Practice management software exists in all shapes and sizes. But not every option out there will meet your business needs. While every clinic is unique, the issues around managing appointments, online bookings, or sales are consistent for everyone.
Whether you’re already using clinic management software, or exploring your options, one thing is certain — choosing the right solution can transform how you run your business through enhanced patient experiences.
Reduced no-shows. Stress-free documentation. Boosted revenue. Improved staff morale. The list of benefits just goes on. And no, it’s not too good to be true.
Buckle up and discover what to look for in clinic management software, and how the seven best practice management software of 2024 compare.
What to look for in practice management software
The full potential of practice management software lies in what your clinic needs to manage the most. Tailor-made software solutions for medspas, clinics, and beauty practices are crucial to have, alongside standard core functionalities all practices need to succeed.
Here are 4 key elements to always look for in a clinic management software.
1. Core functionality: scheduling, patient management, and reporting
- Automated scheduling. Streamline appointments by sending instant reminders and alerts. Share pre/post-care instructions and automatically update changes in your calendar. Reduce patient wait times, free your team from manual admin, and reduce no-shows by up to 36%.
- Automated patient management. Create detailed records, including medical history and treatment plans, and store them securely. Quick access enhances emergency response, whereas customizable forms and treatment photos enrich treatment journeys.
- Automated medical billing and invoicing. 85% of patients prefer electronic payments, and automating billing makes this possible. Accept various payment methods, in-house or via your online portal, streamlining online payments and forms securely. Handle invoices in one place and get paid faster, or use automated deposits to reduce no-shows, billing errors, and revenue gaps.
- Automate reporting for quick insights into client numbers, sales, treatments, and revenue. Tailor reports with filters, and save, schedule, and share directly from your system. Check how your clinic is performing in real-time to optimize budgeting and time management, eliminating manual analytics for teams.
2. User interface and ease of use
An intuitive interface simplifies practice management for you and your staff. A user-friendly design also reduces the learning curve, so instead of spending hours navigating complex software, you can get up and running with minimal training.
Data accessibility is also crucial. With cloud-based access and device compatibility, you can manage tasks from anywhere, while patients get real-time updates. Review patient information, update treatment plans, and share them instantly to improve patient care and ensure efficient workflows for days to come.
3. Integration capabilities with other tools
Integrating third-party apps into your medical software will transform how your clinic operates. Integrations allow you to seamlessly connect your system with EHRs (electronic health records), lab portals, marketing tools, and any payment gateways as a way to automate workflows and improve business efficiency.
Clinicians can gain faster access to patient data, real-time test results, and simplified payment transactions, reducing the risk of errors and enhancing transparency and patient communication.
You can also explore additional integration benefits, like automated sales tracking, targeted email campaigns, synchronized calendars, and insurance management apps, like HealthCode, for seamless and all-encompassing data management.
3. Customer support and training resources
The best management software is only as good as the customer support and training resources you get with it.
Training resources, such as webinars, knowledge bases, academies, and video tutorials, are vital so that practitioners and med spa owners can learn in their own time, at their own pace. With proper training, clinics can become empowered to use the software from the first time they log in, without wasting time.
Customer support, on the other hand, like emails, group forums, or live chats, can help patients who don’t like doing things on their own feel supported when they’re stuck. Good customer support ramps up your sales, too — 89% of clients said they would make a follow-up purchase if they already had a positive customer support experience.
The 7 most powerful practice management solutions available
Selecting practice management software can make or break your business. The right tool is can help address the issues that are holding you back; eliminate administrative tasks, and earn you the freedom to fully commit to your patients.
No need to second-guess yourself or feel overwhelmed by the multitude of options. We’ve done the groundwork for you. Here are the seven top clinic management software options in 2024 that could be the perfect fit for your needs.
1. Pabau
Pabau is an all-in-one clinic management software, created for medi-aesthetics practices of all sizes. It’s incredibly feature-rich, with appointment reminders, custom forms, patient deposits, an online patient portal, AI, dictation, staff calendar management, reducing no-shows, and HIPAA-secured communication.
Pabau really does everything for your practice — you can prescribe, create targeted marketing campaigns without having to integrate, do injection plotting, and flag up med contradictions. With an intuitive interface, a dedicated app, and device compatibility, Pabau ensures instant data accessibility and ease of use. Live chat and email support, training materials, and personalized onboarding are also included.
While it comes at a slightly higher cost, Pabau is great value for your money, guaranteeing you won’t need to invest in other tools. For complex, busy practices looking to expand to more than one location, Pabau is a top choice, offering comprehensive multi-practice management, securely managed from one system. See Pabau in action and book a demo!
- Standout features — POS, online bookings, telehealth, scheduling, recalls, injection plotting, marketing, quotes, invoicing, inventory, reporting, etc.
- Integration capabilities — Stripe, Xero, Google Calendar, Healthcode, Klarna, etc.
- Who is it for — specifically tailored for medi-aesthetics practices, medspas, beauty clinics, and hair salons.
2. Power Diary
Power Diary is a complete practice management system, designed specifically for health practices. It is a global software solution offering essential features like calendar management, appointment reminders, invoicing, telehealth, and 2-way SMS for easier communication. etc.
Power Diary is exceptional for the health industry, but may not be the first choice for a med spa and beauty practice. Without inventory management, labs, and injection plotting features, as well as limited note-editing options, it is only half the solution practices need.
With thousands of clients to tend to, their user experience and customer support is reduced. There’s no app, but they offer solid phone support, training, and 24/7 live chat.
