minutes to see their doctor. And the longer the wait time, the more significant the drag on patient flow (sometimes referred to as patient throughput) which is the movement of patients through your medical practice. This movement includes steps like checking in for an appointment, completing paperwork, checking vital signs, meeting with a doctor, and checking out.

Achieving optimal patient flow is important because it helps medical practices:

• Enhance staff productivity and satisfaction. This leads to lower turnover rates and fewer healthcare staffing shortages.

• Improve patient satisfaction. Medical practices can attract and retain patients more easily.

• Lower costs. Operational efficiencies lead to decreased costs.

• Promote increased revenue. Operational efficiencies also enable providers to see more patients and thus generate more revenue.

Achieving optimal patient flow management
How can today’s medical practices take proactive steps to improve patient flow? Here are a few simple strategies for improving patient throughput to enhance performance:

1. Recruit more staff. Sometimes patient flow bottlenecks occur because practices don’t have enough staff to keep up with patient volume. This could be clinical staff (nurses, medical assistants, physicians, or non-physician providers) or administrative staff (front desk personnel, schedulers, billing staff) or both. Outsourcing administrative functions or hiring contingent clinical staff may be viable options for improving patient flow. A robust workforce helps support optimal patient flow while simultaneously generating new revenue.

2. Consider hiring a medical scribe. One recent study found that medical scribes support better patient throughput by alleviating excessive documentation requirements in the electronic health record (EHR). Scribes may also help physicians stay focused on direct clinical care which can, in turn, improve patient satisfaction.

3. Create (and enforce) policies for no-shows and late arrivals. When patients don’t show up on time, this creates a negative domino effect on patient flow that can affect the medical practice for the rest of the day. Creating and enforcing policies that identify the maximum late arrival time and late fees for repeated cancellations and no-shows helps keep everyone on track.

4. Form a patient flow team. In small medical practices, this team might include everyone, but in larger practices, it might only include a representative from each department. Charge the team with creating a patient flowchart in clinic that maps each step in the process. Once patient flow mapping is complete, meet regularly to discuss the following:

• Where are the biggest bottlenecks in patient flow?

• Can the team eliminate any steps or conduct them simultaneously to save time?

• How often do staff complete each step, and how long does it take?

• Can the medical practice sequence steps differently for greater efficiency?

• Can the medical practice automate any steps or leverage technology to increase efficiency? (Think: Patient self-scheduling, especially during times of medical practice expansion.)

• How can the team mobilize to put patient flow back on track if and when it veers off (e.g., due to spikes in patient volume or unanticipated staff absences)?

5. Leverage telemedicine. Virtual healthcare visits can greatly improve patient flow by eliminating the need for everyone to come into the office. Proactively identifying the types of visits for which the practice will promote telemedicine can boost patient flow immeasurably and lead to more revenue.

6. Maximize use of the patient portal. The patient portal can help practices improve patient flow by providing convenient 24/7 access to personal health information, insurance information, medical bills, appointments, secure messaging and more. With these secure, self-service options, patients can complete many tasks themselves without needing to rely on staff.

7. Use check-in kiosks. Patient registrations can be time-consuming and cause significant delays in patient flow. Kiosks can help with improving patient flow because they promote efficient and accurate data collection to streamline the process and keep appointments on schedule.

8. Provide staff training. You can’t expect staff to improve patient flow without providing adequate education and training. This includes education on strategies for improving patient throughput such as basic principles of patient flow management, how and when to employ basic time management techniques, and how to leverage time-saving features and functionality in the EHR.

9. Rethink physical design. Sometimes patient throughput challenges aren’t the result of humans as much as they are the physical environment in which we function. That’s where rethinking design can be helpful. For example, does the layout of the medical practice support the flow of events as they happen, or must patients and staff frequently retrace their steps? Likewise, does each exam room include essential supplies in easy-to-reach places so staff have access to resources when and where they need them most? Do exam rooms have enough outlets to use and charge mobile devices? Are exam tables in the center of the room without any obstructions for easy access and optimal patient flow management?

Looking ahead
As medical practices continue to look for ways to enhance revenue and boost patient satisfaction, improving patient throughput may be one solution. Learn how edgeMED can help and be sure to check the Healthy Snacks blog for more expert insights, best practices and industry trends.