About Emma

Background

Emma was conceived in 2003 as a different type of software application. A need had been identified for a robust, scalable software solution for the problem of practice management and bookings, particularly across multiple sites.

Standard systems (Such as Compucare, Practice Manager and others) are PC based systems which require installations on a local server as well as on the individual machines. This makes them very expensive to install and maintain as any upgrades or bug fixes need to be performed across all the machines and CDs need to be issued and installed. Faced with this, many users choose not to upgrade which in turn drives up costs for support on the part of the developer and in turn discourages upgrades and frequent new releases.

In addition, most if not all systems face the challenge of legacy code, which means that the old data from users needs to remain usable, but this often comes at the expense of new features which end up bolted on and not properly integrated into the system.

Because of these two elements and their various side effects, the problem of scaling a system from one practice in one location to tens or even hundreds of practices in as many locations becomes inordinately difficult and expensive. The few systems that offer these features simply won't scale to anything more than 2 or 3 locations or require enterprise level infrastructure which in turn comes at a cost of often millions of pounds. For the modern professional, moving between sites or any modern group of practices that has grown and expanded, these challenges should be minor compared to the other problems they face in their business, but it turns out that they are often a complete road block to offering the service they expect and should be able to deliver.

Web Based

We designed EMMA to be free from these constraints from the outset. We took the very best technology available and created a system that would scale to the biggest companies in the country and offer a unique system that is not only robust, but would also be incredibly easy to use.

The key element that makes our system immediately familiar is that it is web based. Not only, can almost anyone can use the web, but development for the web is also very rapid indeed. We have been able to revise systems in use with clients 30 or 40 times to ensure that the interface is completely perfect for them. We don't need to send out CDs and install the new upgrades on their server and 30 PCs in their offices, we simply send out the new code to the server whilst they're asleep and a few seconds later, the upgrades are in.

The interface is also customised completely for the individual user type - By default, Admin staff get an overview of the clinic, Accountants get to see the financials, Management get reports but don't get to see the names of the patients etc but these in turn can be further customised for the individual practice - adding and moving features in seconds to make the system as good as it can be for your needs.

Emma runs from one database. This means that everything you see in all the locations of your company is live all the time. There is no possibility of information being out of sync, or lost in transit. You can rely on what you see on the screen.

In addition, because we have one database, we can also offer other, more interesting features very easily.

Patient bookings

Just as we have an access level for Admin staff or Management, we also have an access level for Patients and Companies.

This means we offer a completely customised interface for patients. Obviously, we only allow access to those we want to have it, but once access is granted, the patient has full access to a search engine (whose rules you control) and an online booking interface that is also completely live. Once the booking is made, it appears immediately in the diary (marked in purple to indicate it was booked online). It typically takes under a minute for the patient to log in and make a booking.

The main reason this process is so fast is that the patient is shown only precisely what they are allowed to book. Emma understands very complex contracts including variations in price and booking policies which mean that you can sign up a company, assign a contract to that company, and all the employees can book directly online. Each patient is only allowed to book what is specified in the contract (which may depend on such factors as their age or their position in the company) thereby making the booking process extremely simple for the patients themselves.

Naturally these policies exist in all parts of the system meaning that your admin team will also be aware of the booking rules and the system will only book patients in for appointments that they are eligible to attend.

Full Financials

Emma is designed to be a complete system and as part of that offers a complete Sales ledger for your business including all standard accounting reporting tools such as point in time aged debtors reports as well as turnover analysis. Emma comes with approximately 30 standard reports which allow you to mine the data in your business and more can be added easily. Emma uses a full SQL database so if you have in house database expertise, they will feel right at home.

Emma interfaces directly into Excel and Crystal reports so you can use your existing tools to their full advantage and access your data in a familiar environment. Because Emma is designed to be multilocation aware from the outset, it also allows you to process the acconts of each of your clinics together or individually depending on your needs. It will even handle scenarios such as transfer of debt between clinics perfectly with a report that shows how much money was paid into one clinic on behalf of invoices issued in another.

Robust Database

Emma was designed to be scalable. For this reason we chose to develop it on the same platform that powers systems such as Reuters and Google Adwords. We use a MySQL 5+ database, Apache, PHP 5+ system which is one of the best established content serving platforms in existence.

This combination of products is widely regarded as the standard in web technologies and is not only widely used, but also extremely easy to grow - which means that as your business grows, you can rely on the fact that Emma will grow with you. Our clients turn over hundreds of thousands of appointments every year and not one of them has even come close to taxing our systems.

Communicative

Because Emma is web based, we have been able to integrate some of the best new technologies into it from the outset with very little effort. Patients can get reminder emails and SMS messages for their appointment and all appointments get confirmation emails and Outlook invitations for their bookings detailing not only the time and date of their appointment, but also a wealth of appointment specific information advising them of the nature of their booking. This is incredibly valuable for both new and established patients who can count on receiving the correct information for their appointment on subjects such as what to wear, what to eat or even links to questionnaires to be filled out in advance.

What's more, if the patient is a corporate member, the emails can be customised and branded at the company level to ensure that the language is consistent with their employer's healthcare policies or include internal contact details should be they be required - this is of particular benefit for the provision of in-house services where something as simple as directions to the medical centre could save a phone call.

Fully integrated system

Emma is not just a booking system. It is also a word processor, an information portal and a notes archival system.

Emma has a complete letters creation system fully integrated into the patient record which allows you to send customised and standard letters to the patient as well as their GP, Insurance company, Employer or anyone else. A full audit trail is in place so letters can be created and modified with all revisions stored and visible to all for complete transparency.

As not all communications are outgoing, Emma also features a complete image archival system for the archival of incoming correspondence. Featuring a complete filing system as well as the ability to join archives together, the practitioner is presented with a beautifully simple notes reviewing system which is almost identical to his paper files. What's more, we have integrated a commenting system to allow practitioners to make side remarks on the notes. These also feature the same re-visioning system as the letters system so one practitioner cannot wipe the comments of another.

Add-ons

We have created hundreds of small 'Add-on' programs for emma that run in the background performing tasks for you that make your life easier. Examples of these include emailing weekly financial reports to managers or emailing their diaries to the practitioners every morning so they can plan their day ahead bright and early. Other programs clean up data by trawling through the database and notifying admin staff of missing data or producing monthly call back sheets for health screens or travel appointments based on when a particular patient last had their annual checkup.

All of these can be added in very easily and new, bespoke 'Add-ons' can be made for your company at very little cost.