Healthcare organizations in the United States face constant pressure to improve patient care, work more efficiently, and control costs. One way to achieve these goals is by using automation technology, especially in administrative tasks like front-office work. But starting automation projects in healthcare often meets with resistance from employees and managers. To succeed, these changes need careful planning, trust-building, and a slow approach.
This article talks about best ways to start small automation projects in healthcare practices. It shows how these steps help build trust among staff and leaders, allowing bigger changes later. It also looks at how artificial intelligence (AI) and workflow automation help improve healthcare operations.
Healthcare leaders like practice administrators, owners, and IT managers often want quick results from technology investments. However, starting with smaller, manageable projects works better in the complex healthcare setting. Sandra Schlösser, Head of Robotic Process Automation at Asklepios Kliniken in Germany, says it is best to begin with small efforts that build trust and help people understand the technology.
The Asklepios team automated over 120 processes but began with pilot projects focused on repetitive admin tasks. This let staff and managers see the benefits directly, which helped reduce doubt. By choosing specific tasks with clear measures, organizations can track improvements in accuracy, speed, and employee happiness. This data helps make decisions based on facts and encourages more automation investment.
For U.S. healthcare, this step-by-step method fits well with evidence-based change management (EBCM) ideas. EBCM values regular feedback and redesign during change. Starting with small pilots lets organizations gather useful scientific and practical evidence about how well automation works, how people react, and what effects it has before expanding.
Resistance to change is one of the biggest challenges when introducing new technology in healthcare. This resistance happens for many reasons, such as mistrust in leaders, fear of failure, emotional discomfort, and lack of training.
Rick Maurer, an expert on resistance, says there are three kinds: “I don’t get it,” “I don’t like it,” and “I don’t like you.” In healthcare, this can show up as confusion about automation, unwillingness to change workflows, or even distrust of the people managing the change.
Data from Gartner shows 54% of Chief Human Resource Officers believe current communication fails to engage employees during change. Poor communication creates uncertainty and makes people lose interest. It is important to clearly explain how automation changes daily work and benefits staff and patients.
Training helps reduce fear and builds confidence. Hands-on learning increases employee skill and comfort with new systems. Organizations should provide digital adoption platforms (DAPs) and support tools like step-by-step guides and smart tips. These tools help staff and IT teams get help right when needed, lowering frustration and encouraging consistent use.
Reasonable timelines are important too. Rushing big automation projects can cause more resistance and failure. A practical rollout that allows feedback and improvements increases user acceptance and chances of long-lasting use.
Automation in healthcare needs more than just technology—it needs planned change management based on evidence. Evidence-Based Change Management (EBCM) uses data-driven decisions supported by facts from research, the organization’s context, stakeholder input, and experience.
Healthcare leaders can apply EBCM by:
Denise M. Rousseau, an expert in evidence-based management, says that structured feedback and redesign are essential for managing change well. Constant monitoring and adjustments stop problems and resistance while encouraging involvement.
For example, medical administrators can track things like call response times, errors in patient records, or staff workload before and after automation. These numbers show progress and point out what needs changing.
Trust is very important in healthcare, where patient safety and privacy matter a lot. Without trust, staff might see automation as a threat instead of help. Building trust means being open, showing understanding, and planning with input from others.
Leaders must explain clearly why automation is needed and address worries about job security or new tasks. Being understanding of emotional reactions helps acceptance. Rick Maurer points out the need to recognize feelings like sadness over lost routines or fear of new technology.
Also, involving staff and stakeholders in change creates cooperation. Gartner data says organizations that use open, inclusive strategies are much more likely to succeed and have less change fatigue.
Practice managers can hold workshops, Q&A sessions, or pilot groups to get feedback and work together on solutions. These activities build trust and show respect for frontline workers’ experiences.
Front-office tasks in medical practices are often high in volume, repetitive, and need quick action. This makes them good for AI and automation. Simbo AI, a company that makes AI front-office phone automation, shows how technology can support healthcare administration.
AI systems can handle routine phone calls like appointment scheduling, patient reminders, and basic questions. This frees staff from repetitive calls, lowers human error, and makes it easier for patients to get services, especially when busy.
