Physician Scheduler Software: Benefits & Opportunities

Physician scheduler software has never been more necessary. Antiquated methods of physician scheduling, such as using pen-and-paper or spreadsheets, lead to a number of problems. In contrast, physician scheduler software provides both benefits and opportunities.

Physician Satisfaction: A 2022 survey found that 47 percent of physicians were impacted by burnout. That rate leapt to 60 percent among emergency department physicians. Burnout contributes to physician dissatisfaction, which in turn can lead to higher turnover. Turnover results in increased costs related to recruitment, credentialing, and onboarding. More importantly, unhappy physicians are at risk of poorer patient interactions, which can lead to less patient satisfaction. That can lead to lower hospital reimbursements or reputational harm for medical practices.

Physician scheduler software increases doctors’ satisfaction. A 2017 study found that, prior to implementing web and mobile scheduling software, 37 percent of physicians were unsatisfied with scheduling methods. Six months following adoption of scheduling software, only 4 percent were dissatisfied. While scheduling is just one aspect of the physician experience, a doctor may interact with their schedule multiple times each day. As such, it can be either an ever-present annoyance or a seamless experience.

Time Savings: Physician scheduler software saves time for everyone concerned. For example, it can reduce by up to 50 percent the amount of time spent by those responsible for creating schedules. This is because schedule changes no longer have to be manually entered and updated schedules no longer have to be distributed. Instead, the scheduling software enables real-time updates that are immediately accessible to authorized personnel.

Time savings is also accrued in the call center. Physicians outside of the facility no longer need to call to check about possible schedule changes, and those responsible for contacting on-call physicians are less likely to contact the wrong physician or use the wrong number.

Most importantly, software means that providers don’t have to spend time fiddling with hard-to-find schedules and can instead focus on what’s important: patient care. Schedules that are accessible via a mobile app enables providers to check on their next shift without breaking stride.

Preventing Patient Leakage: Eight in ten hospital leaders cite patient leakage as a top-of-mind concern. Outdated scheduling processes contribute to patient leakage by requiring multiple phone calls to find the right on-call physician. If too much time passes, ambulances and community hospitals often divert to a competitor. Physician scheduler software has built-in standardized processes designed to streamline scheduling and reach the right physician the first time.

Physician scheduler software contributes to increased physician satisfaction, improved patient experiences, cost savings, and revenue enhancement. It is a boon to health systems, hospitals, and physician practices.

MDsyncNET’s cloud-based physician scheduler software delivers four advantages: low set-up fees, simple to learn, a single source of truth, and painless scheduling swaps. Call 888-506-5061 to see how MDsyncNET can help you integrate provider scheduling software into your facility.