What Is Practice Management Software?

If you’re in private practice, and you’ve heard someone mention practice management software, you might be wondering: “What is practice management software?” and “What is the purpose of a practice management system?”

Running a private practice can include a great deal of administrative work–from recording patient notes to scheduling appointments to billing and claims processing.

Practice management software for therapists provides an easier, automated way to run your business so you can save time. 

We’ll dive into what a practice management system is, what are the benefits to using it, and how can you choose the right one for your practice?

First off, what is practice management software?

When people ask me about my job at SimplePractice, I tell them we’re a therapist practice management software system. Most people (including my mom!) immediately ask: “What is practice management software?” 

I typically say, “Practice management software is software for therapists designed to help simplify the administrative aspect of running a private practice. Put simply, it’s therapy office software that makes it easier for behavioral health practitioners to manage their businesses while providing quality care to their clients.” 

Therapist practice management software includes automated features such as electronic appointment scheduling and reminders, automatic billing, and insurance claim filing. 

Similar to the functionality of an EHR system, practice management software for therapists automates a majority  of the backend administrative work for providers. This frees up more time that therapists can spend on the things that are important to them. 

There are several benefits of an EHR system for behavioral health professionals, including reducing costs, increasing efficiency, and helping reduce clinician burnout. 

One of the key benefits is online booking and appointment scheduling, which most top-rated EHRs should have. 

What is a benefit of scheduling with practice management software?

Without an easy, efficient, and reliable scheduling system in place, your clients might never be able to book a session with you to get the support they need!

4 primary benefits of using therapy office software to automate your scheduling: 

1. Safe and secure record management

In the process of scheduling appointments, you collect a lot of protected information (PHI). 

Often in order to schedule an appointment, you need information like the client’s name, date of birth, and contact information—all of which is considered identifiable information, and therefore protected by HIPAA. 

By scheduling your appointments with a HIPAA-compliant software for therapists like SimplePractice, you’re ensuring that your client data remains protected, and protecting your practice from potential data breaches as well. 

2. Centralized scheduling process

When you’re running a private practice, anything you can do to streamline your work will help you in the long run. Using a practice management system allows you to consolidate all your booking and scheduling into one place, so you can see your availability and any potential conflicts. 

This can also be helpful if you run a group practice, as it allows you to see your employee’s availability and workload as well. 

Plus, a lot of practice management software will have a feature that allows you to sync your calendar with a Google or iCal, so that you can also account for personal conflicts. 

3. Reduce no-shows with appointment reminders

The online booking functionality in SimplePractice’s practice management software gives you the option to automatically send free appointment reminders for each appointment. 

This will help you reduce the number of clients who forget and no-show their appointment, saving you money in the long run. 

4. Monitor your workload with reporting

SimplePractice practice management software has a reporting feature that allows you to view information on client attendance and number of sessions you—and/or each clinician in your group practice—completed in a given time frame. This feature helps you monitor caseload, and determine whether anyone is overworked—or if you or they have room in their caseload to see more clients. 

This is especially helpful if you have employees in a small group practice, but it can be helpful if you’re running a solo private practice as well. 

How to choose a HIPAA-compliant software for therapists

So, now you’re able to answer the question ”what is practice management software?” You can explain it to colleagues, and you might even feel ready to write your own article  about it!

It’s time to figure out how to choose the best software for therapists. 

Depending on the clients you serve and the size of your practice, you may need different features from the software you choose. 

First, check to ensure that the software you’re considering is within your budget, and that it has group therapy practice software capability so that you can add additional clinicians or administrative staff, if you think you might grow your practice in the future. 

Next, look into the features it offers. The purpose of a practice management software is to make your practice more efficient, so if you’re missing key features, it might not actually be as beneficial to you. 

Check to ensure any practice management system you are considering includes these features:

• Automated invoicing and payments 
• Insurance claim filing 
• A client portal with secure messaging 
• Note and documentation templates 
• HIPAA-compliant telehealth capabilities

There may be additional features you need depending on the clients you serve and your practice size. However, for starters, these core features are sure to help you streamline the day-to-day aspects of running your private practice. 

Hopefully after reading this article, you’re prepared to confidently respond if someone asks you “What is practice management software?” Also, most importantly, you have a clearer awareness and understanding of the key features and benefits of EHR software for running your practice.

How SimplePractice streamlines running your practice

SimplePractice is HIPAA-compliant practice management software with everything you need to run your practice built into the platform—from booking and scheduling to insurance and client billing.

If you’ve been considering switching to an EHR system, SimplePractice empowers you to run a fully paperless practice—so you get more time for the things that matter most to you.

Try SimplePractice free for 30 days. No credit card required.

READ NEXT: The Key to HIPAA-Compliant Email for Therapists