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And when patients are back home, the facility texts them a brief satisfaction survey. Meanwhile, at the Maryland Surgery Center, Ms. Smith and staff are able to take advantage of a feature that provides automated patient notification via e-mail. "That saves more staffing hours because there are fewer reminder phone calls to make," she says.
The facilities are keeping an eye out for new ways to expand and improve the process.
"In 2012, we began asking patients to provide their demographic and insurance information, along with their medical history, so they can earn 'fast pass' status," says Ms. Mentz. "They can review our privacy policies, our policies on advance directives and patient rights, and a list of our physician investors."
Patients who do so are rewarded with expedited day-of-surgery registrations. Elmhurst staff can also track patient interactions on a dashboard developed by CareWire. "Our staff can easily see a patient's arrival time and confirm each mobile message transmission," Ms. Mentz marvels. "The dashboard also allows us to send courtesy messages when there are delays or changes, provide our address and parking instructions or
