Cash transactions in healthcare pose a significant security risk while complicating day-to-day operations. From cafeterias and parking garages to treatment copays and pharmacy prescription pickups, the presence of cash drains healthcare facility resources while also increasing the risk of theft and fraud. Additionally, handling, storing, and reconciling cash transactions places a lot of demands on staff’s time, diverting their focus away from patient-facing tasks that can improve the patient experience during each visit.
Continue reading as we examine the advantages cash-to-card kiosks provide healthcare payment systems. We’ll explore how providing an alternative to cash payments can help improve security and staff safety while reducing administrative tasks so more attention can be placed on patient care. We’ll also look at how offering a payment solution that allows visitors to use cash without healthcare providers needing to handle cash is a win for everyone.
The Risks of Cash Handling Procedures in Healthcare
The presence of cash anywhere in a healthcare setting automatically increases the security and safety risk of all staff and patients. Whether paying an attendant for parking, picking up a cup of coffee from the food court, or a prescription from the pharmacy, cash handling requires staff to accept the increased risk of robbery or fraud.
Cashing handling also requires healthcare institutions to dedicate significant resources to storing and reconciling physical currency. Every dollar collected must be stored in cash drawers, lockboxes, safes, and counting rooms until deposited. Even the process of depositing requires the use of armored car services and additional security personnel, which contributes to higher operating costs that healthcare institutions could avoid by only accepting digital payments.
From the moment a cash transaction occurs, every dollar must be meticulously tracked. This time-consuming process is prone to human error and increases the risk of accidental mistakes or intentional fraud.
The risk cash handling introduces into healthcare payment systems highlights why so many other industries have started to embrace digital-only payments. By eliminating the need to handle cash, healthcare institutions can not only improve security and staff safety, they also gain the ability to redirect resources toward improving patient satisfaction.
The Inefficiency of Cash in Healthcare Payment Systems
Taking on the responsibility of cash handling requires healthcare providers to implement processes that go beyond any one transaction. Each cash handling experience sets off a cascading series of events that drain resources, divert staff attention, and slow down operations.
For example, if just one visitor wants to make a cash payment to buy flowers or pay for their prescription, it starts a multistep process to complete. Every dollar must be tracked through a process that includes:
- Giving the visitor the correct change for their purchase.
- Counting the cash drawer at the end of the day.
- Reconciling sales receipts.
- Safely storing cash in a secure area until it’s time to prepare a cash deposit.
- Transporting cash to a financial institution.
- Waiting for the deposit to clear before deposits are reflected in financial accounts.
While this meticulous process is required to prevent discrepancies and to lower the risk of theft and fraud, it comes at the cost of shifting staff focus and healthcare resources away from more patient-facing tasks and services.
Ready Credit Streamlines Healthcare Payments
Healthcare providers interested in eliminating the operational inefficiencies associated with cash handling face a difficult dilemma. How can they eliminate the need to handle cash while still respecting the payment preferences of all patients?
Ready Credit’s cash-to-card kiosks offer an innovative solution that eliminates the security and fraud risks of cash transactions without limiting patient payment options. Our easy-to-use kiosks enable visitors to quickly convert cash into prepaid cards they can use to pay for everything from healthcare expenses to food and parking.
By strategically placing our kiosks wherever payment transactions occur, healthcare campuses can reduce wait times and speed up transactions while providing greater payment flexibility for all visitors. Our kiosks operate independently, without needing any involvement from healthcare staff. After a simple plug-and-play installation process, your staff can say goodbye to the hassles of cash handling.
Create a More Secure Healthcare Setting with Ready Credit
In the evolving landscape of healthcare payment systems, the shift from cash to digital transactions presents a promising pathway to enhancing safety, efficiency, and security. Ready Credit’s cash-to-card kiosks highlight how this transition can be made successfully by offering a secure method to handle payments that alleviates the traditional risks associated with accepting cash.
By integrating our easy-to-use kiosks, healthcare facilities can focus more on patient care rather than the operational burdens of cash management. This technological advancement not only streamlines processes but also significantly reduces the risks of theft and fraud to enhance the overall safety of both staff and patients.
Interested in enhancing the safety and efficiency of your healthcare payment system? Contact Ready Credit today to see how our cash-to-card solutions can benefit your organization.