Reducing administrative burdens by streamlining post-acute care coordination

Physician practices continue to face delays and inefficiencies in post-acute care coordination — challenges that directly affect daily operations, compliance, and reimbursement. A recent survey conducted by Forcura in partnership with Fierce Healthcare highlights how fragmented communication and manual workflows create ongoing administrative burdens for providers.

In an episode of the MGMA Business Solutions podcast, Kate Warnock, Senior Director of Communications at Forcura, and Maja Vojnovic, Product Owner for Forcura Circle, discuss key findings from the survey and explore how tools like e-signature and Forcura’s coordination platform, Circle, can help streamline documentation, improve care transitions, and reduce missed billing opportunities.

The Burden of Manual Documentation

One of the most eye-opening revelations from Forcura and Fierce Healthcare’s survey was that one-third of physician practices spend 10 or more hours each week on documentation related to post-acute care. This administrative overload not only consumes staff resources but directly impacts care delivery.

“It means that time is taken away from patient care,” says Vojnovic. “That can result in delays for patient care coordination and provider payment.”

She explains that much of the process remains manual — from signing orders to tracking documents in spreadsheets — creating bottlenecks across teams.

The Hidden Costs of Outdated Communication

Despite advancements in healthcare tech, many practices still rely heavily on outdated methods. “Phones and faxes are still widely used,” says Warnock. “You might have to be physically tracking down who has what copy of what version of this patient’s order.”

This inefficiency creates unnecessary stress for staff and delays reimbursement for services. Warnock adds, “Even if [home health agencies] have already delivered those services to your patient, they’re not able to bill for them until they get the physician’s signature back. That signature triggers their billing.”

Fragmentation: 15-plus Portals for One Task?

Another alarming stat from the survey is that some practices reported using 15 or more portals just for post-acute coordination. According to Vojnovic, this fragmentation creates major operational risks.

“Each [agency] has different requirements, different login credentials, different links you have to bookmark on your browser,” she explains. “Patient information can be fragmented across systems. That continuity of care can sometimes be lost.”

The result is not only administrative chaos but potential gaps in patient care — a serious concern for healthcare providers and patients alike.

Awareness and Opportunity: What Practices May Not Know

Only 7% of survey respondents said they were “very satisfied” with their coordination process — a number that underscores just how pervasive this challenge is. Yet many practice leaders may not fully grasp the scale of the problem.

“There’s a gap between ‘this is the way things are’ and understanding the way things could be,” Warnock notes. The survey’s goal was to shed light on that disconnect and spark conversations about meaningful improvement.

One surprising finding: Nearly half of respondents didn’t know they could bill for oversight of post-acute care. Vojnovic emphasizes that Forcura Circle’s reporting capabilities include the HCPCS codes necessary to track and bill for care coordination.

“It can offset the administrative costs for practices if they do start billing for trip clean oversight,” she said.

E-Referrals and Real-Time Tracking: The Future of Coordination

As medical practices are signaling a need for electronic referrals and real-time tracking,  Warnock explains how Forcura is innovating in this space.

“As more of these communications become both digital and real-time...you get less paperwork in the office and a lot more opportunity to focus on what counts most, which is that patient care.”

Warnock also shares a vision for integrated care across the healthcare continuum. “We really see that primary care physician practice as the quarterback,” she highlights. “Being able to put technology in the hands of all stakeholders so that patient information can flow seamlessly — that’s really what the future should be.”

First Step: Forcura Circle

So, how can practice leaders begin to address these challenges? Vojnovic recommends starting with Forcura Circle. The platform offers a holistic dashboard view of outstanding orders across providers and agencies — saving time and streamlining the process from start to finish.

 “Our new admin and connectivity features allow practice managers to centralize all the work they need for the entire practice,” Vojnovic says. “Practices can access multiple, if not all, agencies in their post-acute network in one portal.”

Warnock adds, “Whether it’s managing login credentials or reporting across your provider group, one person can now do it in one place.” Forcura Circle is designed not only to improve patient care but also to give control and clarity back to practice administrators.

Resources:

• Visit the Forcura website
• Learn more about Forcura Circle
• Webinar: "Reducing Physician Practice Administrative Burden," July 31 at 1:00 PM ET - Register Here
• Forcura + Fierce Survey: Post-Acute Care Coordination: 12 Key Findings and Recommended Actions