Solving a Healthcare Crisis with Cognitive Automation – RTInsights

Cognitive automation allows the once tedious task of unstructured data entry and compilation to be delegated to cognitive process automation-powered bots.

Earlier this year,1.5 millionAmericans flockedto theofficial site of the ACAduring the 2021Marketplace Special Enrollment Period. These new additions resulted in a staggering nationwide total of 12.2 million Americansenrolled inmarketplace healthcare a record high.

However,significant obstacles still stand between healthcare providers and quality patient care.A 2021 studyfrom the Association of American Medical Colleges is predicting a major physician shortage by 2034. The data used for the study was from 2019 prior to the COVID-19 outbreak and doesntconsiderthenumberof medical staff thatquit or retiredsince the pandemic began.Additionally,more than 3,600 health workers died in 2020, and the World Health Organization is warning that healthcare worker burnoutas a result of the pandemicwill have serious effects.

The 2022Open EnrollmentPeriod is an opportunityfor many uninsured and underinsured Americans to access health insurance, butthese patients may still face obstacles in receiving medical care.Healthcareprovidersthat are considered in-network for these plans face a large increase in patientappointments yethave less available staff and physicians to providequalitycare.

This leavesthehealthcare systemsearching for smart solutions to work throughhigher demand for services with less human resources.

During peak times, healthcare facilities face an increased workload on two fronts. Treating patients is the priority and a demanding endeavor even prior to the pandemic. And while extraordinary advancements have been made in using AI to diagnose and treat medical conditions, few headlines are written about the impact of robots behind the front desk.

However, machine learning is changing the way healthcare process management is run. Thanks to cognitive process automation (CPA), bots are now able to read and interpret medical claim forms and match medical notes. Advancements in optical character recognition(OCR)and natural language processing(NLP)enablethese same bots to understand and respond to requests. And, according to aMcKinsey studyfrom 2019, 36% of healthcare services can be automated, which is a strong endorsement for incorporatingcognitive automationinto daily processes.

In the last year,CPAhas increased productivity, efficiency, and accuracy for healthcare providers. Pre-trained bots can take over monotonous, rote work like general administration and data entry. Ordering, obtaining, and processing labs becomes easily delegated. More than just standard robotic process automation, these bots even use machine learning to make informed decisions, just like human employees.

The upcoming OpenEnrollmentPeriodcould add a considerable workload toan already over-burdenedhealthcare office staff, butCPA can provide relief. Medical record organization, work schedule creation, human resources, financial management, and more can be fully automated, allowing administrators more time and resources to focus on supporting their staff and patients.

See also: Bringing Healthcare into the Digital Age

During periods of high demand, whether expected or unexpected, its easy for staff to become overworked and fall behind. Even hiring additional staff can cause strain for existing employees expected to train the new hires, and the training period can take too long to be a profitable course of action. This is a hurdle many medical offices will face with the2022OpenEnrollmentPeriod.

With CPA, bots can blend human intelligence and decision-making with the speed and accuracy of robotic AI. Just like human employees with a work history, pre-trained bots can understand the industry lingo, read handwritten documents, and make inferences and decisions rooted in past experiences.

The bots can even scale their efforts to take on a heavier workload than normal by multiplying themselvesto meet increased demand. This makes these cognitive solutions ideal for healthcare services, whichis an industry largely unprepared for the projectedshortages we will face within the next decade.

Data organization and analysis are trending topics in the world of healthcare process management. Cognitive automation allows the once tedious task of unstructured data entry and compilationtobe delegated to CPA-poweredbots, fully equipped to automate the entire process.

With CPA, healthcare providers can find, organize, and process patient data at a much faster rate than ever before. This allows clinical staff to spend less time on monotonous tasks and more time ensuring compassionate care and pleasant experiences for patients, especially as the initial industry outlook predicts more severe medical cases due to delayed elective and routine carethroughout the pandemic.

Even patient onboarding becomes an easier process with CPA sorting data. Scheduling appointments, collecting relevant information and documentation, and even revenue recovery can be fully automated, saving precious time and resources. Nursing, in particular, is estimated to be 30% to 50% more productivewith the help of AI and cognitive automation.

With ACA enrollment at a record high of12.2 millionAmericans, healthcare systems and providers must prepare now for an increase in seasonal demands for the 2022 enrollment period and beyond. AI and cognitive automation are increasingly relevant, and well-timed solutions for the challenges healthcare institutions may face, given that the processes are highly automatable and efficient.

As the United States continues to come to terms with the effects of COVID-19, healthcare systems and providers should put value in tools that will allow staff to deliver a better quality of care while reducing errors and manual output.

Thoughmedical advancementslikesurgery-performing robots and cancer-detecting AI are lauded, widespread use is neitherpractical nor imminent. Small, understaffed clinics wont have access tothe state-of-the-art resources that oftenmakesheadlines.Additionally, the impact wont be felt by the average American.

However,cognitive process automation is accessible for even the smaller clinics, making up for the decrease in staff. Additionally,the impact can be felt by both patients and healthcare workers asthesebots alleviate a stressed system.

Thoughitdoesnt have the same headline appeal as adiagnostic robot, the impact of healthcare automation is far more tangible, realistic, and given the shortage of healthcare workers more crucial than ever.

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Solving a Healthcare Crisis with Cognitive Automation - RTInsights