When thinking about “technology in healthcare”, new medical equipment or treatments usually come to mind, but advancements such as the digitization of documents can also have a big impact. Secure digital medical documents and forms can now be signed in seconds; cutting down paperwork, processing time and administrative resources. In this article, we will look at how Digital Signing Service (DSS) can help healthcare’s sub-industries and departments make document signing easy and convenient.
Accounting and billing department
Accounting and billing departments handle patient and staff documents regularly. They are responsible for managing all billing duties and payment collection for the services performed on patients. Moreover, they manage all staff and patient files that require a lot of documentation and processing.
With digital healthcare solutions like DSS, documents are a lot easier to manage because patients can now sign their documents remotely. DSS also provides secure documentation with PKI-based digital signatures, timestamping, and non-repudiation. Digital signatures provide the security hospitals need most.
All document-related processes such as balancing patient accounts, billing reports, signing receipts, reviewing bills, and entering patient data into the database can be done faster without compromising information accuracy. DSS helps in identifying and resolving inaccuracies in data and payments.
Doctors and clinics
Medical records and compliance forms are a major part of medical documents signed by patients and doctors in hospitals. Imagine how much easier it would be if patients can sign documents digitally. They will be much easier to record and verify. On top of that, security and identity verification are enhanced. PKI-based digital signatures meet the multitude of security requirements in the hospital, which is why they fit the medical setup. In our previous article, we have covered the compliance of digital signatures in the medical field, including HIPAA compliance, eIDAS, and ESIGN. Since technology in healthcare is improving at a fast rate, digital signatures are indispensable for the development of electronic patient records.
Long waits, delayed processing, little to no time to read forms, delays in processes because the signee is occupied elsewhere – these are not optimal practices, especially in hospitals. Online document signing and digital signatures provide the solutions where traditional paper signing falls short.
Moreover, it would be more ideal if patients had the time to read and understand forms before signing them on the spot. If physicians can be freed from paper-pushing, they would have more flexibility to focus on the patient. When we talk about online document signing, all this is possible.
Healthcare insurance providers
Digital signatures make it easier for patients to sign documents because it allows them to sign remotely instead of requiring them to go to a physical location. This is even more practical during the COVID-19 era where people are hesitant to interact face-to-face. Digital signatures are also easy to learn and use even for people who are not keen on technology.
There is so much convenience in filling out forms using digital healthcare solutions. Customers no longer have to print out forms and fill them physically. DSS gets rid of all these unnecessary steps that are deemed unproductive for healthcare insurance agents and customers alike. By using DSS, health insurance agencies can guide customers in real-time by automated form completion process, eliminating follow-ups due to error and mistakes.
Pharmaceuticals
Pharmaceuticals who use DSS can get medications delivered to hospitals and patients faster than any other paper-based procedure. Anything that delays a patient’s access to the developments of medicine in pharmaceuticals is time that could have been better spent on more important advances. Technology in healthcare is always looking to boost efficiencies and eliminate bottlenecks that could negatively impact product development time.
While document signing may just be part of the myriad of processes it takes to get medicines out to the market, it is a critical step that when improved, affects other areas as well.
For one, incorporating DSS in document signing and clinical trial onboarding, among other documents, speeds up the production. DSS improves efficiency and productivity without sacrificing security and compliance with regulations like 21 CFR Part 11.
Final Thoughts
There is no doubt that technology in healthcare is gradually advancing, and trusted digital signatures like GlobalSign’s DSS help the healthcare community speed up processes and eliminate time-consuming processes. From hospitals and clinics down to the pharmaceutical industry, when comparing digital signatures with traditional ones, the speed, security, and costs that digital signatures provide are unmatched.
