Oxygen Technical Services Ltd

Why Pharmacies in Canada Need an Effective Document Management Solution

The healthcare industry is one of the most information-heavy sectors out there, and for good reason – it holds the sensitive knowledge of every patient. In an industry as crucial to society as healthcare, every bit of information counts and must be recorded somewhere. With the number of files that run through it, a pharmacy would benefit from a document management system.

Document management systems create solutions for cluttered spaces. Through streamlining files and designing an effective organizational system, a pharmaceutical company can improve its employee efficiency, increase security on all documents, and have complete budgetary control over expenses, both necessary and frivolous.

Benefits of a Document Management System for the Pharmaceutical Industry

When employees are running around, aiming to accomplish multiple tasks for patients who need them, desperately searching for a particular file is unhelpful – and completely unnecessary. Document management systems prevent unneeded stress by taking the pressure off of employees, thereby allowing them to focus on what really matters: the patients!

Having the Right Devices in the Right Places

Pharmacies need multiple devices to conduct business properly. These devices range from a standard printer to a fax machine to a prescription label maker, and more. Managed print services control the printing aspect of an office and work alongside a document management system to optimize a workspace.

In compliance with specific regulations, pharmacies may have to present documentation at every step of the process of developing and testing new drugs. With fully-digitized files, it’s easy to view what was edited where, when it was accessed and much more. Document management systems ensure that all a document’s history is with it – and not just on multiple sheets of paper labeled with the date.

Document management systems can organize all those files laying around, lonely and unattended. It’s much faster for an employee to click on a search bar and type in the document they’re looking for than spend time locating the right file – or, worse, the correct file cabinet in which the right file has hidden itself. A better, faster system means that service is faster, too, and allows for patients and customers to be helped quickly.

Speaking of file cabinets, it costs $25,000 to fill a file cabinet, and it may only contain 20,000 pages at capacity. Any budget would benefit from chomping that expense or cutting it out entirely. The best way to cut costs is to digitize files. Document management systems can help any business convert their physical paper trails into synchronized, easy-to-find files that cost much less than a $25,000 file cabinet. These digitized files can be made available to anyone who needs access to them immediately – and it slashes the worry that just anyone can pick up a sensitive file from a printing tray.

Total Document Security

Once all files have been digitized and put into the cloud, critical patient information is already more secure. The cloud can seem intimidating at first – a business’s records are there, yet not there – but it’s simple to work with and draws in a host of benefits. Cloud storage enables sharing on a need-to-know basis if a business wants to implement a zero-trust policy, thereby further increasing security by choosing who has access to what information.

16% of data breaches in 2019 affected the healthcare sector. Healthcare is also hit the hardest financially at a whopping $6.54 million in losses. Without secure file practices in place, cyber-attacks can destroy private information. Luckily, with most document management services come cybersecurity experts who know just how to safeguard every file through specific regulations and protocols.

Paper gets misplaced. Printing a physical copy of patients’ sensitive information on something as flimsy as paper is obsolete in a world where the click of a mouse can access every bit of data. With digitized files and cascading categories, few things will slip past an employee on a search. A pharmacy can have complete control over its data, leaving fewer opportunities for an accidentally-trashed physical copy.

Complete Budgetary Control

Printing every document is a thing of the past. While some situations still call for a standard printer and ink, it’s unnecessary for every document to be printed, especially those with sensitive patient data on them. In 2015 alone, landfills received around 18.3 million tonnes of paper. By digitizing files through a document management system, a pharmacy can cut the costs that accompany paper and ink, as well as reduce its carbon footprint and help the environment!

With all the time saved in employing document management, employees can focus their time on more pressing matters and put patients first, just as it should be. Trusting in document management systems means regaining complete control of a budget and cutting costs.

Find Document Security in a Document Management System

Document management is the best gift a pharmacy can give to itself. In such a fast-paced industry, time is of the essence, and employees can’t afford to waste a second. First Phase Data understands the demands of the pharmaceutical sector and aims to improve efficiency, cut costs, and deliver better experiences to employees and patients alike.

Learn how we can effectively manage your documents and eliminate some of your stress.

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