Innovation

Aleris launches digital support to reduce administrative tasks for doctors writing sick leave certificates

Richard Petersson and Anders Kjellin collaboratively created and launched the new tool to save doctors' administrative burdens.

Aleris is taking a new step to make life easier for doctors and give them more time for patients by launching a new digital tool that simplifies the time-consuming process of writing sick leave certificates.

This in-house developed tool allows doctors to quickly and easily insert pre-made templates for around twenty diagnosis codes directly into the Webcert sick leave certificate tool. By automating and standardizing the process, both time and resources are saved, while the quality of the certificates improves.´

— The growing administrative workload has become a bigger challenge for us doctors. It takes time away from patient consultations. With this tool, we can work more efficiently, which gives us more time with our patients, says Richard Petersson, specialist doctor and Chief Medical Information Officer at Aleris.

The need for this new tool comes from increasing frustration among doctors over the rising administrative burden. Richard Petersson and Anders Kjellin, orthopedic specialist and Deputy Business Area Manager for Aleris Orthopedics and Surgery, noticed that repeated follow-ups not only took valuable time away from patient care but also created unnecessary workload. They saw a clear need to streamline the process and find a solution that would both simplify the work for doctors and ensure higher quality in the sick leave certificates. After recognizing the problems in their daily work, they developed the digital tool together, which is now used throughout Aleris.

The tool works by automatically inserting pre-made templates for around twenty diagnosis codes directly into the Webcert sick leave certificate tool. When the system detects that a diagnosis code with an available template has been entered, a button appears that allows the template to be inserted directly into the certificate.

The increasing administrative load has made the work more time-consuming and led to unnecessary workload for doctors. This new tool streamlines the process by making sure the certificates are more complete from the start. This reduces the administrative burden, while both efficiency and patient safety are improved through clear, standardized templates. This is a win for everyone — Försäkringskassan (the Swedish Social Insurance Agency) gets complete documentation right from the start, doctors no longer need to spend time on administration and follow-ups, and patients get more time with their doctor. We also plan to gradually add templates for more diagnoses and improve the existing ones based on feedback from doctors and other healthcare staff.

— When we as doctors don’t have to spend time on unnecessary administrative tasks, we can focus on what we’re trained to do — provide the best possible care. This solution is a great example of how digital tools can improve both the work environment and the patient experience, says Anders Kjellin, orthopedic specialist and Deputy Business Area Manager for Aleris Orthopedics and Surgery.

With this new digital tool, Aleris continues to drive innovations that improve the work environment for healthcare professionals while enhancing the patient experience. Less time spent on admin means more time for patient care.