Industry:
HEALTHCARE
Department:
CLINICAL
Process:
PATIENT LAB DATA
83%
reduction in TAT
75%
savings on admin costs
85%
manual intervention reduction
Client Overview
Lifescan Health (previously known as Lifescan Labs) is a CLIA-certified clinical laboratory services provider delivering diagnostic testing to healthcare providers across multiple locations using an Electronic Health Record (EHR) system. The organization manages patient demographic and diagnostic information across several facilities and needed to consolidate patient data extraction processes that were being handled manually by staff across different locations.
The Challenge
- Manual Data Extraction Across Multiple Locations: Lifescan Health staff were manually downloading patient demographic details from their EHR system for each facility. This process was slow, inconsistent across locations, and prone to human error. Different locations had different field requirements, making standardization difficult.
- Lack of Real-Time Diagnostic Information: Clinical diagnostic data was scattered across multiple screens within the EHR system. Staff had to navigate through different menus for each patient to extract medical diagnosis details, then manually consolidate the data. There was no automated way to surface recent or priority diagnoses.
- Lab Order Processing Inefficiency: Lab orders had to be manually tracked and extracted based on specific date criteria. With hundreds of patients and orders being placed daily, keeping this information current and organized was becoming a bottleneck for the clinical team.
- Time-Consuming Manual Consolidation: All extracted data from these three separate processes had to be manually compiled into Excel files and distributed to appropriate teams. This created delays in reporting and analysis.
- Scaling Limitations: As the organization grew, adding new locations meant adding more manual workload. There was no framework in place to scale these processes efficiently.
The Solution
RPATech automated patient data extraction across three interconnected workflows using Power Automate Desktop, configured to run on a scheduled, unattended basis. The solution unified data collection across all Lifescan Health locations into a centralized, standardized format.
Key Aspects of the Solution
- Automated Patient Demographic Extraction: The bot logs into the EHR system and downloads patient demographic details for each location. On the first run, it extracts data for all residents; for subsequent runs, it pulls only current residents. Extracted data is stored in Excel files in a designated local folder.
- Diagnostic Details Data Scraping: For each patient, the bot navigates the EHR system and extracts medical diagnosis details using data scraping. It prioritizes the most recent diagnoses and runs every 3 hours, processing 100 patient records per execution. Results are stored in Excel files in a designated local folder.
- Lab Order Details Extraction: The bot extracts lab order details from the EHR system based on specified criteria. With 200 patient records per run and triggers every 4 hours (6 runs daily), lab orders are kept current and organized. Results are stored in Excel files in a designated local folder.
- Scheduled Unattended Automation: All three processes run on a fixed schedule:
- Patient Demographic: On-demand (first run) then as needed
- Patient Diagnostics: Every 3 hours (8 runs per day)
- Lab Orders: Every 4 hours (6 runs per day)
The automation handles login credentials, file management, and error scenarios without human intervention.
- Exception Handling and Alerts: The bot identifies and flags business exceptions (e.g., login failures, download issues) and sends notifications to designated email addresses. System exceptions trigger alerts so the operations team can respond quickly if something breaks.
6. Centralized Reporting: Automated daily reports are generated and sent to the Lifescan Health team, providing visibility into what data was extracted, any exceptions encountered, and confirmation that all systems ran successfully.
The Outcomes
83% Reduction in Turnaround Time (TAT): Patient data extraction that previously required manual effort across multiple locations now completes automatically on schedule. The significant TAT reduction means diagnostic and lab information reaches stakeholders faster, enabling quicker clinical decisions and lab order processing.
75% Savings on Administrative Costs: By eliminating manual data extraction and consolidation work, Lifescan Health freed up staff previously dedicated to these tasks. The cost savings reflect reduced labor hours, fewer errors requiring rework, and improved operational efficiency.
85% Reduction in Manual Intervention: The automation handles the vast majority of data extraction, consolidation, and file placement without human touch. Staff now focus on exception handling and analysis rather than routine data collection.
Improved Data Quality: Consistent, standardized extraction across all locations ensures higher accuracy and reliability. The bot follows the same process every time, eliminating human error and data inconsistencies that plagued manual workflows.
