Go mobile: Switch to mobile like 'night and day'

A push to break its paperwork logjam and speed up the billing process prompted MedCare Equipment Company to switch to a mobile delivery system just over a year ago.
The HME provider partnered with Apacheta, a mobile solutions provider, to cut paperwork, standardize delivery and reduce its days sales outstanding number. Using Apacheta's software, MedCare transitioned to a paperless environment using mobile devices to transmit information between departments and optimize travel time for drivers.
In doing so, the company decreased its days sales outstanding number from 16 to 2½ days, slashed the time it takes to plan routes by 200% and saved the equivalent of about 46 trees. Technicians spend about 10 minutes fewer at a stop and are able to send delivery information while still in the patient's driveway.  
“It was basically night and day,” said Zac Shannon, network analyst for MedCare, which serves parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and New York. “It was really exciting for us because it fixed a lot of issues right away. In this case, it was in a few days we could see a change.”
More companies like MedCare are looking for ways to streamline delivery and billing, while also boosting productivity, said Aimee Swope, customer success specialist for Apacheta.
“It is one application that affects every department inside DME,” Swope said. “It eliminates the cost of paper altogether. It eliminates the cost of revisit. With the routing, it is so much more efficient. As the DSO drops, it increases your revenue, which hits your bottom line so you see a huge return on investment.”
Although the entire company has benefited from the switch to paperless, only a couple departments were directly affected by the change, Shannon said. The company has about 375 employees, and about 125 had to deal with the new software.
“Everybody else, they didn't do anything different,” Shannon said. “They all got better paperwork that is more appropriately sorted. They have status updates without having to call dispatch; they're getting better information back into the orders. Our compliance teams and quality teams are getting better data.”
For the drivers, the switch to paperless has changed their job.
“After the first three days we switched, I stopped hearing from them,” Shannon added. “They tell me, 'It makes my life easier. I can help the patient like I want to.'”