In the mid 90's, Mr. Douglas Kegler, the founder of CollaborateMD, saw that the healthcare community was in dire need of a new type of practice management and medical billing solution. As a computer programmer and software engineer by trade, with years of experience in the healthcare sector, Mr. Kegler knew there was a better solution. Starting in 1989, Mr. Kegler had written several DOS and Windows-based dental and medical billing programs. But the common problem with his and other programs was the fact that the medical office had to maintain the server and database and connections with the clearinghouse or insurance companies. This increased costs for the customer to install, maintain, and support the system.
The other problem with the other practice management systems available was their lack of ease of use. Systems largely used in the medical field were cluttered with hundreds of menus, making them difficult to navigate and impossible to maintain. They were also too expensive for practices with less than 25 physicians and difficult to maintain for the offices. He realized the community needed medical office management software that was easy to use, easy to maintain, and affordable.
With the rise of Web applications in 1997, Mr. Kegler realized there was a way to use the Web to produce a medical billing application for doctors and billing services. At the time it was evident that the Web could be used for any application; banking, stock trading, store fronts, magazines, news, etc. Mr. Kegler spent time throughout 1997 trying to figure out the best way to implement his solution over the Web. He discussed his idea with work associates and friends whether to use html, with or without JavaScript, through a Web browser, such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator, or build a client/server application in C++ or Java that utilizes the Internet as the connection between the client and the server. There were several advantages and disadvantages to using either technology.
At the same time, Mr. Kegler was still supporting a Windows medical billing application written in Pascal for a large billing service in Syracuse, NY. He contacted her and discussed the idea with her. At the time she liked the idea but was hesitant about transferring data over the Web with concerns about security. Mr. Kegler also contacted a past client and well known neurologist in Syracuse, NY that used a medical billing program he wrote in 1993 called Quicfa. She was excited about the idea and was interested in using the program when it was ready.
In early 1998, Mr. Kegler turned away from creating a browser based application and deciding to create a C++ or Java client/server application. He realized that an application running through a browser would be too slow due to the fact most people were on dial-up modems for Internet access at the time. Mr. Kegler realized that by using Java and the Internet, he could build a system that was a mix between the traditional Windows based system and a Web browser system. By utilizing the Internet, he could maintain the software, database, and clearinghouse connections from his company and let the customers concentrate on performing billing and managing their practice. The system would be designed with screens and menus that were easy to learn and navigate, making week long training sessions a thing of the past.
Starting in 1998 and continuing into 1999, Mr. Kegler started working non-stop on weekends and nights designing and developing his Web-based system. Mr. Kegler contacted two of his previous clients in Syracuse, NY again and they both agreed to test the system when the first beta version was ready.
In May 1999, after working thousands of hours, Mr. Kegler released a press release to the public informing the healthcare sector of the upcoming release of his Web-based medical billing software. The first official version was released to the public in January 2000. The neurologist in Syracuse, NY liked the system so much they signed up as a client and still is a client today.
Once the founder created a better electronic medical billing solution, he realized he also had to make the system affordable to all size practices and billing services. So he incorporated a low setup fee to cover the costs of getting new customers started and implemented a low monthly fee to cover the costs of system usage, software updates and maintenance, and customer support, and clearinghouse fees. This way, the pricing would accommodate businesses of all sizes.
The end result was CollaborateMD - an Internet-based practice management and medical billing solution that is simple, efficient, and affordable. The first customer started using CollaborateMD in January 2000. Today, we have users in every state in the country.