Cataract and Laser Center of Andover, Mass. has chosen to install Freedom's RICAR SMB suite

Ann Arbor, Michigan - June, 2011 - Freedom Imaging Systems (Freedom), a leading management and solutions provider, is pleased to announce Cataract and Laser Center of Andover, Mass., a division of Ambulatory Surgery Centers of America (ASCOA), has chosen to install Freedom's RICAR SMB suite as its document management solution.

RICAR SMB (Record Image Capture and Retrieval for Small and Medium Businesses) is a cost-effective document and content management software system designed for small to medium sized businesses. RICAR SMB is an out-of-the-box solution that can be applied to nearly every department in a business. Virtual file cabinets are created for each department. These file cabinets are tailored based on the needs of the company. Examples include Human Resources, Accounting, Credentialing, Legal & Risk Management, Hospital Relations, and Sales.

Cataract and Laser Center of Andover, MA is a registered ambulatory surgery center (ASC) of ASCOA (Ambulatory Surgery Centers of America), an ASC management and development company. Recently Cataract and Laser Center decided to go paperless with Freedom's RICAR SMB system. Cataract and Laser Center handled their first patient case on February 16, 1998. Since its establishment, a chart has been created and stored for every patient of the Center. Charts exist in paper format and include documents sent from the patient's referring physicians. The Center is currently storing 11 years of charts at their site in Andover, as well as off site.

Now, with the implementation of Freedom's RICAR SMB system, each chart will be scanned and made available for digital viewing, printing, redacting, emailing, etc. The scanned chart will be linked with the center's practice management system via an HL7 file, that will automatically index the chart number, patient name, gender and date of birth, as well as the operating physician's name. As new records are added or existing records are modified, a new HL7 file is created and the patient's file is automatically updated with the information.

Implementing this new system will completely negate the need for in-house and offsite storage for the Cataract and Laser Center. Finding and referencing a patient's chart will be as simple as performing a search on FreeView, Freedom's document viewing application. To assist with federal and corporate compliance initiatives, Freedom's RICAR SMB creates a complete audit trail that includes information regarding document capture, deletion and access from any user.

Freedom’s RICAR SMB suite is comprised of:

• FreeScan access for capturing documents via scanner
• FreeImport folders for importing any file types into the management system including TIFF, PDF, Word, Faxes, WMV and MP3 files.  Files can be dragged and dropped into the FreeImport folders or scanned to the folders with multifunction printers
• Six (6) PreConfigured Virtual File Cabinets (VFCs) to store documents online with preconfigured document indexes for quick document retrieval.
• FreeView access allowing for less than three second document retrieval from Virtual File Cabinets straight to desktops.
• FreeWf access for assigning documents specific indexes for fast retrieval.
• FreeReports access for reporting productivity, document access and statistical activity.

ASCOA is a physician owned ASC development and management company. The principals are all surgeons, and one is still practicing full time. The founders entered the industry after building ASC's for their own use. The ASCOA model keeps the control of the center with the surgeon partners. ASCOA owns a minority share in each center it develops or turns around.

The goal of each surgery center is to increase the surgeon partners' efficiency, provide a significant stream of income and improve the quality of the surgeons' professional life.

With ASCOA as a managing, minority partner in the center, the surgeons can focus on patient care. ASCOA's experience with real estate, financing, staffing, training, equipping, licensure, accreditation and compliance positions the center for maximum profits.

If the center performs like the typical ASCOA facility, the profits can be several times the industry standard. Then, the surgeons will realize more than if they were the sole owners. If the center is to be sold, ASCOA brings expertise in achieving the highest valuation.

ASCOA's sheer volume has made them the fastest ASC company in the country. The company's track record of performance is simply unmatched in the industry. (source: ASCOA.com)

Freedom Imaging Systems has been a pioneer in the field of document management since 1995. Evolving with the dynamic industry of enterprise content management, Freedom offers small and large businesses alike the tools they need to streamline their business processes. Freedom provides everything a business needs to collect, capture, store and manage data of any kind. In 1995, Freedom created the first version of RICAR (Record Image Capture And Retrieval), their breakthrough document management solution.

RICAR is fully scalable and is easily modified to fit the needs of any type of business. RICAR processes and manages documents ranging from employment applications to explanation of benefits records, for customers ranging from car dealerships to clinical laboratories. RICAR is a software system that can be utilized among many fields and across every department. RICAR also provides users with a complete audit trail making regulatory compliance effortless.

For additional information please contact:
Freedom Imaging Systems
Phone: 734-327-5600
Email: information@freeimage.com