Benefits of Document Management - 2

Yesterday I highlighted the first benefit of an online document management solution; reclaiming office space and reducing paper files. The second benefit that we will discuss today also contributes to a reduction in paper and therefore cost. Benefit number 2 is: A document Management system Eliminates Misfiled and Lost Documents, and we may as well add to that File Duplication.

The ideal of a “Paperless Office” has been around for decades. Will we ever achieve it? Maybe. However, in the meantime we can reduce the amount of paper documents and files that we use by having more control over them. Have you ever experienced the frustration of looking for a specific piece of information that is needed to complete a report, or a proposal, or any other document only to find that it’s not where you expected it to be or, that it has been misfiled in a different client’s folder or, heaven forbid, it has been lost completely. Everyone denies responsibility for last seeing it and you are left with task of trying to complete an important document without it. Frustration leads to anger as the deadline approaches and that can lead to mistakes and a lost opportunity.

Another scenario might be that you access a clients file to obtain specific information only to find multiple copies of the document that you need, notes have been written in the margins but how do you know which copy is the most recent and which of the notes are relevant. Again, frustration, anger, mistakes, missed opportunity.

This problem was highlighted to me quite dramatically when I undertook some consultancy work for an NHS trust in the north of England. Hershey was specifically tasked to look at the problems that were being experienced in one hospital where there was a poor turnaround in handling GP referrals. The bottom line was that once the letters had been received they were forwarded to the respective consultant where they seemed to get lost. Where was the frustration? One nurse, (yes a qualified nurse), admitted that sometimes it would take 2 to 3 days to locate a lost letter and if they didn’t find it they had to go back to the GP and request a copy .This may appear to be one of a number damning indictments on the state of our NHS service but the problem was resolved simply by implementing a document management solution where the letters were scanned at source and routed to the relevant consultant. Result: no lost letters, no duplications, efficient appointment turnaround time, happy patients, everyone a winner.

And that is the measure of control that a document management system can bring, it eliminates misfiled and lost documents. It reduces the need for document duplication because the same document can be accessed by many. Those documents can be routed to specific individuals for tasking and electronic annotations, notes and versioning can be added to assist with a collaborative effort that may be required to complete certain documents, ensuring that the information being accessed is the most up to date.