Guide to workflow applications

By Ian Garratt, Technical Project Lead & Employee Director, Voice Technologies

Posted on June 06, 2023

You’ve likely heard of workflow applications in some capacity. But it’s a fairly vague phrase, in itself: ‘workflow applications’. What are they, really? And what problems can they actually solve for your business?

In today’s blog, we’ll be breaking down the basics of workflow applications, why more and more organisations are using them, specific examples of how they can optimise your workflow, and how to decide which application is best for your team.

What are workflow applications?

Workflow applications are computer programmes that can streamline daily operations. They can make a wide range of tasks run smoother and, by embracing workflow applications, you can increase productivity across the board. Automation plays a big role here; workflow applications can take time-consuming tasks completely off your hands.

Why do businesses use workflow applications?

One of the main reasons workflow applications are so widely used is because businesses and public sector organisations can benefit from them regardless of size. Tasks can be streamlined across different departments, allowing for efficient collaboration and communication. For example, if the marketing or communications department requires approvals from other departments on content they’ve created, they could use a workflow application to automate this process. They’d be able to know exactly who approved their content, and exactly when it was approved.

Many teams are still using paper-based processes in some form or another. Workflow applications can help to fully digitalise these processes, allowing for easy access and management of digital documents. These applications can also be a great way for you to gain insights into your processes, via analytics and automated reporting.

Document tracking and re-allocation tools enable seamless monitoring of document progress, and facilitate task reassignment when needed. With these tools at your disposal, you can effortlessly keep track of the status of documents and efficiently redistribute tasks as circumstances change.

Which workflow applications are right for your organisation?

Before adopting a workflow application, it’s crucial to assess the specific requirements and goals of your organisation. Each has unique needs, processes, and objectives, so you need to choose an application that aligns with these factors. By conducting a thorough evaluation, you can ensure that the selected application addresses your specific pain points, improves efficiency, and enhances productivity in the workplace.

Different Information Workflow Applications

At Voice Technologies, we have four bespoke information workflow applications that can greatly benefit your department, or business in many different ways. We’ll break down each one available and showcase how they can independently impact your daily operations. Due to technical advancements, particularly in workflow applications, businesses can now automate tasks - streamlining the way of working. Whether it’s automating a single task or an entire business process, having the best workflow application out there is becoming ever more important.

With little to no workflow application process in place can cause many implications ranging from; a lack of end-to-end visibility, inefficient practices completing tasks, and increased chances of human error when dealing with sensitive information.

1) FormStream:

FormStream is a cutting-edge web-based application that revolutionises information workflow for organisations. This innovative solution simplifies and streamlines the process of creating, managing, and processing electronic forms, enhancing efficiency and productivity across the organisation.

Implementing this powerful workflow application can offer numerous benefits to organisations seeking to optimise their operations. From seamlessly digitising existing paper-based forms to eliminating the need for manual data entry, to reducing the risk of errors. You can now get peace of mind knowing that your client data is up-to-date and organised.

There are many advantages using workflow applications such as FormStream. One example is you now have the ability to automate and standardise processes. By replacing paper-based forms with e-forms, means that data can be auto-populated from or with data from other systems used within your organisation. The end result? Data security is guaranteed, no need for hard copies saving postal and print costs, and e-form data readily accessible for analysis and reporting.

In summary, by using FormStream, you can unlock a range of benefits, including increased productivity, reduced administrative burden, enhanced data accuracy, improved compliance, and faster turnaround times. Streamlining information workflow empowers businesses to focus on core activities - achieving greater operational excellence.

2) NEWS2 (National Early Warning Score):

If you don’t currently use NEWS2 as part of your healthcare operations, you could be missing out on enhancing efficiency within your organisation. NEWS2 helps record physiological measurements digitally at the patient’s bedside. Therefore, clinical information is collected, processed, and analysed, providing numerous benefits for healthcare organisations. For example, with NEWS2, you won’t be required to manually calculate and input the scores into multiple systems - it will automate that process.

