Drivers entered trip information manually, a tedious process that many disliked. Some drivers found it too burdensome and left, says Ahmed Salama, owner. But that was before Prestige went digital. Now drivers can focus on satisfying customers and driving safely. And thanks to a 7X revenue increase, the company added wheelchair vehicles to accommodate more members and cover more trips than ever.
Pushing paper
Prestige currently covers their members with eight drivers running 150 to 200 trips a day. To schedule rides, the business previously printed a list of every ride, every day, which consumed a lot of paper. Then, staff would write drivers’ names next to their trips. But the schedule wasn’t sorted by driver, so everyone received the entire schedule. Drivers would have to search for their names to see which trips they were assigned—but confusion meant that, occasionally, members might see two drivers or none.
“With digital, it’s easier and simpler,” Salama says. “We just checkmark the trip, choose a driver, and we’re done. The driver sees only his or her trips.” As far as the time requirement, “what used to take 1 1/2 to 2 hours can now be done in about 10 minutes. So, we have the capacity to cover more rides.”
To add a trip to the schedule, the dispatcher enters it on the digital platform and assigns a driver with a mouse click. The software immediately sends the information to the driver’s mobile app, notifying them of the schedule change. Of course, the dispatcher can always call the driver to confirm.
The digital platform also makes changing plans painless. Before going digital, a dispatcher might tell a driver that “Andrea” needed a different pickup time. The driver then flipped through 25 or 30 pages looking for “Andrea” to determine her location and schedule. “But now, that change is right at the driver’s fingertips,” says Salama. “He can just tap it and the app will take him directly to the member’s location.”
Simplifying records
Going digital also streamlines drivers’ work—especially important when recruiting new drivers and keeping those accustomed to the technology that Uber and Lyft use. Before going digital, the drivers manually entered line after line of information, then handed the sheet to the member to sign.
But when drivers turned in their papers, Salama found himself hounding them to get the data he needed to bill. “I’d ask ‘Where is the pickup time? Where is the dropoff time? Why didn’t you write down the date? What about the credential?’” Without that information, the trip wouldn’t be paid. “But drivers don’t need the extra work—they just want to drive,” he adds.
Now drivers just press a button and the app does all the work—the location stamp, pickup and dropoff times, and signature on a tablet or phone. The convenience is exceptional, especially when it’s time to bill.
Smoothing cash flow
Prestige often struggled to meet the submittal deadlines for sending paperwork to customer billing departments. Salama recalls a time when Fedex picked up an overnight package in winter but didn’t deliver it the next morning—despite getting paid about $100. “Once you miss the deadline, the documents you sent won’t be processed this cycle—and you’ll have to wait two extra weeks for the check,” he says. In the meantime, Prestige still had to pay for drivers, gas, insurance, and other bills.
Now billing is as easy as pressing two buttons, Salama says—one to select documents and one to send them, with no paper, no filling invoices, and no delays. Handling billing digitally also eliminates human errors, such as wrong trip numbers, dates, or pickup and dropoff times.
“Those trips used to get rejected,” Salama says. “Providers know the hassle of resending and resubmitting a trip—filling a form to explain why you had to resubmit, sending the form, and then waiting to get paid. With digital, I know exactly what I’m going to be paid and when.”
Balancing cost and benefit
Prestige’s bottom line looks better than ever without the Fedex charges. But they also benefit from the cost of the digital software from Modivcare: WellRyde is free. Even better than the cost is the convenience, Salama says—especially not having to pay drivers before Prestige is reimbursed.
Salama also appreciates the ability to track drivers’ location and speed. This feature helps from a compliance standpoint but, more importantly, from a customer service perspective as well. “I’m sure the customer is safe,” Salama says.
Training drivers is easier too. Prestige initially hesitated to adopt the software, because of the transition period. “But we compared where we were with how much better the digital world would be, even if it wasn’t in our comfort zone,” Salama says. “Ultimately it didn’t take more than a week to train everyone and get used to the application.”
In the end, Salama would make only one change. “We’re happy we made the decision, because in every respect, it’s better,” he says. “We only wish we started working this a long time ago.”
For more information on the GO Digital program, call 1-800-597-2049.