Synergy - May/June 2013 - 20

namss focus

Benefits of an Automated Affiliation
Response System
By Mary A. Hicks, CPCS, CPMSM, Immediate Past President, NHAMSS

P

ortsmouth Regional Hospital is an
acute care community hospital with
about 370 providers on staff . At the
time we were doing manual affiliate
response letters, our MSO was staffed with
1 .75 full-time employees (FTEs) . The 0 .75
was held by two part-time workers who
“shared” the position .
We were always aware that the affiliate
response letters used a large block of our
time, and we became more aware of this
when we began responding to requests only
on Fridays, unless there was an urgent need .
Although we had an automated system for
printing out letters from our credentialing
software, it was taking from four to six hours
each Friday to print the letters, fax them to
the requesting facility and then file them . At
times it would take several attempts to fax a
letter, followed up by a phone call to verify
we had the correct fax number . This process
was frustrating, because we had already
instituted every time-saving device we could
to make it as efficient as possible .
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SYNERGY MaY/JUNE 2013

In January 2011, we switched to new
credentialing software that had a function
for automated on-line responses that the
requesting affiliation printed directly . We
customized our response letter, and using
a function within the database indicated
providers who would not have a letter
of good standing print when requested .
Instead, the requesting institution would get
the message to “call medical staff services
at xxx-xxx-xxxx .” The message does not
indicate the reason for the call, which is
helpful because there are times when it
simply means we neglected to turn on
the letter . Since 2011, when we receive
a request for a letter we simply fax back
a one-page instruction sheet . Eventually,
institutions that request larger volumes of
letters from us stop sending the requests
and just run the letters automatically . The
volume of requests we receive has dropped
dramatically, and when we must send the
instructions it takes less than a minute .
We return the cover sheet along with
the instructions . To be most efficient, we

keep our instructions right next to the fax
machine, and when we pick up a request
we drop the response right back in .
When doing a cost-benefit analysis for an
online response system, take into account
not just the time your staff spends on the
letters, but also the time it takes to mail and/
or fax responses, the time to file the hard
copies, and the expense of the paper, ink,
postage or phone bill . If your organization
has a goal of going green this process aligns
perfectly due to the reduction in paper and
ink . One more benefit is the saving of space
to store the letters in your filing system if
you have paper files .
If you choose to implement an online
response system, I have no doubt your staff
will respond much as mine: “Why didn’t
we do this sooner?” The large block of time
formerly spent on processing paperwork
is now put to better use in analyzing
applications and working on projects that
add more value to our institution . ■
Synergy - May/June 2013

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