The digital revolution has taken the world by storm – From Covid till now, we have seen a dramatic increase in the adoption of digital services. Although this revolution introduces efficiency and accuracy in the system, it has given cybercriminals a lot of opportunities to exploit sensitive data. Not only does it bypass customer privacy, but it also opens the alleys to fraud and abuse in healthcare. This blog discusses how the document verification process mitigates scams and strengthens customer trust in the healthcare industry.
The HIPAA Journal reports 5,150 data breaches in the period of 2009-2022. However, when it is put in the perspective of individual records, they amount to the unlawful disclosure of more than 382 million medical records. In the wake of such large-scale destruction, which continues in 2023, the implementation of an online document verification process becomes imperative.
Streamline Patient Scheduling and Enrollment
Patient enrollment and scheduling take much of the precious time of medical workers. Oftentimes, patients can make mistakes in the application forms, or make a double appointment. In such cases, a document verification process can help automate the manual process. Therefore, eliminating the need for medical workers to keep an eye on the booking process. This can be done by ensuring that only patients with the correct documents and application forms can schedule an appointment at the hospital or clinic. The document attestation will also enable the staff to maintain a highly accurate database of the patient’s records, ensuring accuracy in the system.
Ensure Safety with Age Verification
Cases of people demanding prescription-only medicine with forged documents flood hospitals and pharmacies. Such companies cannot perform the document verification process manually. Therefore, the very first line of defence in such cases, and even other medical matters, is the verification of age. Also, it can greatly minimise the risk of a minor getting harmful medicine or alcoholic materials. In this context, medical institutions can significantly increase the number of clean claims for medicine and other equipment. During the entire document verification process, both the medical institutions and genuine customers enjoy a streamlined process and reduced waiting times.
Mitigate Risk with Insurance Verification
Insurance claims are riddled with a high amount of fraud and abuse cases. Patients with unclean medical history try to scam the insurance companies, or sometimes it can happen the other way around. For the safety and security of all parties, a document verification process can build trust in the entire system. Insurance companies and hospitals can verify clean claims. Whereas, the transparency of the system will keep the patients updated with the current status of their requests. Moreover, document authentication will also enable hospitals to get pre-authorized consent from patients for medical procedures and medicines.
Improve Billing Accuracy
Another critical area in the sight of scammers is billing. They target vulnerable people and use their credit card information to get medical supplies, or worst case, chargeback cases. However, the proper induction of a document verification process can easily mitigate these scams. Such a solution will enable the hospitals to ensure that customers are only billed for their own procedures or medicine. Similarly, hospitals can use verification documents for reducing errors in refund claims.
Enhance Patient Care with a Complete Medical History
HIPAA regulates the protection of patient data, setting boundaries on its use and giving more control to the patients. In the presence of such regulations, it becomes essential to implement a robust document verification process. A successful solution should ensure correct data gathering and accessibility. Moreover, the system should prompt the customers about the intended use of their sensitive data. On the same note, document authentication can streamline the process of gathering medical history. Therefore, resulting in enhanced patient care.
Maintain Accurate Records of Medical Workers
Apart from accurate record-keeping or patient data, the document verification process can also help in the proper screening of medical workers. Some medical workers with illicit intent can use the system for their personal gains. However, with a lack of accountability, these cases can go undetected. An ongoing document verification process can help institutions keep a check on the activity of their staff. Thus, reducing any internal fraud and abuse.
Final Words on Online Document Verification in Healthcare
With the increasing advancements in technology comes the rising risk of cyber data breaches. Such cases violate basic human laws of personal privacy and security. This is why HIPAA has strict regulations in place that bind medical institutions and practitioners to ensure the safety of sensitive data. Under such circumstances, a robust document verification process can save the time and energy of medical workers, while complying with the rules at the same time. Document attestation can reduce patient enrollment times, enhance customer experience, and curb cases of fraud and abuse in healthcare.
