BBR Optometry advises Optisoft on Appointment Upgrade

How does more than 50 different types of appointment, spread across five consulting rooms with a range of eye care professionals, sound like as an administrative headache, well BBR Optometry, the independent practice of the year 2008 has advised and invested in a new practice management software upgrade that ensures that this practice’s potential is maximised.

Nick Black, Director of the Hereford practice who takes a keen interest in IT, worked closely with Optisoft development engineers to perfect the system upgrade. “We have been Optisoft users for ten years and have expanded our system as Optisoft has evolved.  It is now so comprehensive, and we use it extensively, but the flexibility of the diary is the single biggest benefit for our 22 staff,” said Nick Black.

The great control of appointments allows BBR Optometry to allocate varying times for the extensive services offered. “Some appointment systems offer a limited range of appointment times and parts of the day could be booked when they don’t need to be.  It is not just the professionals’ time but also the room allocation that we need to maximise.”

BBR Optometry carries out 85% of Hereford’s low vision work, with an extensive contact lens and spectacle practice, plus a busy referral system, facilitated by the investment in sophisticated OCT scanning technology.

The four floor Georgian townhouse, which recently expanded into adjacent premises to double the retail space, is served by 25 IT terminals with the facility to access all aspects of the system.

“We couldn’t work without it in a practice of this size as we would be chasing paper records around the building.  Anyone can pick up information at a terminal at any time.  It is also a great means of communication with support staff,” added Black.

Keeping a firm grasp of practice revenue is also facilitated by the system with stock taking utilising the barcode system, Direct Debiting collection via BACS for frequent payment management and order tracking to ensure a fast and efficient service to patients.

The imminent roll out of KPI monitoring via Optisoft Enterprise edition is set to save several hours of administrative time each month -

“Up until now we have been using Excel spreadsheets for all of our dispensing.  We take the till report, which is remarkably accurate, and this gives us a benchmark at any time.  The appointment reports are fantastic and we can monitor those and see where we are in relation to our target.  We have been doing this for the past three years, tracking patterns, but now with the click of a button I will have all that information, plus several minutes are saved by each person logging the original order.”

With an average overall transaction value of £168 per examination, in an area where salaries are below the national average, the focus on patient satisfaction and building a successful business model certainly seems proven.