One of the biggest discussion topics among healthcare revenue cycle professionals is the growing adoption of automation. This discussion, which often centers on how automation can benefit RCM operations, is causing RCM employees to worry that this adoption will lead to them losing their jobs.

This is an understandable reaction, especially when you can open your phone to read the ominous stories forecasting how AI and other technologies are going to replace workers in a multitude of industries. (Isn’t it ironic that people are using a smart device, likely powered by some AI engine, to read about how technology is causing people to lose their jobs!)

But what is the reality within healthcare RCM? Will automation lead to RCM staff losing their jobs? In short, no. But let’s take a closer look.

Growing worries

Healthcare RCM staffing shortages continue. Even as recently as April 2023, 63% of healthcare providers were dealing with revenue cycle staffing shortages. Despite these staffing shortages, RCM employees are worried that the move to automation will eventually lead to job losses. Yes, even employees in the healthcare sector, which was once considered nearly untouchable to layoffs, are facing this techno-insecurity.

Numerous reports detail just how much this techno-insecurity is making its way through the corporate workforce.

According to the American Psychological Association’s 2024 Work In America Survey:

• Nearly 41% of workers worry that AI may make some or all of their job duties obsolete in the future.
• A similar percentage (43%) worry that some form of technology will eventually make some or all of their job duties obsolete in the future.

A Gallup poll discovered that 22% percent of workers say they’re worried their job will become obsolete because of technology, up from 15% in 2021. And these fears aren’t unfounded, as 72% of Fortune 500 CHROs foresee AI replacing jobs in their organization in the next three years.

Automation to the rescue?

With what seems like constant news of corporate layoffs, it is understandable that healthcare RCM employees are worried. Those fears are exacerbated by the excitement RCM leaders are showing for automation. Many of these leaders are already incorporating this technology, while the exact number is uncertain. For example:

• One report states that 78% of healthcare providers are currently using or are in the process of implementing automation in their revenue cycle operations.
• Another report claims that 74% of hospitals are implementing some form of revenue cycle automation.

Healthcare RCM is a prime area for innovation and disruption, according to a 2023 McKinsey & Company report. By streamlining many RCM tasks with automation, technology can reduce administrative burdens and expenses while enhancing efficiency and productivity.

“If we could carve out the routine tasks for a machine and let people focus on analyzing and problem-solving, I think we would be working smarter instead of just working harder,” said Melissa Shore, vice president of revenue performance management at Boston-based Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

RPA in RCM

When it comes to automation in healthcare RCM, robotic process automation (RPA) is the technology of choice. RPA is the use of software robots to automate processes by replicating the actions of a human worker interacting with the user interface of one or more systems.

RPA provides many benefits for RCM organizations including:

• Reducing human error
• Increasing speed to completion
• Improving results with increased revenue
• Working with various systems leveraged by your organization
• Enabling staff to work on higher-value activities.

This advanced technology can be used with your current electronic medical record (EMR) or patient accounting system. It can be implemented within various point solutions to accomplish tasks typically performed by your staff, freeing them for critical revenue-generating tasks.

More back-end RCM tasks can be improved with the intelligent, connected workflows that RPA can provide. These include some well-known tasks, such as denial management, insurance follow-up, complex claims, and more.

But RPA can also help make any number of tasks more efficient, including:

• Medical record requests
• Lockbox correspondence
• Eligibility research
• Billing edits
• Authorization submission/tracking.

As more tasks are enhanced with RPA, RCM leaders are discovering how much better the overall organization performs.

Human tasks

While that seems like quite a lot of tasks that RPA can handle, that doesn’t mean humans will be phased out of healthcare RCM. In fact, humans will always play a key role in the world of healthcare, including in the following areas:

• Patient engagement and communication: This includes interacting with patients to explain billing details and payment options, and resolving disputes. These require empathy and clear communication, which are best handled by human staff.
• Financial counseling: This includes discussing payment options, insurance coverage, and financial assistance programs with patients.
• Billing inquiries and support: This includes addressing patient questions about their bills, explaining charges, and resolving disputes.

Healthcare RCM leaders who have explored the value of RPA understand that it is a tool to help make processes more efficient. But they also understand the value of their human staff and recognize how this technology can benefit their employees.

“AI and robotic process automation can be valuable tools for healthcare revenue cycle teams to lower administrative costs. These technologies can be used to optimize net revenue and improve the overall patient financial experience,” said Laura Calkins, Vice President of RCM of Presbyterian Healthcare Services. “This automated process allows employees to focus on higher-value work and use their time more effectively.”

Myth busted

“Technological unemployment is a myth.”

Karl T. Compton, former president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), said this during the Great Depression in response to a prevailing theory of the day, known as technical unemployment. It predicted that the advancing technology of the day was “outrunning the pace at which we can find new uses for labour.”

Compton argued that technology “has created so many new industries” and has expanded the market for many items by “lowering the cost of production to make a price within reach of large masses of purchasers.” In short, technological advances have created more jobs overall.

The same can be said about today’s technological advances, including RPA. Rather than replacing employees altogether, RPA will allow staff to step away from redundant, mundane tasks. Then, they can be free to focus on tasks that require a human touch and have a greater positive impact on the patient journey.

Isn’t that what technology should do?