- Key features — calendar and client management, telehealth, reports, online bookings, 2-way SMS chat, invoicing, templates, appointment reminders
- Integrations — Xero, Mailchimp, Stripe, Physitrack
- Who is it for — health clinics, therapists, psychologists, masseuses, and chiropractors
3. Epic
Epic is a cloud-based EHR software solution for hospitals, healthcare providers, and hospital groups. Its online patient portal, scheduling, and billing features ensure comprehensive patient management, whereas their telehealth offering is great for remote care.
For easier med spa management, Epic offers handy features like e-prescribing, revenue, and EHR management. Epic was created in 1979 and currently holds over 50% of the market share in hospitals in the US, making it quite a reliable provider.
Yet, Epic offers complex forms that take time to fill in, alongside a hard-to-navigate interface, and limited access controls, risking security issues. While it does offer a patient portal and allows you to schedule appointments, there’s no real online booking platform. For med spa specifically, functionalities like injection plotting, treatment photos, pre/post-care email messaging, and sales management are also missing.
Epic provides excellent email and phone support, as well as client training. But, for its offering, it has some of the priciest plans, starting from $1,200 per physician/month.
- Key features — appointment management, billing, client portal, scheduling, patient history, labs, revenue cycle management
- Integrations — no third-party integrations like Stripe, Google Calendar, Xero.
- Who is it for — large healthcare organizations, hospitals, remote care organizations
4. CareCloud Central
CareCloud Central is a medical practice management solution that boosts productivity by automating day-to-day tasks. While it excels at real-time financial management, it also delivers vital features like seamless patient charting, detailed patient record tracking, swift scheduling, and customizable forms.
CareCloud Central supports HIPAA and has decent customer support via email, phone, and live chat. However, clients have noted frequent system crashes, which goes against the “automated and secure management.” For the med spa and beauty industry, they skip crucial functionalities — POS, marketing for patient engagement, and detailed staff management.
Finally, their standard plan offers limited features. If you want to use their document and task manager, or analytics and reporting, you’ll need one of their higher plans, starting from $629 per provider/month.
- Key features — charting, reporting, client portal, online booking, reminders
- Integrations — UPDOX, SURESCRIPTS, IRON BRIDGE, LabCorp
- Who is it for — medical and health practices
5. Eclipse
ECLIPSE is a specialized EHR, billing, and practice management software primarily for chiropractors. It is armed with scheduling features, SOAP and daily notes, alert notifications, e-prescribing, and billing, so it’s a decent all-rounder.
However, the interface falls a little flat when it comes to customizations and advanced calendar functions. Features like allergy tracking, telemedicine, a designated patient portal, and staff management are also not included. At last, their pricing approach has received some criticism, with clients noting they couldn’t downsize their plan after an upgrade.
Phone and help desk support is available. However, Eclipse offers on-site training only (in Florida, USA), which can inconvenience remote users. While it satisfies the management needs of chiropractors, it’s quite limited for aesthetics clinic management.
- Key features — appointment scheduling, bills and claims, e-prescribing
- Integrations — Infinedi, OpenEdge, DataHEALTH, Hour:Mine
- Who is it for — chiropractors, physical therapists, medical facilities
6. eClincialWorks EMR
eClinicalWorks EMR is a solid cloud solution for practice and EHR management.
They offer customizable tools for health clinics, i.e. billing, scheduling, and appointment management. Practitioners can securely manage patient medical history, allergies, and labs from the patient records. You can customize forms and templates, although the options are not as abundant as in other solutions.
Here’s another catch — their basic plan lets you manage EHR only. If you need an EHR and practice management tool, you’ll need to upgrade to their costlier plan ($599). eCW EMR also skips vital functionalities for med spa businesses, like staff and calendar management, POS, and in-built marketing.
Customers can get email and phone support, but there’s no live chat or an app. Users have also noted the system hinders efficiency, rather than gaining it. Their interface can be slow, outdated, and hard to navigate — despite the provided training.
- Key features — scheduling, patient portal, revenue management, charting
- Integrations – CGM LABDAQ, OpenPM, BirdEye
- Who is it for — physicians, health specialists, pediatrics, primary care
7. Cliniko
Cliniko is a medical practice management software created for healthcare professionals. With features like automated reminders, online bookings, appointment management, and payment processing, they simplify practice management for physical therapists, massage centers, and chiropractors.
Cliniko is HIPAA-compliant and allows secure management of your calendar, patient records, and treatment notes. However, their calendar is one-sided, preventing proper data sync from other systems. You also cannot automate recurring bookings and packages or manage patient communication. A huge minus is that Cliniko doesn’t use a patient portal — vital for seamless patient experience.
Support-wise, Cliniko offers email and live chat, along with a knowledge base and video tutorials. But without extensive onboarding, their software can be complex to navigate.
Overall, Cliniko is a great tool to get you started, but unfit if you want comprehensive solutions.
- Key features — online bookings, scheduling, reporting, billing & invoicing
- Integrations – Xero, Stripe, APIANT, BookPhysio
- Who is it for — therapists, health clinics, and allied health practitioners
Simplify practice management with Pabau
The truth is, there’s no such thing as a universally best practice management software. Based on what your practice needs help managing the most, any of the options we listed could be a satisfying fit.
But, if you’re a beauty practice, medspa clinic, or healthcare business looking for tailor-made solutions, Pabau is your winner. It’s equipped with everything you need to manage appointments, report, analyze, and grow your business, delivering all “must” under one roof – without the need for extra software.
Put quality patient care first with Pabau — witness the power of seamless practice management and book a demo today!
