6 Things That Differentiate Our Implementation Process From Others

Inside Medaptus’ Consultative Approach to Software Implementations 

As my career has progressed in healthcare technology consulting to where I am today – a Senior Clinical Implementation Consultant – so too has my approach changed about what this type of customer-facing role should really be.  

Earlier in my career, I started off by doing “out of the box” implementations, with limited to no customization, and with strict corporate barriers to ensure we stayed “inside the lines” at all times.  

While that strategy might work for some, at medaptus, I’ve come to realize Implementation Consultants offer more than just software. We can provide expertise on business objectives by taking a holistic approach to the problem that is trying to be solved. By treating the software implementation period as an opportunity to solve challenges, and not just implement software, you can truly have a smooth implementation that helps healthcare organizations.   

And considering that 80% of healthcare providers plan to implement new technology within the next five years, it’s never been more important to get implementations done right – the first time.  

This consultative approach plays a crucial role in successful software implementations. And it starts even before you buy any software. During the sales process as well, just like you are doing your due diligence to determine if we’re the right vendor for you, we are analyzing if your healthcare org is the right fit for us. By doing this, we’re already one step ahead once we start implementation – making the process smoother for you.  

Here are six things you need to know about our consultative approach to software implementations – and how it sets you up for success.  

1. Expertise and Experience: Our software consultants bring a wealth of knowledge, expertise, and experience in working with various integrated software systems and technologies, such as Epic, Cerner, Meditech and much more. We’ve worked with small 50-bed hospitals to 700+bed facilities.

All our consultants have 15+ years of healthcare IT experience, with typically 6+ years of experience implementing our software at various healthcare orgs. That’s right – no newbies who don’t understand your systems and workflows! 

We understand the best practices, industry standards, and implementation methodologies, which can greatly benefit you. 

2. Requirements Gathering and Analysis: We work closely with you to understand your specific requirements and analyze the feasibility of implementing those requirements. We help identify gaps, refine business processes, and propose suitable solutions that align with your goals and objectives.

You’re not getting a one-size-fits-all solution with an out-of-the-box implementation process. You’re getting something tailored to you.  

One of the first steps is to perform a current state vs. future state analysis. We analyze what are you currently doing? How would you ideally like that process to be done? What will change downstream as a result? We accompany this questionnaire with a workflow analysis on-site or remote (your preference). During this analysis, we’re typically uncovering things that aren’t working well that you may not even be aware of or that may be “business as usually.” Then we ensure our implementation process is giving you custom solutions to the problems you’re trying to solve.  

For example, let’s say in your current state analysis for charge capture, doctors are entering charges on paper and delivering the notes to a coder group for review. Your future state will be that doctors use the medaptus Charge Grid to input their charges, so coders can review all necessary charges in the Coder Dashboard. We’d go through with you the impact of moving from a manual charge capture process to an automated one; how to train your doctors and coders; and what information you want to be able to be see (or have required) at each stage of the charge capture process. 

3. Planning and Project Management: We help you develop a comprehensive implementation plan, including defining project scope, timelines, milestones, and resource allocation. We help create a roadmap for successful implementation, ensuring that the project stays on track and meets the desired outcomes.

We scope out each project based on amount of Professional service hours we determined in the sales cycle, then we build your project timeline and track the hours compared to project timeline throughout the project lifecycle.  

For example, our patient assignment solution, Assign, typically has a 60-90 product implementation with these key phases. In each phase, we have a dedicated workflow to keep the project on task. This also allows us to keep the project on track and on budget, avoid surprises and unforeseen costs, and give regular updates to your C-suite. 

Phase	Hours	Target Date
Kick Off & Project Planning	20 Hours	2/1
System Design and Configuration	20 Hours	2/15
Testing & Validation	40 Hours	3/1
Training	20 Hours	4/1
Go-Live & Support	20 Hours	4/15

4. Customization and Integration: Almost all our implementations require customization and integration with existing systems. Our consultants have the technical skills to tailor the software to meet specific needs and integrate seamlessly with other applications, ensuring a smooth and efficient implementation process. Here are just a few of the customizations we can do:

• HL7 Message Customization  
• Visit Mapping & Crosswalks  
• Custom Charge Rules & Coder Rules  
• Custom Assignment Rules by Interface values 
• Patient Attributes & Visual Indictors  

5. Training and Support: Our consultants provide training sessions to familiarize users with the new software and its functionalities. They also offer ongoing support during and after the implementation, addressing any issues, resolving conflicts, and ensuring user adoption and satisfaction. Even once you’ve implemented, we have training opportunities through the year, whether that’s through on-site or remote sessions/optimizations, our 24/7 support team, or our annual user conference.

6. Risk Mitigation: Implementing new software can involve risks such as data migration challenges, system compatibility issues, or disruptions to ongoing business processes. Software consultants help identify and mitigate these risks, minimizing the potential negative impact on the organization. A few things we do to help mitigate risks is:

• Implementation sign off after each phase 
• Testing and validation at all phases  
• Including different groups of your hospital organization during the testing and implementation process. We don’t just include the impacted group! Instead, we include a wide variety of departments (registration, nursing, IT, etc.) to see how the software will directly and indirectly impact various groups. Everyone is aware this software is being implemented and if needed, are part of testing. 

Learn more about our security and compliance policies here. 

 

A Consultative Approach to Successful Software Implementations  

Yes, you can have a successful software implementation! All it requires is the right plan – and the right partner (that’s us!).  

But don’t just believe what we have to say about it. Here are a few things healthcare orgs are saying about our Implementation Consultants:  

“I wanted to give a huge shout out for Jeremy. We went live last week. He and I worked closely together with Jeremy doing the heavy lifting. I know he spent a long time on getting it set up.  And it showed.   

We had very little in the way of items that weren’t flushed out during testing.   

His calm demeanor was very much appreciated.  Especially around these parts where we drink from a fire hose on a daily basis.”   

 Software implementations don’t need to be as painful as they can be! Make sure you look for a vendor that takes a consultative approach like we do. Not only do we bring experienced implementation specialists to the table, but we also bring guidance and support to help you get the best return on your software investment and ensure success.