We Care Medical Centre (WCMC), NSW

When starting a practice, choosing the right IT infrastructure can make a significant impact on workflow and clinical management.

Setting up in as little as two weeks, Helix, a cloud-based practice management software solution from MedicalDirector, allows We Care Medical Centre to leverage an easy to use, flexible and mobile solution from the very start, freeing up more time to focus on growing the practice and enabling better patient care.

Background

We Care Medical Centre in Western Sydney was started with a vision to optimise community care, focusing on women’s health, children’s health, chronic diseases management, mental health issues, care for the elderly and palliative care.

As the Practice Director and owner of We Care Medical Centre, Ram S. Annamalai discussed the use of Practice Management Software with Principal GP, Dr. Sujatha R. Swaminathan. They both agreed they needed a software solution that is portable, easy to use, simplified in data storage and maintenance, coupled with low infrastructure costs.

The Challenge

In the initial stages of setting up a clinic, the challenge was to implement an IT framework that was more flexible and efficient than traditional on-premise models.

• It can be labour-intensive, restrictive and complex to implement on-premise hardware solutions.
• Practices that rely on locally hosted and managed IT infrastructure limit workflow flexibility and practice management, as they are limited to working locally on the
  specific computer.

To help start the practice with the right solution, We Care Medical Centre’s Practice Director, Ram Annamalai, suggested looking for a simple and easy-to-use cloud-based solution.

“Dr. Swaminathan uses an on-premise solution at her other practice and with me specialising in IT and working with cloud-based solutions, I educated her on the benefits of going lean with the software architecture, and not messing too much with hardware,” Ram said. “And that’s why we decided to go for the Helix solution over an on-premise model.”

The Solution

Helix, a cloud-based solution, was the ideal choice for We Care Medical Centre as it offered flexibility, was easy to implement, navigate and provided functionality that the practice required while setting up.

"In the very early days, we had a competing product which we thought would be right for us, but found that it was quite clunky and chunky. We also had separate clinical and practice management systems, which was a challenge because nobody takes responsibility when things go wrong. That’s why we turned to MedicalDirector to find a better solution."

“Because it is available on any device and anywhere, it actually really benefits me because I’m working in different places and it is definitely good for the day-to-day workflow of our practice. It is easy to use, easy to navigate, and you can access it anywhere. Plus it’s great to have everything in one place,”

Ram also highlighted that the team received a personalised approach to set up and training, making getting up and running on a fresh software system seamless for a busy new practice.

“Overall the accessibility and execution of Helix was quite easy,” Ram  added. “We worked closely with our project implementation manager from MedicalDirector to get up and running with Helix, and we also received hands on training, which helped from both clinical and administrative perspectives.”