Many of sleep medicine’s patient contact services have partnered with manufacturers this year. The goals of these relationships are a more collaborative effort for patient management and care.

Combining objective monitoring by manufacturers’ software with subjective information from the patient through contact services is allowing for much more comprehensive reporting for physicians, DMEs, and sleep labs. The integration is providing for seamless data transfer so the end user can monitor patient information in real time from the interface of their choosing.

Benefits for the sleep community will continue to evolve. The current benefit to the sleep technician is that information is brought together from contact with the patient in one click. For the physician, usage information can be retrieved while the patient is in-office. The DME benefits by an automated and efficient platform with real-time proven compliance, even for same-day order processing when the contact service is seamlessly integrated with billing software and fulfillment services.

These integrations facilitate a more compliant patient as well. A well-defined or intelligent patient contact system can keep patients engaged through continuous collaboration and timely communication. Statistics show that engaging patients leads to higher retention rates. Patients not only feel better connected; they have a sense of being more informed about their disease and how best to manage it. A compliant patient is one who has the tools for managing his disease, no matter how rudimentary his disease knowledge.

The contact service customizes campaigns for the need of the client and at level of understanding for the specific patient demographic. The contact service then monitors and adjusts the campaign according to the patient’s progress via the manufacturer’s compliance portal. That information is brought together in various reporting mechanisms and available for the technician, physician, and DME in a single source. Then, all involved in the patient’s care are aware in real time and are at the patient’s disposal in a timely fashion when issues arise.

The technician will notice remarkable efficiency with this collaboration of data at his fingertips. The contact service not only combines the data into valuable information, but also gears the contact questions to the patient’s compliance level (encountered from the synergy of the manufacturer’s monitoring). By doing so, the technician receives instantaneous notifications from the contact service and is able to triage patient issues and address lack of compliance in the most effective manner. This facilitates immediate increased compliance. Compliance is key not only fundamentally in our industry, but also to the ever-changing demands of the payor throughout the lifespan of your role as provider to each patient.

Replenishment will also benefit from the streamlined cycle. Payors that require compliance at each order will have the documentation along with the order details reported to the DME or sleep lab. This can include any data points the provider chooses, such as hours of use or compliance percentage directly from the manufacturer’s report. When combined with the contact service’s subjective patient data, eligibility verification, payment processing, and insurance/address change notifications, orders can go out the door the same day the patient elects to resupply. The equipment provider will no longer have to look between billing system, compliance system, patient contact system, and fulfillment system to process orders.

Nyika Wright studied medical informatics and is now the COO and executive director at CMB Solutions, a patient contact and compliance management software company that also provides customized replenishment and monitoring campaigns for all DME products. CMBS recently announced a partnership and integration with 3B Medical and a collaboration with MyApnea.Org. CONTACT (888) 959-6785, extension 301, or [email protected]