Brandon Health Care has been seeing primary care patients for 30 years. Until recently, when patients arrived at the doctor’s office, they were asked either to complete new patient paperwork or to update their existing records, which were retrieved from storage and given to the nurse. The nurse would then document vital signs and patient complaints on paper, to which the doctor would have to add handwritten notes detailing the patient’s condition and treatment, on an encounter form delineating diagnosis and office charges.

This information was returned by the patient to the billing clerk, who would code it and enter it into a computer system. At the end of the business day, the office manager would need to check all the codes for errors, and send the data to a clearing house for billing to the appropriate insurance company. The doctors spent up to two extra hours a day documenting insurance claims. Digital Pen and Paper technology has made it easier and faster for doctors to document each patient’s complaint and treatment.

Benefits: 10 - 12 additional patents can be received by each doctor every day. Faster patient registration. No need for paper storage. Medical records are kept more up-to-date and errors are reduced.