Edwin Shaw Rehabilitation Institute

Since the implementation of Spectrasoft Scheduling, Edwin Shaw Rehabilitation Institute has been able to:

• Efficiently manage patient and therapist schedules across all rehab sites
• Eliminate unnecessary costs associated with scheduling
• Accommodate the complex scheduling requirements of rehab care

Change Opens New Doors

Prior to using Spectrasoft Scheduling, Edwin Shaw Rehab used a Web-based scheduling system. The system was very slow in processing information and caused unnecessary delays in the scheduling process. It also presented a lot of issues with appointments dropping off the schedule without any rhyme or reason.

Shortly after the acquisition with Akron General Health Systems, Edwin Shaw Rehab transitioned over to Spectrasoft Scheduling, the scheduling system Akron General was using in their hospitals. The team was pleased with the new scheduling system and the improvements they quickly began to notice in their overall scheduling process and their ability to manage the complexities that exist in rehab scheduling.

Transparent Scheduling

With Spectrasoft Scheduling, department managers and schedulers found it much easier to manage schedules for both their patients and therapists. Now, managers and schedulers have a big-picture view of the schedules across the inpatient facility and outpatient clinics.

“From a managerial standpoint, Spectrasoft Scheduling has been extremely helpful in allowing me to keep track of where my staff is throughout the day. It’s been ideal because it really helps me manage productivity and have a better grasp on future staffing needs,” stated Lynne Blinco, PT, Director of Therapy and Chemical Dependency Services.

Edwin Shaw Rehab Supervisor Marcy Stalvey, PT, MS, NCS added, “Being able to view and manage caseloads between our inpatient facility and five outpatient sites makes us more efficient. Spectrasoft Scheduling helps me see what’s going on across all of our facilities.”

Fast, Cost-Effective Scheduling

The time it takes to schedule appointments has significantly improved with Spectrasoft Scheduling. According to Edwin Shaw Rehab’s Senior Scheduler Ann Riddle, “Everything is so much quicker now. I simply right-click, select what I need, and schedule appointments within seconds.”

“Since schedulers are able to schedule more efficiently with the new system, there’s no longer a need for therapists to assist with scheduling. We’re able to manage all the scheduling now and no longer need to have our therapists helping out. Not only does this give our therapists more time to treat patients, it saves us the extra cost associated with therapists participating in scheduling,” said Ann.

On the outpatient side, schedulers have been able to take on a more proactive approach to scheduling that has resulted in additional cost benefits and improved co-pay collection. “Spectrasoft Scheduling lets our outpatient schedulers see where there are gaps in the schedule, track cancellations and receive alerts when a patient has a co-pay that needs to be paid,” confirmed Ann.

Scheduling Made For Rehab

With all the complexity that goes into scheduling the various disciplines, and any outside appointments that may be part of the patient’s treatment plan, communication between everyone involved is essential.

Patient schedules need to accommodate the various therapy disciplines, appointments outside of rehab and team conference meetings. We all have to work closely together in a common space. There’s a lot of communication going on and there’s no way we’d be able to keep track of everyone involved without having the broad overview and tight communication we have with Spectrasoft Scheduling,” said Marcy.

Edwin Shaw Rehab runs a lot smoother now with the robust scheduling capabilities of Spectrasoft Scheduling. “It helps us keep track of where everyone is going, all the time. I can’t imagine how we’d manage without it!” said Marcy.