Table of content

Introduction

Paper allows us to share the information in our heads with the whole world. But do we need paper anymore?

Precisely, the answer is not to that extent.

The web age has allowed us to replace paper with other technologies such as desktop, laptop, tablet, and smartphone to store and share information. Among the changes, the most prominent creation is paperless forms. Paperless dental forms enable your practice to run more efficiently by digitizing traditional paper forms. Thus, a paperless office, also called a paper-free office, is a workplace that uses a minimal amount of physical paper, relying instead primarily on digital documents.

paper forms problem solved by using paperless dental forms

Problems with paper forms

Day to day challenges-

Paper forms pose many challenges for the office staff, patients, and dentists, thereby reducing the dental office's productivity and efficiency. Some of the common problems faced by all offices are more labor hours to file and arrange paper forms, limited access to the forms, manually tallying the information, illegible handwriting, paper forms getting lost in transit, and rigorous efforts of scanning, printing, and shredding.

In the times of COVID-19 pandemic-

Covid-19 pandemic hit our lives and ringed the alarm of uncertainty and change. In the wake of the pandemic, everyone wants to minimize the contact points to curb the spread of the virus.

As the Covid-19 curve flattens, a huge change in the day-to-day functioning of businesses in all sectors is required. With evidence that coronavirus can live for a period of time on paper surfaces, the need to go paperless becomes more important.

For dental practices, pre-screening forms filled by patients before their visit will be helpful to get prior information on those having any symptoms of Covid-19. This will ensure the safety of dental offices and the other patients visiting the dental office.

Covid-19 is thus a great time to ditch old practices and consider the idea of going paperless. A paperless system will increase hygiene and efficiency and have a positive impact on the environment.

The paperless solution

Going paperless might seem a tough decision to take. But the time has come for offices to decide whether to bear the burden of stacks of paper around your desk or to enjoy the benefits of a paperless office. For the everyday office employee, not having to deal with paper makes life a lot easier. There are several reasons why more and more entities are switching to paperless forms.

The benefits of using paperless dental forms go far beyond the environment-friendly concern. Let’s analyze some of the many reasons to use digital forms instead of the traditional paper-based ones.

  • Enhances Efficiency - With paperless dental forms, all patient information and documents will be readily available at your fingertips. Patients dread long wait times at dental offices. By going paperless, your front office will save a considerable amount of time on every patient that will certainly increase favorable patient reviews along with improving office productivity.

  • Saves time- Paperless forms are a tremendous time-saving tool for both dental staff and patients. Getting rid of paper can help save time and decrease operational costs as well. By using digital forms, manual data entry errors are limited, data is processed more quickly, and no more time is wasted in printing, scanning, and shredding forms.

  • Quick access to files- Storing your office files electronically makes your workflow much more time-efficient because of the quick access you have to your documents. No longer sorting through filing cabinet folders, no need to make copies or scanning or faxing the documents with paperless forms.

  • Convenience in filling out forms- Patients will be able to take full advantage of this convenient approach of filling out forms from anywhere. Completing forms at home or from anywhere before coming to the dental office ensures patient comfort and peace of mind. Patients can also e-sign the forms.

  • Long-lasting impression- As they say, the first impression is the last; a high-tech, efficient and paperless office ensures an overwhelming response from the patients. Adopting digital technology improves your office's appearance and keeps it clear of desk clutter and overstuffed file cabinets.

  • Completely HIPAA compliant secure portal – Paperless dental forms are secured forms that meet HIPAA requirements for collecting sensitive patient information. The patient forms are totally encrypted and stored on uniform servers to protect their sensitive patient details.

  • Customized forms- Paperless dental forms can be tailored made to suit your office’s specific requirements. With customization, all the required fields and checkboxes can be incorporated into the paperless forms.

  • Save costs- Dental practices save up to $400 per month on both stationary and labor costs by opting for paperless patient forms.

dental office eliminating paper at work by using practicedilly features

How to eliminate paper at work

Going paperless is an ongoing process. You can’t expect to instantly throw out piles of papers, get rid of your old file cabinets, and never have to deal with paper again. Now that you are aware of the benefits of paperless dental forms, here are some of the steps to eliminate paper from your workplace:

  • Finding the right patient engagement platform partner is essential for a dental office to go paperless. The ideal partner will help in structuring, streamlining, and transitioning into a paperless practice smoothly.

  • The next stage is to conduct a current assessment wherein you should perform a HIPAA documentation and policy review to see whether your practices are HIPAA compliant or not.

  • Then set up goals to achieve less paper consumption. This can be done by asking various staff members about their needs of paper and undertaking internal company analysis of paper usage in printing, mailing, and noting down information.

  • Then, plan a design for your software. With a software partner by your side, you can get the paperless dental forms designed to cater to your practice needs, identifying the touchpoints for the patient experience, developing e-signatures, and understanding staff retrieval requirements.

  • Review your digitized processes- frequently take reviews from your staff and patients about the paperless system you are offering them to get better day by day.

How PracticeDilly can assist you

One of the main reasons people struggle to move away from paper and go fully digital is that they are afraid technology will further complicate their existing processes.

Well, PracticeDilly is changing the way dental practices work to make their job easier. We provide you a library of fully HIPAA compliant forms. We also custom forms according to your needs.

We are a patient engagement platform that provides paperless dental forms for your offices.

  1. We will convert all your pdf forms into a digital version.

  2. Embed the form links on your website or share them with your patients through the PracticeDilly portal.

  3. Your patients fill and e-sign the forms from the comfort of their homes.

  4. Receive the e-signed forms and confirm appointments.

PracticeDilly provides you a complete streamlined process to give a new direction to your medical practice. Using our paperless dental forms, you can reduce the patient check-in time and relieve staff members from the burden of inefficient paper-based systems. We offer an easy setup, customization of forms, affordable pricing, and effective customer support.

So, remove the paper hassle and start driving benefits from digital patient forms.

Pavan Chakka

   May 21 6 min read

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