Seeing Is Believing: Case Studies that Demonstrate Practice Growth

Medical practices can outgrow the systems and processes that collect and transfer their patients’ information. A beleaguered system is easily identified by any bottlenecks or band-aids like check-in lines, crowded front desks, dissatisfied patients, overburdened staff and ineffective patient access, schedules or collections.

Missed opportunities, such as inaccurate, submitted claims, eligibility verification that’s not automated, or requiring patients to have 1:1 interactions to book an appointment — while limiting them to business hours only — can stack up needless expenses. Patient volume can be increased in these scenarios, but a tipping point will be reached long before true profitability or sustainable patient satisfaction are achieved. 

Measurable, healthy practice growth comprises lasting productivity, profitability and satisfaction.

Below, read about three case studies that illustrate how practices have sparked growth with Clearwave’s patient engagement tools.

Pediatric Associates of the Northwest (PANW) Case Study

Pediatric Associates of the Northwest is a thriving pediatric practice that delivers quality care at their offices in and around Portland, Oregon. 

In 2018, PANW had reached the limits of its appointment scheduling system. They were looking for a more dynamic solution that would allow them to establish a digital front door and offer scheduling convenience and flexibility. They also wanted to optimize available time slots and create a better and more fulfilling patient experience.

With Clearwave, PANW would be able to employ smart scheduling, quickly matching patients to the right provider automatically, based on symptoms and criteria — in a way that benefitted both patients and practice. And so, PANW chose Clearwave Scheduling as their new solution.

Appointments can now be scheduled at any time, even outside of PANW’s regular office hours, making it easy and convenient for parents. Visits booked online have increased 20% since switching to Clearwave Scheduling, and 61% of these are last-minute appointments, allowing PANW to fill schedule gaps and get more patients seen. Twenty-nine percent of all appointments scheduled now are booked after-hours, delivering digital access 24/7 and effortlessly expanding PANW’s capabilities and improving their bottom line without needing to hire extra staff.

Says Technology Manager Annie Cain, “We needed a scheduling solution that put patient preferences first —and made access to care faster and simpler. Clearwave’s digital patient access platform ticked all our boxes, enabling rapid and flexible deployment to deliver superior patient satisfaction and operational efficiency.”

Download the case study to read the full story.

Wichita Falls Endoscopy Center Case Study

Wichita Falls Endoscopy Center, a successful gastroenterology practice and ASC in Wichita Falls, Texas, sees more than 60,000 patients each year.

An assessment of their operations illustrated several crucial pain points, including a manual intake system that was heavy on paperwork, and inaccurate submitted claims due to data entry errors that stacked up costs and staff hours.

The administration team felt that they could improve their processes, workflows and patient satisfaction with a comprehensive digital solution that better supported their work and lifted the burden of many of their front desk tasks.

Wichita Falls chose Clearwave, implementing Clearwave Registration to transform their intake and check-in, and involved physicians, nurses and front desk staff in the implementation. As the practice is physician-owned and nurses and staff would support and guide patients’ adoption, it was key to demonstrate both the financial and operations benefits in the transition.

With Clearwave Registration in place, patients now checked in at an average of 1 minute and 38 seconds, a dramatic difference from their previous clipboard and scanning intake method. Collections increased by $120,000, and no-shows dropped to a 3-4% average, creating a much-improved cash flow. Submitted claims are now accurate and quickly reimbursed, and patients enjoy the fast, easy check-in.

Business Office Coordinator Robbie Williamson states, “The impact on our staff, especially as the practice grew, became overwhelming — since so much of our operation was manual. We knew we needed to automate, and that’s what led us to Clearwave.” 

Download the case study to read the full story.

Southwest Michigan Dermatology Case Study

Southwest Michigan Dermatology, located in Portage, Michigan, treats 300-320 patients daily. A few years back, the practice struggled with long check-in times, averaging 8 to 10 minutes per patient. Long lines and waiting patients delayed appointments even further, keeping doctors off schedule, generating excessive overtime and creating high staff turnover.

With such an overburdened front desk, Southwest Michigan Derm also had eligibility and data accuracy issues that needed to be improved.

They looked to Clearwave to help them alleviate these issues and simplify many of their outdated processes.

With Clearwave Registration, the front desk that previously required 8 staff members could now function comfortably with 4, reallocating staff to other areas to improve the patient experience. 

Check-in times were reduced to an average of 1 minute and 10 seconds, eliminating the long lines that used to wreak havoc on their daily schedules. Digital check-in improved data accuracy, leading to fewer rejected claims and accelerated reimbursements. Patient satisfaction shot up with better overall experiences, and turnover dropped.

Lisa Makela-Waters, Business Office Manager at Southwest Michigan Dermatology, credits Clearwave with helping their practice increase efficiency: 

“The Clearwave kiosk and tablet have allowed us to be much more efficient at the front desk. We’ve reduced staff turnover, improved payment collections, and have been able to repurpose staff members to other valuable parts of the practice.”

Download the case study to read the full story.

Smart Practice Growth with Clearwave

Clearwave’s comprehensive patient engagement platform provides a smart, productive framework that allows your practice, hospital or health system to work more efficiently and profitably while focusing on delivering personalized care.

With integrated solutions for scheduling, check-in, eligibility verification, connecting patients to the right provider, communications and more, Clearwave improves and automates operations so you can increase patient volume and scale — as smoothly and intelligently as possible.

Get a better idea of how Clearwave can support your practice growth by requesting a demo today.