How to Integrate HME/DME Suppliers Into the Global Digital Ecosystem

Globalization and digitalization are the main trends of the 21^st century. Doing business today requires the creation and development of large and efficient ecosystems. Companies make a lot of effort to optimize and connect their operations using specialized software. Healthcare and pharma are also digitalizing, although the pace is a bit slower than in other industries.

Home and durable medical equipment (HME/DME) suppliers also streamline their operations through different IT solutions. They intend to eliminate paperwork, automate billing, speed up payment collection, take control of their inventories, track deliveries, keep patient EMRs up to date, simplify the work of their teams, and improve customer experience.

Why Connect

No doubt, fast and effective operations are impossible without third-party organizations.  The road of any equipment type from a supplier to a patient is long and complicated. Everyone knows that, primarily, a customer needs a prescription from their physician. Checking this is a bit time-consuming, but sometimes patients simply cannot wait. As a result, quick access to the electronic medical record is required.

Healthcare works side by side with insurance. Before making a decision, an HME or DME supplier should also check if a patient is insured, if the policy covers the case, and who takes financial responsibility for that. For these reasons, data from insurance companies’ databases is also necessary. The same applies to resupply, as the duration of relationships with a patient will also depend on that.

Payment Options

Making a customer journey easy demands integrations with payment systems. Patients have different preferences in paying options. As banks and fintech companies develop their digital infrastructure, those who interact with HME and DME providers, either patients or vendors and other counterparties, can simplify financial operations by integrating with them.

If you have something that your patient needs but cannot accept money in the most convenient way for them, you are likely to lose that patient. Needless to say, any difficulties with payments will negatively impact your reputation and make you a less trusted provider than your competitors.

Smart Billing

In a variety of situations patients are in, HME and DME suppliers must have the ability to suggest not only different payment systems but also some flexible options. Great role plays the best dme billing software which gives an opportunity to manage all the payments and claims with automation on time. For example, a customer needs a certain type of equipment but cannot pay the full price. In this situation, a provider can offer them to pay bit by bit over a duration of time. Another option can be cost-sharing with an insurance company. A quick loan can also help a client get the product. So, it is important to invoice the right counterparty in the right way. Proper integrations with financial service providers will make this task quick and easy to solve.

Dropshipping

If you are looking for some new opportunities in retail, you will probably give dropshipping a shot. Then, integration with some powerful dropshipping platforms will be a good solution. If your system connects with your partner’s software, you will mutually benefit from such cooperation.

We can continue with this list for a long time, but one thing is clear: to make it easier both for employees and clients, suppliers and third-party’s solutions must be interconnected in some way. Usually, software engineers integrate products through API (application programming interfaces). They typically include two main components: technical specifications of data exchange between two products and software interface.

Many industries have already understood the value of API; e-commerce works in close partnership with payment systems, banks, and delivery services to provide the best customer journey. According to Market Data Forecast, the API global market is projected to grow from $4.1 billion in 2021 to $8.41 billion in 2027. Beneficial partnership accelerates development and integrates players from different markets into a single and robust ecosystem.

How Businesses Are Integrated

Depending on the needs and release policies, APIs usually fall into three types:

• Private – In this case, solutions used inside a company are integrated. Connected products are primarily for employees.
• Partner – Usually, organizations that cooperate for a long time use this type of integration. This is immensely popular in B2B segments.
• Public – These APIs are open to almost any third-party provider, and the target audience for applications is end customers.

All the restricting policies and usage conditions vary depending on the type of API. Technical requirements, approvals, licensing, and service fees are included in the corresponding documentation. Dedicated teams are created inside companies to keep those integrations working correctly.

At this stage, HME and DME providers should approach a partnership carefully, considering all aspects. They should consider things such as development, financing, data security, and compliance. A dedicated team should be effectively managed and coordinated to establish common security standards, develop a user-friendly interface for both parties’ staffs, monitor and keep the network working, quickly react to any disruptions and cyberattacks, resolve customers’ problems within integrated solutions, and more.

Additionally, partners must agree on tracking their efficiency. Metrics and key performance indicators should be established in order to make changes and corrections in their integrated solution. They can include the number of user registrations, the percentage of users by customer type, the number of requests over time, products that are most successfully sold/delivered to patients, and clients who decided to stop buying equipment from this supplier through the API interface, and so on.

Integration of business ecosystems will demand significant effort from the marketing side. It’s not enough to make complicated connections through APIs; partners will also need to convince patients about the many ways they will benefit from an integrated solution and how much fewer actions they need to take in order to get the equipment they need.

Comprehensive Solution

An HME/DME supplier that wants to scale his business can set partnerships with numerous parties and invest a lot of time and effort in these integrations. However, there’s another option: a good durable medical equipment software that can connect all company business operations, provide real-time data and intelligent analytics, and have proper integration capabilities.

If you are looking for a solution of that kind, make sure you can connect all your business operations, get rid of paperwork, automate your billing, and simplify reimbursements. You should also have an opportunity to get real-time data on your inventory status and check each location online. The easy and convenient delivery app allows you to control how the equipment makes its way to a patient. Though, what is more important is the integrations. Good software can connect with dropshipping, patient pay/collections, credit card processing, resupply, compliance, and delivery systems. It can also connect with solutions like VMG, PPM, MedLine, Cardinal Health, McKesson, Allegiance Group, CardConnect, MedSage, S3 Resupply, ResMed Resupply, ResMed AirView, Philips Care Orchestrator, PAMS/Home, and many others.

Consider all of this while choosing the right software provider and steamline your business operations with modern technologies.