AOS vs information systems
Information systems record the work. An AOS does the work.
CRM, RIS, PACS and RCM are information systems: as the name says, they record the work.
An information system stores what happened so a person can act on it. An Agentic Operations System (AOS) completes the work, across the whole order from the referring office to the payment, and it can run on top of the systems you already run. Most imaging organizations will run both: the AOS does the work, and the information systems keep the record.
What is an AOS? →Each records its part. A person carries the order between them.
One system does the work of the whole order.
Four systems, four jobs
A CRM is a system of relationships. A RIS is a system of orders. An RCM is a system of claims. An AOS is a system of work.
A relationship records who sends. An order records what should happen. A claim records what did. An AOS makes it happen.
The four compared
| CRM | RIS | RCM | AOS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Answers the question | Who refers to us, and how much? | What is booked and who is the patient? | What was billed and what was paid? | Is the work done? |
| Unit of value | A relationship | An order | A claim | A completed transaction |
| What staff do | Log visits and calls | Enter and retrieve | Submit and chase | Handle exceptions |
| Scope | Before the order | The order and the schedule | After the exam | The whole order, referring office to payment |
| When volume doubles | Hire liaisons | Hire | Hire | Cost per transaction falls |
| Primary constraint | Staff capacity | Staff capacity | Staff capacity | Exception rate |
AOS vs RIS (radiology information system)
A RIS is a system of orders. It holds the patient, the order, the schedule and the exam, and it is where an imaging center keeps its record of each one. It does that job well, and it should keep doing it.
It records the work but doesn’t do it. Every faxed order is keyed into it by hand. Every open slot waits for someone to call a patient. Every order that stalls waits in a work queue until someone gets to it.
An AOS does the work the RIS records. It reads the fax and creates the order, reaches the patient to book, and settles coverage and authorization before the exam.
Your team reviews the work instead of re-keying it.
AOS vs RCM (revenue cycle management)
An RCM is a system of claims. It creates and submits the claim, posts the remittance, and tracks what was billed and what was paid.
It meets the order after the exam, when a missing authorization or a wrong insurance has already become a denial. By then the fix is a person working the denial, often weeks later.
An AOS starts the revenue cycle at the order. Eligibility, estimates and prior authorization are settled before the exam, so the claim the RCM submits is right the first time.
Coverage and authorization are fixed before the exam, not discovered after the claim.
AOS vs CRM for referral management
A CRM is a system of relationships. It records which referring offices send, how much they send, and every visit and call a liaison makes.
It records the relationship but doesn’t serve it. The order still arrives by fax, the office still calls to ask where it stands, and the report still has to find its way back.
An AOS does the clerical half of the referring relationship: it receives the order in whatever form it arrives, reports its progress to the office, and returns the report and the images when the read is signed.
We don’t read the scan. We make sure it gets back.
Why one information system isn’t enough
How many people you can hire and train is what limits all three incumbent categories. Consolidating them into a single system is a real improvement (fewer products, cleaner data, better visibility) but it does not touch that limit. Consolidation makes a staffed operation more efficient. An AOS changes what the staff are for.
Every system you add is another place for work to leak.
Keep your systems of record
An AOS can run on top of the information systems an imaging organization already runs. It does the work, and the CRM, the RIS and the RCM keep the record.
Most teams start with review on: the agent does the work, and your team reviews it. As each flow proves itself, review comes off: the routine work completes on its own, and your people handle the exceptions.
Review first. Let it finish when you’re ready.
Questions about the AOS and information systems
Does an AOS work with a RIS?
It can run on top of the systems you already run. An AOS does the work of the order, and the radiology information system (RIS) keeps the record.
Is an AOS a RIS with AI added?
No. Most AI in information systems suggests; a person still does the work. An AOS is built so that agents do the work and people handle the exceptions, across the whole order rather than inside one system.
What is the difference between an AOS and an RCM?
An RCM records claims and payments after the exam. An AOS does the work that decides whether the claim gets paid, starting at the order: eligibility, estimates and prior authorization, settled before the patient arrives.
Do we still need a CRM if we have an AOS?
The CRM keeps the record of the referring relationship. The AOS does the clerical work of serving it: taking the order, reporting its progress and returning the report. Many imaging centers keep both.
What is an information system?
Software that stores and displays operational information so a person can act on it. CRM, RIS, PACS and RCM are information systems: as the name says, they record the work.
Gravity is the Agentic Operations System (AOS) for your CRM, RIS and RCM.
It gets the order, completes the exam and gets it paid, so no referral, no order and no revenue leaks away.
More than 460 imaging centers across the US run 5.7 million imaging orders a year through Gravity, from the referral to the payment.
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