What are the different types of healthcare software?

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The healthcare sector is facing pressure to move
to digital systems, both from regulatory
authorities and from the general public.
Government is pushing for digital systems so as
to make the functioning of hospitals and other
health care systems more transparent. The public
is becoming more aware of their healthcare
requirements and options and is demanding more
efficient and accessible healthcare systems, and
the healthcare providers are becoming more aware
of this need. Many healthcare IT firms are trying
to fulfill this need, and are providing a variety
of software services. Lets try to understand the
different types of healthcare software used by
various healthcare providers.
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EHR   Electronic health records or EHRs are used
for storing patient information in a digital
manner. It is used by hospitals and clinics to
store the complete medical history of a patient.
Government health regulators in many countries
are moving forward with plans to make electronic
health records mandatory.   These records provide
a secure and easily accessible way of storing
medical records compared to paper-based records.
Electronic records do not have the risk of loss
of medical history or being illegible or
destroyed over a long period of time. It also
prevents duplication of medical records, since
there is only one file which is modified over
time.   Electronic health record software is used
in both clinics and hospitals, and usually comes
integrated with hospital management software and
practice management software.
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Practice management software ( PMS)   Practice
management software or clinic management software
are used for managing clinics. Depending on the
requirement of the clinic, software with various
combinations of features is available. Generally,
they contain appointment management, billing, and
electronic health records. Software with
integrated lab and pharmacy management features
are also available if there are labs or
pharmacies associated with the clinic. A practice
management software helps to streamline the
workflow of a clinic, get error-free
documentation, manage appointments and billing
and make the system more efficient.   Specialized
systems are available for dental care,
ophthalmology, and other specialty clinics, with
customized prescription management and health
records. Queues in the clinic can also be managed
by the system, either on the basis of tokens or
on the basis of appointments
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Hospital management system ( HMS ) Hospital
management system has almost all the features
described above, and more. They are a fully
integrated system capable of managing the entire
hospital. They are capable of managing
appointments and electronic health records for
both inpatient and outpatient departments. They
are used for managing doctors schedules,
surgeries, other procedures, and all the aspects
related to them. They are also capable of
handling the labs and pharmacies attached to the
hospitals. The HMS systems can also manage the
rooms, marking rooms as occupied, unoccupied,
undergoing maintenance, etc, making it easy to
allocate rooms and beds for patients.   Hospital
management systems are often linked to the
websites of the hospitals and patients can use it
to book their appointments, get access to their
health records and treatment plans, and manage
their prescriptions. These days they also come
with apps for patients which aids the patients in
these same tasks much more easily through their
smartphones. Alerts are provided through SMS
services for follow up procedures, vaccinations,
etc in some hospital management systems. Due to
the integrated nature of the HMS, all the
procedures done in various departments of the
hospitals, all the tests done, medicines
administered and prescribed are tracked, thus
allowing easy comprehensive billing.
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Lab information management systems ( LIMS ) Lab
information management systems, as the name
implies, are used to manage the functions of a
lab. It will have provisions for sample
collection, inventory management, accounting
functions, and provisions for machine interfacing
with the lab equipment. A good lab information
system will provide full automation, and ensure
error-free results, with alerts for abnormal
results. With machine interfacing, data from the
instruments in the lab are directly read by the
software, and accurate records are made against
the sample data. In case of LIMS systems
integrated with the hospital management system,
provisions may be there to add the test results
to the patient records. Stand-alone systems are
also available for use by independent
laboratories. Lab information management systems
help lab technicians to achieve a smooth workflow
and better quality control. From the point at
which a sample is collected, till the results are
delivered, samples are tracked using the
software, which means that any technician in the
lab can find out what to do with a sample at
every step of the way, thus avoiding issues with
sample management. The system also prevents
errors, thus improving the credibility of the lab.
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Billing software   Billing software has been used
as part of hospitals and clinics ever since
accounting went digital. Even before EHRs came,
accounting software was being used in many
hospitals.   Billing software helps to manage
insurance claims and provides a smooth accounting
of medical bills. Entire medical costs of all the
patients can be easily accessed and organized in
an efficient manner using billing software.
Though they come along with hospital and practice
management systems these days, they are still
available as stand-alone systems.    To know more
about different types of healthcare software, and
to get demos for them,  visit MocDoc