Midwestern Medical School Reforms Student Services with Document Management

Medical school faculties are typically very discriminating about the applicants they choose — their institution’s reputation hinges in part on the success of their alumni. One midwestern university that enrolls and grooms some of the best and brightest medical minds was successfully attracting top candidates, but needed a better way to track and manage applicant information. The university’s paper-based system was becoming too cumbersome with the growing number of current student and alumni records on file. Delays in decision making, occasional missing documentation, and the constant fear of making a procedural mistake were taking their toll on a staff that was constantly under pressure. Putting the puzzle pieces together The Office of Records and Registration of this university’s medical school program manages paperwork that tracks student progress from the time of application through enrollment, graduation, and beyond. Requests for student verification, ongoing evaluation of students’ readiness to move on in their medical studies, and tracking each approved leave of absence requires detailed and thorough documentation of diverse records. Student transcripts, graduate school applications, disciplinary action forms, assessments of each student’s financial need and the appropriate government forms; photos, and supplemental applications from the American Association of Medical Colleges are typically on file for each student. To make accurate and timely decisions, and comply with the demand for documentation from potential employers and other educational institutions, student files are accessed regularly. Faculty, alumni, and state verification agencies constantly request information and expect a prompt response, yet Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) laws compel the institution to guard and secure files appropriately. The need for near-immediate, yet accurate answers constantly has to be weighed against established procedures that are intended to ensure compliance, fairness, and consistency. Each transaction requires detailed notes and careful tracking. In a paper-based system, despite clear policies about documentation handling and access, it’s nearly impossible for an institution to implement policies consistently 100% of the time and to prove each employee is following the rules. Yet unless compliance can be proven beyond the shadow of a doubt, the university faces considerable – and unacceptable – risk. Finding answers to the challenge The student body and the alumni base had continued to grow over the years. Managing student documents and paper-driven processes became increasingly challenging. Workers could no longer work efficiently with the paper files, which were packed together so tightly that they were difficult to extract and re-file in the cabinets and shelves. Adding to the challenge, as knowledgeable workers reached retirement age, valuable unwritten information about students, their files, and the reasons for handling files in a certain way were lost. Management was familiar with electronic document management; understood its value in making files accessible, yet secure; and understood its potential for improving processing consistency. They began evaluating vendors, ultimately choosing Optical Image Technology’s DocFinity suite of enterprise content management (ECM) and workflow software. Benefits gained from using DocFinity ECM No more risk from exposed paper documents; Protection from water, fire, or humidity damage to the university’s files; No more misplaced, misfiled, or lost documents; Simultaneous access to student files by multiple workers; Streamlined and consistent procedures; Less risk due to the university’s ability to ensure consistent data collection, document distribution, and swift, accurate file delivery to review committees without fear of inadvertently making a procedural error. Results More efficient work distribution and greater productivity; Workflow ensures that new staff follows established procedures, eliminating errors; Ability to demonstrate compliance with regulations and policies; 300% increase in the number of student verifications handled over the paper-based system, while requiring fewer staff. Preparing for an encore In the near future, university administrators plan to expand the use of DocFinity into other business areas to increase efficiency and lower costs. Integration with the student management system via Web services is also planned, with the goal of helping staff to be more efficient, facilitating compliance, and expediting student services. Although the institution has made substantial progress, innovations are continuous, and the possibilities for the university to use DocFinity are many. The implementation of DocFinity’s ECM solution in enrollment services has demonstrated to the university how creative thinking, strong technology, and meticulous planning can lead to a solution that benefits everyone – students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Onerous tasks are now manageable, processes are cost-effective, staff performance and morale is higher, and the risk of file breaches has been wiped off of the slate. Most important of all, the university is poised to compete successfully against other top institutions, able to enroll the best graduate students efficiently and provide prompt, accurate information and service – now, and in the future.

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