Doctor's office software

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Under doctor's office software is widely industry software understood that the management, organization and operation of medical practices support or medical practice. Common alternative designations are also physician Information System (AIS) , practice management system (PVS) , office software , practice management software or ordination management software .

As usual with IT systems, the aim is to optimize work processes and thereby save time and money. Further goals are to improve documentation, audit-proof archiving, quality assurance and more economical treatment. Doctor's office software is the equivalent of a hospital information system (HIS).

There are specialized systems in individual niches, which are often better tailored to the individual requirements in the respective area, e.g. B. for medical specialties , dentists , naturopaths , private practices, clinics, veterinarians .

tasks

One of the main tasks of the practice software is to keep electronic patient files. In this respect, the practice software replaces the management of index cards on paper. These include a.

  • Documentation of anamnesis , findings, diagnosis, laboratory values
  • Management of documents and low-resolution images
  • Appointment management
  • Drug management
  • Interfaces for transferring laboratory data from laboratory devices and external laboratories
  • Correspondence management (fax, letters)
  • legal documentation (e.g. narcotics list, surgery book)

In addition, the billing data for billing with health insurance companies or associations of statutory health insurance physicians and bills for private liquidation are created with the help of the practice software.

For practice management, programs also offer waiting room lists, daily, weekly and monthly logs, an automated form system, in some cases also a cash register system with bookkeeping as well as data transfer from doctor to doctor in secure networks. Interaction with products from other software providers is possible thanks to interfaces for data exchange that have been established since the 1990s, but in practice this is often hampered by a lack of support from software companies. Interoperability standards are developed, for example, by the quality ring for medical software or the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians.

The spectrum of requirements for a doctor's software is multifaceted, depending on the specialist field of the resident doctor, the functional priorities are set somewhat differently. The requirements also differ between a statutory health insurance doctor and a private doctor or doctor of choice.

history

From humble beginnings in the 1980s, when PC programs first appeared on the market, the industry has now developed into a major branch of information technology. In the beginning, pure accounting programs were often found, but the many programs have now become comprehensive solutions for practice management. With the planning and introduction of digital health records and patient records, a wide field of activity has been opened up for software developers that will determine the next few years. The use of IT in health care has been promoted across the EU through political initiatives for years. A central element of e-health should be, for example, the health record to be kept by the doctor or the patient record to be kept by the patient.

Treatment economy

To reduce drug costs, many doctor programs contain prescription modules that can suggest cheaper generic preparations of the same value when prescribing . It is criticized that these modules are often sponsored by pharmaceutical companies who prefer to present their preparations in comparison lists.

Networking in the health sector

In recent years there has been increasing networking in the healthcare sector . The electronic transfer of findings (laboratory findings, specialist findings, doctor's letters, etc.) is now standard.

In the future, health records will gain in importance that can also be accessed on the move, e.g. via web browser. A distinction must be made between a health record kept by the doctor and an electronic patient record kept by the patient. Modifiability by patients is to be viewed critically for the doctor, since the completeness of all information is no longer guaranteed.

The so-called Health Information Network (GIN) was implemented in Austria a few years ago. This is an intranet to which all statutory health insurance physicians, many elective doctors and hospitals are connected. The actuarial entitlement test was implemented as the first application. Online and within a few seconds, it can be determined whether the patient is insured or not. The next service was the ABS (Drug Authorization Service), which made it possible to obtain authorization from chief physicians electronically. In the meantime, there are a number of other services via the GIN, such as electronic sickness notification, electronic transfer, the electronic transmission of documentation sheets ( medical check-ups , disease management programs ), etc., some of which are still in the pilot phase. Further functions, such as the electronic vaccination card or the electronic prescription, will soon be implemented. In order to use all these services in a meaningful way, full integration into the doctor software is essential, the doctor software acts as a client here.

With the ELGA initiative , an electronic life-long health record that is being promoted by the Austrian federal government, further networking will emerge, with the doctor software playing a central role.

Certification

In Austria, doctor software must be certified so that electronic billing with the health insurance companies and access to the health information network (GIN) can generally take place. This certification is carried out jointly by the main association, health insurance companies, the medical association and the SVC company (operating company of the GIN). In Germany, practice management software for electronic billing with statutory health insurance companies is certified by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians.

criticism

Some of the common practice software in the human area was sponsored by pharmaceutical companies. For example, when the doctor created prescriptions electronically, preparations from the respective sponsoring pharmaceutical companies were preselected, while preparations from cheaper competitors could often only be selected via cumbersome detours.

The aim of the Drug Supply Economic Efficiency Act is to prevent prescriptions from being influenced in this way. Software providers cooperating with pharmaceutical companies argue that restrictions on sponsorship lead to price increases in monthly software usage and maintenance fees. Currently, advertising in the drug databases has also been restricted, which has led to price increases in some practice management systems.

In terms of their functions, the current doctor information systems are limited to administrative tasks in the broader sense and, if necessary, to warning notices when prescribing medication. The information recorded on patients is generally no longer used to support decision-making in diagnosis and therapy.

See also

Web links