This workflow application helps nurses and clinicians record patient observations directly into electronic forms - eliminating the need for manual data entry and reducing the risk of errors. When it comes to reviewing patient data, this can be a tedious process trying to source the correct and relevant documents. NEWS2 helps save you time by automatically locking and sending a digital PDF copy to a patient’s record within SCI Storebeing. Essentially, once the data is processed, the system automatically generates News2 scores, alerting you to potential concerns - enabling timely interventions - improving patient outcomes.

By offering real-time tracking and monitoring capabilities within the News2 system, you can conveniently access and evaluate patient observations and monitor score fluctuations over time. With these detailed reports at your disposal, it provides you with data that can be analysed right at your fingertips. Harnessing this data-driven approach is vital, as it will enable you to become more proactive with care management, identify trends, and save time that can be reinvested with your patients. .

In summary, digital support for the NEWS2 offers healthcare organisations a powerful tool to optimise information flow, streamline processes, and improve patient care. By implementing this workflow application, it will ensure you respond promptly to critical situations, appropriate interventions, and delivering high-quality care.

3) WinVoice:

WinVoiceWeb and WinVoicePro are comprehensive solutions that provide users with the ability to generate letters, reports, and various other documents and distribute them digitally or in printed form, offering an end-to-end document creation and distribution experience.

Workflow applications such as WinVoice offer a range of advantages for organisations seeking to enhance their document creations and distribution processes. With WinVoiceWeb, organisations can automate repetitive tasks and manual processes associated with document handling, reducing time and effort required for document creation, approval, and distribution. For example, all user-specific document data are held within profiles, saving you time re-keying data for each document, helping accelerate your document turnaround times.

This similar pattern continues with WinVoicePro which uses a desktop version of Microsoft Word as its text editor. This will help you take digital dictation recordings to allow immediate and accurate clinical transcription. Not only will this save a significant amount of your time to reinvest elsewhere, but it greatly reduces cost and potential errors involved in re-keying data.

Whether you are seeking a system to implement, or have one currently in operation, WinVoice is designed to seamlessly work alongside existing software to offer greater document distribution efficiency to the NHS. From tracking the status of documents to viewing comments and annotations, to generating comprehensive reports for analysis, you have the full 360 scope to help you make data-driving decisions.

In summary, WinVoice is a powerful workflow application that helps optimise document processes, and enhance operational performance. By leveraging this solution, you can streamline increase document turnover, reduce manual efforts, improve collaboration, and ensure NHS compliance standards.

4) ChronoLog:

Chronolog is a web-based patient chronology management system offering organisations in the healthcare sector a comprehensive workflow application to optimise patient information management. ChronoLog is best suited to individuals within the “Circle of Care” where it can organise, access, and update patient data throughout their life.

Having a system in place will help to efficiently create and maintain a comprehensive timeline of patient events, medical history, and treatment plans. By implementing this workflow application into your operational processes, you can centralise and digitise patient information, where it can easily accessed, ensuring timely and informed decision-making. A study by Delaware found that the health and social care sector is one of the most stressful industries with a reported 56.30% feeling stressed. This could involve tasks being missed, or information to be overlooked due to the amount of tasks that have to be completed. With ChronoLog, real-time notifications are set up to keep you up-to-date to make timely decisions and actions.

With this application, healthcare providers can streamline the process of gathering and organising patient information from various sources, such as medical records, test results, and clinical notes. By implementing workflow applications, it will help eliminate manual searching, reduce administrative burden, and enable healthcare professionals to focus more on patient care. For example, you will have real-time tracking and monitoring capabilities at your disposal, making it easier to update patient records, track changes over time, and view a holistic view of a patient's healthcare journey - all in one place.

In summary, ChronoLog can help you digitise and centralise patient data, streamlining operational processes, as well as, providing real-time tracking capabilities. As a result, you can enhance, both, efficiency and deliver better patient outcomes due to making data-informed decisions.