Round 4 — Running the Operation
Module 4: Evaluating Technology for Your Revenue Cycle
When your revenue cycle can't afford to stop.
Every revenue cycle runs on top of some kind of technology, whether that's a single practice management system or a patchwork of tools stitched together. Knowing how to evaluate that technology — what it should do, how it's priced, what questions to ask before signing anything — is a skill leadership needs regardless of who's making the final purchasing decision.
That's especially true right now. RehabWorks isn't shopping for a new system on its own, but EAMC's EPIC migration means a technology decision is happening around the clinic either way. Understanding what "good" looks like in a revenue cycle system means Stewart and Mallory can engage with that process instead of just waiting to find out what they got.
Despite the name, a practice management system isn't hardware sitting in a closet — it's software. It's the program a practice uses to register patients, schedule visits, bill for services, collect payment, and generate the reports leadership relies on. Underneath it sits a set of data dictionaries: lists of diagnosis codes, procedure codes, payers, providers, facilities, and referring physicians that the whole system draws from.
A useful system typically interfaces with the clinic's EHR as well, since clinical documentation feeds directly into billing. That connection is exactly why business office staff need real familiarity with the EHR side, not just the billing side — a gap in that understanding is where a lot of avoidable errors start.
Practice management systems generally come in one of two delivery models, and the tradeoffs run in opposite directions.
- Larger upfront cost: hardware, licensing
- Practice installs and maintains the system
- Typically more customization available
- New software versions may carry added fees
- Monthly fee, usually based on user count
- Little to no upfront implementation cost
- Relies on an external, vendor-hosted server
- Often less customization, faster to deploy
Neither model is universally better. A cloud-based system can look cheaper on day one and cost more over several years at scale, while a client-server system demands a bigger upfront commitment in exchange for more control. The right choice depends on the practice's size, budget, and appetite for managing its own infrastructure.
Due Diligence: What to Ask Any Vendor
Regardless of delivery model, the same categories of questions apply before signing with any revenue cycle technology vendor:
- Vendor qualifications and how long they've been in business
- Software functionality, matched against your actual workflow
- Vendor financial stability
- Customer service and support responsiveness
- Security and data protection protocols
- Contract terms, including cancellation and renewal language
- End-user training and ongoing support
- References from similar clients, ideally in your specialty
- Who owns the data once the relationship ends
- Market share and presence in your region
One non-negotiable: every vendor with access to patient information needs a signed HIPAA Business Associate Agreement (BAA) in place as part of the contract. That requirement applies whether the vendor hosts your entire practice management system or just touches one piece of it.
Why This Matters Right Now for RehabWorks
EAMC is the one selecting and implementing EPIC, not RehabWorks — but that doesn't make this framework irrelevant. Understanding what a thorough technology evaluation actually covers means clinic leadership can ask informed, specific questions during the transition: does EPIC's billing functionality support PT/OT/SLP authorization workflows the way TherapySource does today? What happens to existing data dictionaries and payer files during the move?
Surfacing gaps like these before go-live is far less painful than discovering them after the clinic is already live on the new system.
Content developed by Continuity Practice Partners, informed by the MGMA Physician Billing Process, 3rd Edition.