November 2004 Newsletter

Imaging vs. IDM

By: Phil Conard, IT Director of Business Systems, Partner

As you may or may not be aware, Quadax has been offering Integrated Document Management (IDM) solutions for several years. Now I am sure some of you are thinking, "This must be just another imaging solution. I scan my documents… I retrieve my documents…" Folks, IDM is this and so much more. The IDM solution empowers clients with the ability to utilize their electronic documents in a production environment. Custom-tailored workflows can be created to electronically emulate many of today's hardcopy processes. Turn-key integration with your line of business applications is also a common benefit.

Custom Workflows

With each Integrated Document Imaging solution, Quadax explores custom workflow solutions. A custom workflow is the process of electronically delivering documents to end users, based on client-defined rules. Quadax will typically work through a discovery period with the client to define these rules. Regardless of the medical discipline, clients reap many benefits from workflow.

Advantages of a Custom Workflow

• Eliminates the manual disbursement/assignment of documents to users
• Eliminates document loss in transition from user to user
• Eliminates the costly filing of documents upon the task's completion
• Makes documents available to all, while awaiting tasks to be performed
• Easily manages user workload, redistributing work when necessary

In addition to these universal advantages, each custom workflow solution brings unique benefits. Future newsletters will showcase a few of these custom workflows.

As an extension to workflow, Quadax has designed the QuadMaX suite of products. This suite has tight workflow integration and is used to capture and quantify various healthcare transactions. The transactions are then made available to the A/R System via standard EDI interfaces.

QuadMaX Products and corresponding transactions

RegMaX

Capturing and quantifying demographics

CodeMaX

Capturing and quantifying coded billing elements

RemitMaX

Capturing and quantifying third-party remittances
 

Line of Business Integration

With each custom IDM solution, Quadax explores ways to leverage the client's existing line of business applications for two principle reasons: indexing enrichment and image-enabling of core business applications.

Indexing Enrichment. Often, Quadax can enrich document indexing by extracting data residing in the client's core business applications. First a cross-reference file is extracted from the core business application. That cross-reference file would contain the keywords to be applied to the documents.

Example: A medical chart is scanned and initially indexed by medical record number. By integrating with the core business application, as described above, Quadax can cross-reference the medical record number and deduce the patient name, attending physician, and service date.

By leveraging the core business applications data, Quadax is simplifying the initial index and enriching the document querying capabilities.

Image-enabling of Core Business Applications. In most cases, Quadax can "image-enable," or add imaging functionality to, a client's core business applications. Remarkably, it is accomplished without calling upon the client's application vendor. A unique tool -- a screen-scraper -- allows Quadax to read values from third-party applications, rendering the corresponding documents to the end user. This tool supports the image-enabling of both text-based and GUI applications.

The advantages of image-enabling core business applications are countless. Here's just one example: end users don't need to learn yet another application. They simply view imaging as an extension of the core business application. When on a screen they're used to, they just double-click or press a function key, and then the corresponding documents pop up.

It's really that simple.

And yes, Quadax's HARP and Xpeditor products can be image-enabled!

Quadax IDM Offerings

Quadax's unique partnerships allow us to offer the IDM solution in two models. Both ASP and Enterprise models are available. With our staff's credentials, Quadax can administer the implementation of both.

Please feel free to phone me at (440) 788-2176 or e-mail me for more information on tailoring an IDM solution for you.