Workflow automation helps back-office tasks too. For example, robotic process automation (RPA) combined with AI tools like optical character recognition (OCR) can handle patient registration, insurance checks, and entering data in electronic health records (EHRs). At Asklepios Kliniken, using AI for order confirmation cuts manual work time and improves data quality.
In the U.S., where staffing shortages and admin burden are common, these technologies can improve efficiency and reduce employee burnout. IT managers can combine AI answering with patient management software to create smooth workflows that improve front-office work.
A strong culture that supports change and ongoing improvement is key for successful automation. Practices with deeply set manual ways or resistance to digital tools must work to build a culture open to change.
Leadership matters. When senior leaders and IT staff show they accept digital innovation, others are more likely to follow. Recognizing and rewarding early adopters or teams reaching automation goals helps spread interest.
Adding real-time support in user tasks reduces frustration and helps people accept new tools faster. Features like guided tours and helpful tips, often part of digital adoption platforms, help healthcare workers finish tasks right the first time and need less help desk support.
Healthcare leaders should link culture-building efforts with ongoing training and communication to keep progress going as more automation projects start.
Collecting data on how automation performs has many benefits. It proves the initial project’s effects, finds areas for change, and supports plans to expand automation.
Asklepios Kliniken’s example shows success: they processed 1.7 million automated transactions with a 97.5% success rate and saved 5,000 workdays in less than 1.5 years. Not all benefits cut manual work, but better data accuracy and steady processes improve decisions and worker satisfaction.
For U.S. healthcare, tracking results should include:
Starting with pilot projects focused on clear areas gives the data needed to gain internal support. When trust and confidence grow, leaders can widen automation to many departments or facilities, slowly changing the organization.
For healthcare organizations in the U.S., beginning with small automation projects is a good way to bring about digital change. It follows evidence-based change management, handles resistance by clear communication and training, and builds trust among workers and leaders.
AI and workflow automation work well in front offices where repetitive tasks are common. Automating phone answering, appointment setting, data entry, and document processing helps medical practices work better and lets staff focus on patient care.
Success comes from understanding people’s concerns, offering ongoing support, using feedback, and carefully measuring results to grow projects step-by-step. With this clear plan, healthcare groups can use automation to meet admin challenges and serve patients better.
Asklepios Kliniken is one of Germany’s largest private hospital groups, pioneering intelligent automation with over 120 automated processes, improving operational efficiency, data quality, and employee satisfaction in healthcare through their strategic use of RPA and AI technologies.
Sandra Schlösser, Head of Robotic Process Automation at Asklepios, leads the automation strategy, bringing over a decade of experience in financial systems, SAP expertise, and project management, enabling her to successfully scale automation initiatives in the healthcare sector.
The projects focus on enhancing process stability, improving data and process quality, reducing employee workloads, creating additional capacity, and ultimately boosting operational efficiency across many healthcare administrative workflows.
Starting with several pilot projects, Asklepios expanded to automate over 120 processes, supported by a strategic partnership with Lunatec, enabling scalability, industry-specific expertise, and robust technical development to advance automation.
Since January 2024, they processed 1.7 million transactions with a 97.5% success rate, equating to 5,000 workdays saved in under 1.5 years, demonstrating substantial efficiency and reliability improvements.
Processes include order confirmation automation, customer setup verification, discount deadline alerts, automatic goods receipt logging, posting blocked documents, vendor mismatch resolution, and duplicate document deletion, all contributing to accuracy and efficiency.
AI is used in OCR-based solutions to manage order confirmations by reading documents, updating SAP, and communicating with suppliers, significantly reducing manual intervention and exemplifying intelligent automation combining RPA and AI.
She recommends starting with small, manageable projects to build trust within complex healthcare systems, gradually scaling automation to overcome initial challenges and achieve transformative operational results.
By automating repetitive tasks, Asklepios reduces employee workloads, improves process accuracy, and frees staff for more meaningful work, thereby enhancing job satisfaction amid workforce challenges like turnover.
Asklepios aims to continuously integrate AI with RPA to drive intelligent automation, maintaining operational excellence, improving data integrity, and positioning itself as a leader in digital healthcare innovation.
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