Shopping for a new EHR for your behavioral health organization is a confusing process. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the options.
Today, we’ll do a side-by-side comparison of two good behavioral health EHR choices: Kipu and Behave Health.
First we’ll look at the types of organizations that can best benefit from each platform. Next, we’ll analyze how each softwares’ EHR, CRM and RCM compare. Finally, we’ll zero in on some key differences in the two platforms that may just be deal-breakers for some customers.
Kipu and Behave Health Serve Slightly Different Customers
On its website, Kipu states that it serves:
Addiction treatment centers
Behavioral health organizations
OTPs, methadone clinics and other medication assisted treatment clinics
Meanwhile, Behave Health serves a much broader clientele:
Inpatient
Outpatient
Residential
Partial hospitalization and day treatment
Detox
Counseling centers
Small group practices
Halfway houses and transitional housing
Recovery community organizations
Social service agencies
Coaching and case management services
Peer recovery support services
Comparing CRM Capabilities: Kipu Versus Behave Health
Both services offer a robust CRM platform.
Unlike Behave Health, Kipu offers the ability to track and measure marketing campaigns within its CRM. Kipu also boasts an impressive number of integrations, making it easy for teams to migrate CRM work from an existing platform into the Kipu ecosystem. In this way, Kipu plays well with: Twilio, Dialogtech, CallTrackingMetrics, CallRail, Telemetrics, Constant Contact, Mailchimp, Gravity, Formstack, Google Analytics, Gmail, Outlook, Leadsbridge, ActiveCampaign, Leadformly, and IAmSober.
In contrast, Behave Health is designed around quick admissions with instant VOBs and automated referral tracking. Behave Health also features an integrated patient check in and check out to automate accountability and keep patients on track with their recovery.
EMR Comparison: Both Kipu and Behave Health Offer the Same Core Clinical Features
When it comes to building an EMR (sometimes called an EHR), Behave Health and Kipu have both focused on similar capabilities.
Both platforms deal in the clinical “bread and butter” of behavioral health: assessments, treatment planning, group notes, integrated drug testing results and progress notes. Both offer a patient dashboard where patients can track their own progress and access patient-facing documentation at any time. Both vendors offer instant VOBs. Both platforms can handle telehealth appointments with ease. Both measure outcomes and can create smart reports for data driven decision making. Both offer patient dashboards.
Kipu can generate statements of medication necessity and medical necessity documentation reports (or MNDRs) automatically.
Both Kipu and Behave Health can preform outcomes tracking using the National Association of Addiction Treatment Profressional’s (NAATP) FoRSE Treatment Outcomes Program.
Unlike Kipu, Behave Health can handle direct-to-pharmacy prescribing, medication inventory and ultra efficient med pass workflows. Behave Health also offers bed management, vehicle management, property management and online payment capability for patients.
RCM Comparison: Behave Health and Kipu Have a Big Difference in How They Handle Billing
While there are some differences in how Kipu and Behave Health approach EMR functionality and CRM capabilities, the biggest differences between the two services emerge when you compare how these vendors handle their respective RCMs.
While Kipu offers the same slick, automated VOBs that Behave Health delivers, that’s where the similarities end. Kipu offers “workflows to support your billing” - like automated utilization reviews, automated claim creation, automated claims submissions and automated claims follow-up - but they do not actually offer a meaningful billing service. They support in-house billing efforts but they don’t replace them. Instead, Kipu expects you to maintain your own billing staff at your organization.
Behave Health, on the other hand, offers a robust billing service that is designed to make in-house billing a thing of the past. From utilization reviews, to collections, patient responsibility, denials and appeals, Behave Health’s billing specialists manage relationships with the top insurance payers so that you don’t have to.
Another Key Difference Between Behave Health and Kipu: Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Kipu offers a CRM, EMR and RCM. Behave Health offers the same, with an additional service, as well. Behavioral health enterprise resource planning (or ERP) is a suite of capabilities not available with Kipu.
Behave Health’s ERP includes:
Property management
Human resources
Community organizations contacts
Vendor contacts
Maintenance, cleaning and other operations scheduling
Ready to Try Behave Health? We’re Here to Help.
Behave Health is committed to making it easier - and more profitable - to operate evidence-based, results-focused addiction treatment centers.
Our all-in-one app puts clinical, administration, staff, admissions, alumni, residents, treatment plans, billing, insurance authorizations and more - all at your fingertips.
Get your free trial started today and see why more addiction treatment centers prefer Behave Health.
PS. Just getting started with behavioral health? Need help with certification, too? Behave Health can also help direct you to the right resources for help with Licensing or Accreditation by either The Joint Commission or CARF. Mention to your product specialist that you’re interested in this service after you start your free trial!