How Ignite Healthcare Solutions Uses athenahealth’s Success Community
AthenaHealth’s Success Community is an important tool for any organization utilizing athenaNet. At Ignite Healthcare Solutions (IHS), we use the Success Community to validate our recommendations and to find relevant resources for our clients. The community provides access to a wide range of information, making it a valuable platform for troubleshooting, idea-sharing, and staying updated on system developments.
Product Support
For any issues requiring athenahealth’s intervention, the athenaNet Success Community is our primary resource. When our clients encounter challenges or problems, our team immediately submits cases through the community, ensuring that technical or system-related issues are flagged and addressed promptly by athenahealth’s support team. Beyond the initial case submission, we closely monitor the updates athenahealth provides on known issues, which not only helps us identify next steps but also enables us to track progress from a broader, systemic perspective. This process gives us insight into how similar issues are being handled across the platform and allows us to guide our clients with informed recommendations. If a case is not resolved quickly or accurately, we take the additional step of working with the client’s athena Customer Success Manager (CSM) to escalate the issue and ensure it gets the proper attention it deserves. This drives timely and effective resolutions.
Troubleshooting/Solutioning
The Success Community serves as a valuable validation tool and a starting point for troubleshooting workflows. Whether a client is struggling with an athenaNet task or in need of workflow optimization advice, we use the community’s extensive library of articles to validate and support our recommendations. Although we may review multiple articles to identify the best approach, this process helps ensure that our solutions are well-informed and align with athenahealth’s guidelines.
Idea Voting/Submission
At IHS, we encourage our clients to submit ideas and vote on others within the Success Community. athenahealth considers multiple factors when deciding whether to add items to its product roadmap, including the presence of workarounds, financial impact, patient safety, and the popularity of the idea. Though not all ideas make it into athenaOne, the collective voting process helps highlight common challenges and promotes innovative solutions. Two of our consultants have firsthand experience with this process, having contributed to the development of the heatmap for athenahealth’s Platform team, and have seen the positive impacts that voting on ideas can have in shaping the product. By creating and voting on ideas, alternative workflow adjustments are often identified and utilized as interim solutions while awaiting full implementation.
User Groups
The Success Community also hosts a variety of user groups, which are beneficial for collaboration and knowledge sharing. From specialty groups (such as Family Medicine, Orthopedics, and Behavioral Health) to practice-type groups (like Urgent Care and FQHC), and topic-specific user groups, there is a wealth of expertise to leverage. These groups typically meet monthly or quarterly, allowing healthcare professionals to network, share experiences, and stay informed about industry trends. Ignite actively participates in these groups to ensure we remain at the forefront of athenaNet innovations.
Releases
IHS leverages the Success Community’s Release Center to stay informed about the latest athenahealth features and updates. Our entire team completes the release training to ensure we are fully prepared for the latest changes. We also conduct an internal review of the release notes and disseminate key information to our existing and former clients, highlighting features to watch for in the upcoming releases. The Release Center provides webinars, detailed notes, and customizable training materials, allowing us to tailor updates to meet each client’s specific needs. With access to the product roadmap, we can anticipate future releases and help our clients prepare accordingly.
Alpha/Beta Opportunities and Research Council Participation
As part of our commitment to innovation, IHS actively monitors athenahealth's alpha and beta testing opportunities on behalf of our clients. By participating in these early releases, our clients gain valuable insights into upcoming athenaNet features and can provide critical feedback that shapes future development. We provide support throughout the process, ensuring they are well-prepared and informed. Additionally, we participate in athenahealth's Research Council meetings to advocate for our clients, making sure their needs and concerns are represented. This involvement helps ensure the platform evolves to meet the demands of a dynamic healthcare environment.
Quality Resources Dashboard
At IHS, we utilize athenahealth’s Quality Resource Dashboard as a central hub for resources related to clinical quality and value-based care programs. This dashboard provides access to a wide range of materials, including blogs, measure lists, program updates, training curricula, enrollment guidelines, and how-to guides. By staying current with these resources, we ensure our clients are always informed of the latest changes and have the tools necessary to set up or optimize their processes. Whether our clients are new to value-based care or looking to refine their existing workflows, the Quality Resource Dashboard helps us deliver targeted, efficient, and effective support.
Training
The comprehensive training offerings in the Success Community are invaluable for both the IHS team and our clients. The eLearning modules, webinars, and foundational certifications provide a robust educational framework. Our team frequently utilizes these resources to stay current on best practices, enabling us to deliver exceptional service. We also recommend that our clients pursue certifications in areas such as Administrative, Provider, Clinical Staff, Billing Staff, and Management to ensure their teams are fully prepared to leverage athenaNet effectively.
To begin exploring the valuable resources available in the athenaNet Success Community, refer to this helpful O-Help article on getting started. For any additional guidance, feel free to reach out to IHS at info@ignitehs.com.
