Automation and Tech Trends Shaping the Future of Healthcare in 2025

Published in Women's Health on April 02, 2025

Addison PerrymondTrey HoltermanChris WatsonBy Addison Perrymond, Head of Product, Brightree; Trey Holterman, CEO of Tennr; and Chris Watson, Strategic Consultant, Nymbl Systems

As we approach 2025, the healthcare industry, particularly DME, HME, orthotics and prosthetics (O&P), and complex rehab technology (CRT) sectors, are increasingly turning to automation and advanced technologies to enhance efficiency, improve patient care, and streamline operations. This article explores the key trends and technologies driving this transformation. 

Creating Value with Outcomes

The healthcare industry is continuing to revolutionize itself through technology with automation and innovation. The HME market is complex, challenged with items like shifts in reimbursement models, supply chain disruptions, technology integration and advancement, operating costs, and increased administrative burdens. Moreover, the race to coordinate and monitor care in the home, patient preference to receive care in the home, and care coordinators managing transitions of care and care delivery add to the complexity customers must navigate. 

Creating Value with Outcomes

These challenges present an opportunity to fundamentally rethink how value is delivered to patients and HME providers. However, implementing technology without clearly understanding the outcome an HME provider is seeking to achieve will result in solutions that automate processes but don’t necessarily create value. 

The focus starts with the outcomes being sought

The experts at Brightree take a different approach. The focus starts with the outcomes being sought. What are the goals for patients? For suppliers? For the healthcare system as a whole? These outcomes then inform the selection of new technology to solve for those targeted outcomes.

This outcome-driven approach has led to the development of The Brightree Intelligent Platform. The platform thoughtfully infuses advanced technologies like AI and machine learning (ML) through the patient care continuum starting with intake, mobile delivery, and resupply by integrating intelligent features that focus on three key value streams:

Patient Care Value:

  • Seamless care coordination
  • Enhanced patient engagement
  • Improved home care delivery

Operational Efficiency:

  • AI-powered workflow optimization
  • Automated administrative tasks
  • Intelligent resource allocation

Business Growth:

  • Revenue optimization
  • Strategic planning insights
  • Scalable operations

The Brightree Intelligent Platform isn’t just about features - it’s about creating measurable business and patient outcomes. The primary driver is value creation, which informs how technology is leveraged to deliver features and help HME providers lead patient-centered businesses. 

Automation is the path forward.

The Path Forward: Automation in Healthcare

The consensus among providers is clear: automation is the path forward. After enduring a global pandemic, navigating massive recalls, and being alarmed by Change Healthcare, providers recognize that adopting cloud-based automation is essential for “futureproofing” their businesses for both survival and growth. The challenge for providers is determining where to implement these automations.

The experts at Tennr suggest the key workflows recognized for automation include the following:

Document Wrangling: Automatically categorize and sort documents and orders from various sources into a universal inbox, preparing orders for patient intake.

Intake Data Entry: Automatically split multi-page documents by patient, tag them page-by-page, and enter extracted information into ERP/EHR systems.

E&B Checks: Automatically run eligibility checks and conduct comprehensive benefit investigations to confirm billing details, retrieve out-of-pocket costs, deductibles, and check if a prior authorization is needed before submitting the packet.

Qualification: Automatically qualify each order by code, ensuring all necessary documentation is in place for each HCPCS code across Medicare and plan-specific guidelines.

Missing Information Outreach: Automatically create and send fax-backs with completed CMNs and clear instructions about any missing information. 

This shift aims to facilitate faster order processing without increasing payroll.

This shift aims to facilitate faster order processing without increasing payroll, positioning healthcare practices for continued growth.

Concurrently, Nymbl Systems addresses operations offers solutions to operational challenges for O&P and CRT providers to deliver better patient outcomes.

The integration of AI is revolutionizing clinical documentation by automating medical notes and ensuring compliance.

AI-Driven Clinical Documentation 

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing clinical documentation by automating complex medical notes and ensuring compliance with payer requirements. This helps clinicians reduce administrative burdens and enhance accuracy in patient records, thereby minimizing claim denials and accelerating reimbursements. Nymbl Systems is the first and only software provider to embrace this technology with its AI-Powered Notes solution.

Streamlined Patient Intake

Meanwhile, the transformation of patient intake processes through digital workflows enables practices to collect and verify patient information quickly and efficiently, reducing errors and enhancing the patient experience. Practices adopting automated intake solutions, like Nymbl’s Single-Page Patient Intake, are cutting manual work and improving the accuracy of orders from the start.

Native Cloud-Based Platforms and User-Friendly Interfaces

The increasing adoption of native cloud-based platforms enhances flexibility and enables real-time access to data, improving collaboration and ensuring business continuity. Plus, software designed with user-friendly interfaces aims to decrease training time and boost productivity.  

Integrating electronic purchasing with practice management systems streamlines operations.

Electronic Purchasing Integration

Ultimately, integrating electronic purchasing with practice management systems streamlines operations, so that providers can prioritize patient care over administrative tasks and paperwork.

With increasing demands of providers across DME, HME, Respiratory/Sleep, O&P, and CRT sectors, the integration of automation and advanced technologies has become indispensable for success in 2025 and beyond. The focus now is not on whether to automate patient processing, but on selecting the right automation partner to achieve these cost-saving benefits. 

To learn more about Brightree, visit www.brightree.com. To learn more about Tennr, visit www.tennr.com. To learn more about Nymbl Systems, visit www.nymblsystems.com.

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VGM Playbook: Forecasting 2025This article was originally featured in the VGM Playbook: Forecasting 2025. To read the full article and more like this, download your copy of the playbook today


TAGS

  1. complex rehab
  2. hme
  3. orthotics & prosthetics
  4. orthotics and prosthetics
  5. playbook
  6. technology
  7. vendor
  8. vgm

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