The paperless practice - your advantages and obligations!

The current paper shortage is affecting more and more sectors and is not even stopping at medicine. Just recently, for example, the general obligation to vaccinate against the coronavirus failed, among other reasons, because the umbrella organization of the statutory health insurance funds stated that it did not have enough paper. It would not have been possible to notify all insured persons. However, not only because of the recent delivery problems, but primarily for reasons of efficiency and the introduction of the digital patient file in 2021, more and more doctors are opting to digitize their practices. But how can you specifically benefit from the advantages of the cartel-free medical practice?

These are the advantages of a paperless practice

In addition to the savings in printing costs, the paperless or cartless medical practice offers many other advantages for you and your practice staff. These can be roughly divided into three categories: Practice workflow, patient satisfaction and administrative processes.

More efficient practice workflow thanks to paperless processes

A lack of time due to paper chaos and stressed employees trying to keep track of everything is part of everyday practice? Not anymore! You can now handle many time-consuming activities digitally with the help of software. Your advantages:

• They eliminate sources of error that often occur when data is transferred manually.
• You relieve your staff, who have to print out fewer documents and index cards as well as manage them archivally.
• You can access important information on your digital devices from anywhere and at any time.
• You and your employees have more time for the care and treatment of your patients.

Many of these aspects relate to the interaction with your patients and therefore have the potential to increase patient satisfaction.

Higher patient satisfaction through digital processes

Thanks to the latest software, your patients can fill out and sign important documents directly on their own smartphone or tablet at home. This makes it much easier for them to arrive at your doctor's office. What's more, you no longer have to "chase after" missing information. This is because they have the option of marking input fields as mandatory. So it makes sense to digitize these documents:

• Medical history form
• Treatment contracts
• Information letter (e.g. Covid-19 information).
• Privacy policy

Happy patients are happy to recommend you and your practice to others. Patient satisfaction is also reflected in positive reviews on Jameda and Co. and thus acts like free practice marketing.

Paperless administration saves you time

Stored information can be transferred with just a few clicks. This means that digital processes also save a lot of time in administration, for example when creating these documents:

• Doctor's letters
• Settlements
• Room plans
• Duty and vacation schedules

You will notice: The efficiency of your administrative processes increases considerably as soon as you no longer have to rely on index cards in your medical practice. But be careful: Especially when dealing with sensitive personal (health) data, there are a few things to consider!

Data backup Retention periods and access restrictions: This is what you should pay attention to!

You open your digital practice management program and realize: All data is gone! This is probably the most common horror scenario for physicians in connection with a paperless or cartel-free medical practice. Not only would you have to reckon with financial losses in this case, but you would also be in breach of your retention obligation.

Back up your data regularly and DSGVO compliant!

To prevent the described scenario from becoming your reality, you can use various back-up strategies for data backup. It is important that you back up your data at regular intervals (preferably daily!). This way you keep the potential damage to a minimum. Also, store your data in multiple locations. You can use the following options for this:

• External data carriers (hard disks or USB sticks)
• Secure cloud solutions
• Separate server

More information on the topic of data security in medicine can be found at aertzeblatt.de.

Note: Always, but especially when using a cloud, make sure that DSGVO standards are adhered to by the provider!

The retention period and access restriction for patient records also apply digitally!

As a doctor, you are not only obliged to document treatments adequately, but also to store corresponding evidence securely. The length of time for which you must store information about your patients varies between one and 30 years.

Digital data protection when handling patient data

But not only the storage is regulated by law. Access to the data is also subject to strict regulations (keyword: medical secrecy). Only you and your practice staff are allowed to access them. Of course, this applies not only to analog archives, but also to digital ones. Data protection therefore has absolute priority in the paperless practice as well, from anamnesis to the safekeeping of documents.

Tip: You can find out how you should handle health data at datenschutz.org.

This is how easy it is to take a DSGVO-compliant medical history with Nelly

Faster, safer, more comfortable - Nelly is all that. Because with Nelly's software, you make anamnesis easier for you and your patients. This is how it works:

• Your patients fill out the medical history form at home or in the practice on their own smartphone.
• The signature for many documents is legally compliant with one click.
• The data is automatically transferred to your practice management system.

This makes patients happy: There is no need to install an app to use Nelly, as the data is entered directly via the web browser. Create a digital workflow in your practice now. We will advise you on your individual case free of charge and without obligation!

Contact Nelly now!

The personal designations used in this article always refer equally to all persons. For the sake of better readability, we do not use the same name twice or in the opposite gender.