Older doctor with baby patient and mother

Is your organization primed for next generation healthcare connectivity?

by Michael Campana

Here's why traditional fax communication may be holding you back

Paper-based fax maintains a stranglehold on the healthcare industry.

Despite the digital revolution, today's providers still lean heavily on communication via paper fax, and they have for decades. These outdated communication methods waste time, money, and resources, yet healthcare environments cling to the status quo because it's what they know.

Let's be honest: learning a new process — even when it's an improvement — feels daunting.

In an industry hungry for better outcomes and streamlined processes, the paper fax survives because the devil we know is better than the devil we don't. But providers can no longer afford to allow subpar workflows to characterize care coordination, especially when:

  • Fax failure rates in the 30 percent range¹ are not uncommon in today's healthcare organizations.

  • Duplication of faxes often results in duplication of ordered tests.

  • Industry research reveals that 40 percent² of healthcare workers admit to accidentally reading a paper fax intended for someone else.

  • Paper-based fax limits real-time access to patient information at the point of care.

While the healthcare industry processes a whopping 15 billion³ fax transactions each year, the reality is that change looms on the horizon. The Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have aligned efforts to replace the use of fax machines by 2020. Ready or not, digital health information continues to forge ahead.

So, if the change is imminent, how can your organization accommodate the shift to the digital transmission of patient data?

The healthcare industry's implementation graveyard is crowded with IT ideas that didn't survive due to a lack of buy-in and strategy. That's why you need a forward-looking partner who understands the challenges and opportunities of shifting to digital fax workflows.

In short, you need a partner who understands that the growth inherent in improved communication outweighs the pain of change.

We have identified challenges and opportunities across three pillars of your organization, and we're prepared to help you transform your information. We want to introduce you to new habits in fax communication related to workflow, data governance and information exchange. Then we want to help you replace bad habits associated with traditional fax.

Prepare for greater interoperability and care collaboration

Learn more about the advantages of a cloud-based digital solution to communicate across your entire healthcare system.

Download the white paper

We invite you to download our latest white paper to learn more about the advantages of a cloud-based digital solution and to identify benefits you might not yet recognize.

If change is a foregone conclusion, take steps now to advance your organization's communication ecosystem. Partner with Ricoh to embrace the kind of change that will improve the lives of your staff, your community partners, and your patients.

About the Author

gi-ls-Michael-Campana-web.jpeg

Michael Campana

Senior Manager of Healthcare Marketing, Ricoh USA, Inc.

Michael Campana joined Ricoh in 2012 as Senior Manager of Healthcare Marketing. He brings 27 years of experience to the role to lead the market positioning and strategy for Ricoh’s healthcare industry vertical in the Americas. Campana began his career in the healthcare industry upon graduating from the University of South Florida. He has worked for a number of healthcare organizations, including most recently Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services.

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  1. ¹Hold, David. "The Top 10 reasons companies continue to fax in 2017" IDC Study: https://enterprise.efax.com/blog/the-top-10-reasons-companies-continue-to-fax-in-2017
  2. ²Opinion Matters Survey, https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ricoh-unveils-three-important-healthcare-innovations-at-himss-246872841.html, Ricoh 2014
  3. ³Hammer, Rick. "The Healthcare Problem: The Facts – Medical and dental referral letter issues," ReferralMD: https://getreferralmd.com/2012/02/medical-dental-referral-letter/