By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    stress management for healthcare workers
    3 Tips For Healthcare Professionals: How To Stay Beautiful, Healthy, and Happy
    November 2, 2021
    importance of relaxing on the weekend for your health
    Importance of Relaxing During the Weekend for Optimal Health
    March 25, 2022
    LASIK Eye Surgery
    What Is LASIK Eye Surgery?
    May 16, 2022
    Latest News
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
    The Hidden Impact Of Stress On Your Body’s Alignment And Balance
    May 22, 2025
    Chewing Matters More Than You Think: Why Proper Chewing Supports Better Health
    May 22, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    What Would You Do?
    January 28, 2013
    How Martin Shkreli is driving down drug prices
    May 24, 2017
    Here’s How The Body Deals With Pain – And How You Can Treat Yours
    December 31, 2018
    Latest News
    Strengthening Healthcare Systems Through Clinical and Administrative Career Development
    June 13, 2025
    Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
    May 18, 2025
    The Critical Role of Healthcare in Personal Injury Recovery: A Comprehensive Guide for Victims
    May 14, 2025
    The Backbone of Successful Trials: Clinical Data Management
    April 28, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: 8 Healthcare Provider Pain Points
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Health Reform > 8 Healthcare Provider Pain Points
BusinesseHealthHealth ReformHospital AdministrationMedical RecordsMobile HealthTechnology

8 Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Linda Ringquist
Last updated: June 24, 2014 8:00 am
Linda Ringquist
Share
7 Min Read
Healthcare Provider Pain Points
SHARE

Healthcare Provider Pain PointsSummary: What are your healthcare provider pain points? What are you doing to overcome them? What advice can you offer your colleagues?

Contents
Paperwork | Healthcare Provider Pain PointsTechnology | Healthcare Provider Pain PointsStaffing | Healthcare Provider Pain PointsDelivery System | Healthcare Provider Pain PointsCost Containment | Healthcare Provider Pain PointsQuality | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Healthcare Provider Pain PointsSummary: What are your healthcare provider pain points? What are you doing to overcome them? What advice can you offer your colleagues?

From a provider perspective, healthcare, as we know it, is changing rapidly. At times your head might be spinning when you think about the impacts of the Affordable Care Act as well as other healthcare legislation. How can you be sure the priorities you have established will help you comply and meet all established deadlines? What do you feel are the most critical pain points you are facing? You may be a physician’s office, you may be a hospital or healthcare system, you may be a rehab facility. All of these providers are experiencing similar issues, which vary from one degree to another. Let’s delve into a few of these.

Paperwork | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Paperwork is a staple of any healthcare provider. Paperwork is generated when scheduling patients. Paperwork is generated when registering patients. Paperwork is generated when a patient is seen by a provider. Paperwork is generated when the patient leaves the office/facility. Paperwork is generated to comply with quality and regulatory requirements. Paperwork is generated to maintain staff documents such as employment. Paperwork is generated in every facet of every provider’s business. The burden of coordinating all of this paperwork requires additional staff dedicated to sorting, maintaining, filing, and accessing.

More Read

Children & Telehealth
Some Practical Advice on Adopting Social Media…
By Regina
3 Keys to Designing a Life-Changing Mobile Health Device
A Complete Guide to Patient Retention at Your Medical Practice

Technology | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Technology is changing on a daily basis – some changes are required while others are to obtain a competitive advantage. From a regulatory perspective, issues such as EHRs, HIEs, and ICD-10 have come to the forefront. Technology can provide a method for alleviating the burden of paperwork. However, in order to implement these initiatives, additional staff needs to be hired, processes and procedures need to be evaluated, and enormous amounts of training is required. The cost of implementing these systems can make your head spin. For some of these initiatives, financial assistance is available, while others are financed 100% by the provider. Additionally, an emphasis is being placed on mobile technology and Tele-Health. While these aren’t required, they are certainly rising in popularity and quickly becoming the wave of the future. As with anything technology oriented, there are significant costs involved.

Staffing | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Staffing is always an issue, whether it is the front line staff, the c-suite, or physicians. Providers are consistently being asked to do more with less. When an employee leaves, the first question to arise is “are we going to fill this position or are we going to assign the tasks and duties to current employees”? More often than not, the answer is to shift the work to others. This constant shifting and asking employees to do more causes discontentment and increases the likelihood the employee will seek employment elsewhere. There are only so many times work can be shifted. With all of the mergers and acquisitions occurring in the healthcare arena, leadership is often downsized.  Duplication among positions at this level is generally eliminated in order to contain costs and improve efficiency. The last piece of the staffing puzzle is physicians. We have been experiencing a nation-wide shortage of physicians which is growing in intensity. With all of the new requirements, changes in delivery system, moving toward pay for performance, and just general burn-out, individuals are opting for other lines of work or retiring early. This is especially true with primary care.

Delivery System | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Hold on to your hats. The delivery system as we know it is going through dramatic changes. In the past, providers were paid almost entirely on a fee-for-service basis. The mindset was the more volume and quantity we generate, the more we will earn. Not so anymore. The delivery system is changing emphasis  to quality and value. Along the way, new delivery systems are emerging such as bundled payments and ACOs. Changing the mindset and culture of an organization is no easy task. To add insult to injury, the traditional fee-for-service is still in effect. So, it becomes a balancing act for the time being. Focusing on both quantity and quality will bring in the most revenue during the transition period.

Cost Containment | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

Cost containment has always been an issue, but has become even more so recently – in part due to the ACA. Healthcare costs are increasing in leaps and bounds. Providers are faced with searching for lower cost alternatives, finding more efficient processes, reducing staff, and as mentioned above, shifting to new delivery systems. Some of the areas providers are concentrating on are claim denials, medication management, and efficiency in the emergency rooms.  All of these initiatives provide challenges to the provider.

Quality | Healthcare Provider Pain Points

As referenced above, quality and value have become the new buzzwords. The difficult part is coming up with standardized definitions for these. They are relative in nature. The bottom line is providing healthcare that is seen in the eyes of the patients as providing quality and value. HHS and CMS have been working on quality initiatives such as HCAHPS and AHRQ. Part of the confusion arises in capturing and reporting on these required quality measures to many different regulatory bodies. Some of the metrics are similar across the different platforms while others are completely different.

What healthcare provider pain points are you experiencing? We would love to hear your thoughts and comments.

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) Therapy
How TMS Therapy Helps with Treatment-Resistant Mental Illness
Mental Health Therapies
June 13, 2025
Strengthening Healthcare Systems Through Clinical and Administrative Career Development
Global Healthcare Policy & Law
June 11, 2025
magnesium supplements
The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
Health
June 11, 2025
preparing for next pendamic
Preparing for the Next Pandemic: How Technology is Changing the Game
Technology
June 6, 2025

You Might also Like

10-year, Health Care Reserve Fund Enacted
BusinessHospital AdministrationMedical InnovationsNewsTechnology

3 Ways that Crowdfunding Can Benefit the Healthcare Market

April 12, 2012

Social Media Policies and “Spying” by Physicians

December 13, 2013
diabetes management with mHealth
Mobile Health

New mHealth Projects Make Waves in Diabetes Management

November 2, 2013

CMS Announces Meaningful Use Final Rules & Stage 3 Implementation

October 22, 2015
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?