In a previous blog post, we talked about creating a practice profile to clearly define what your practice needs. After you look into your staff’s needs, hardware capability, and workflow, you should know what to look for in an optometry practice management software. The next step is to fill out a requirement description and list out features, functionalities, and everything you need in a solution.
Your description should outline the basic features and functionality you want the system to be capable of handling, as well as all of those “intangibles” that will make it the right fit for your practice. Much like writing a job description for a new employee, creating a requirements description for your software can help you clearly define your needs and expectations.
Sample: Optometry Practice Management Software Requirement Description
Here’s a sample requirements description from Dr. Palmer from All About Eyes in Georgetown, TX. Notice how she takes both functionality and the overall fit in her practice into consideration:
All About Eyes is looking for an optometry practice management and EHR solution that will help our practice function more efficiently and provide better patient care. We are a single-doc, single-location practice with 3 additional staff members. We use a clearinghouse for claim filing and an online solution for product ordering. We don’t currently have a practice management and EHR solution.
The solution needs to be easy to install and implement in the practice, adaptable to our workflow, easy to use, and able to work with our existing equipment and hardware. Can your solution reduce or improve our workload? Will it be compatible with people that aren’t technologically savvy? Is it affordable and scalable if our practice grows? Yes? That’s the solution we need!
Required functionalities include:
- Claim Filing
- Scheduling
- Patient Recall
- Patient Education
- Product Ordering
- Electronic Health Records
Our ideal solution will:
- Support our workflow without overhauling the way we interact with patients
- Be easy for someone that isn’t computer savvy to use
- Make it easier for our OD to complete an exam
- Be easy to operate but capable of handling complex tasks
- Be certified for 2014 standards for Meaningful Use so that we can attest
- Be accessible without having to maintain a server
- Work well with the computers and tablets that we already have
- Be packed with features, such as a scheduler, that will make our work easier
- Help us avoid coding errors and maximize insurance reimbursements
- Improve patient care and facilitate patient education
- Be affordable and not require a major upfront investment
If you are shopping for a practice management and EHR solution, filling out a requirements description is only part of it. You need to understand your options - that's where our eBook comes in!
