Artificial Intelligence: An Exciting New Frontier for the NEMT Industry

Patient welfare is paramount in the non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) industry. NEMT providers must do everything possible to ensure clients are comfortable during their rides to and from their doctors’ appointments. However, NEMT providers have many other aspects of running the business that demand their attention, which may cause them to split focus and become less efficient. 

If you are an NEMT business owner, having a tool to help with organizational tasks and managing processes is absolutely necessary—which is where NEMT software comes in. The latest generation of such software is even more impressive due to the integration of artificial intelligence (AI). This exciting new technology has found versatile applications across industries, and the NEMT industry is no different.

Contents:

• The Dawn of AI-Enabled Transportation
• How AI is Revolutionizing the NEMT Industry
• Three Ways AI Transforms Routing and Scheduling
• Challenges of Using AI for NEMT Businesses
• Grow Your NEMT Business with AI-Powered Software

The Dawn of AI-Enabled Transportation

AI in transportation is experiencing a surge in popularity. In September 2023, a report on the global AI in the transportation industry from Precedence Research stated that its market size was valued at $3 billion two years ago and is expected to reach around $23.11 billion by 2032.

AI-powered autonomous vehicles have captured the public’s imagination from the earliest days of science fiction. Technology has finally caught up, and today's AI programs are capable of impressive feats of human-like understanding. Using computer vision and object recognition, AI software capable of driving a vehicle by machine learning methods and interlinked neural networks is already on the market.

While AI’s integration into self-driving vehicles is one of the most eye-catching developments, there are several other ways that AI software has become a nearly indispensable part of the transportation industry. Transport providers, like NEMT businesses, for example, can rely on AI to analyze large volumes of data to draw actionable insights on how to optimize their driving operations. 

How AI is Revolutionizing the NEMT Industry

NEMT businesses perform a very specialized service. Each client could have a unique set of requirements relating to their medical condition, and it's up to the NEMT providers to ensure they have a comfortable experience. In addition to keeping track of this critical information, NEMT business owners also need to monitor a multitude of minute details to perform at their peak.

AI-enhanced NEMT software helps improve operational efficiency in several key areas. 

• Positive Patient Experiences: AI delivers a higher level of personalization for clients, along with accurate journey tracking, shorter wait times, and more flexibility while booking rides.
• Reliable Data Capture: medical transportation businesses generate lots of data with every patient trip they complete. While it is beyond the power of a human employee to manually capture the data and prepare it for analysis, AI software can do the task with ease.
• Cost Savings: AI software helps transport businesses reduce fuel and time wastage by optimizing routes and processes, which leads to a quantifiable decrease in operational costs.

It’s becoming readily apparent that NEMT businesses must embrace AI technology to remain competitive. The North American NEMT market is set for rapid growth at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.0% from 2022 to 2028, and companies that embrace an AI transformation for NEMT software will be at the forefront of that success.

Three Ways AI Transforms Routing and Scheduling

Efficient routing and scheduling operations are the secret to a successful transportation business. Before NEMT software reached its current impressive functionality thanks to AI, routing, scheduling, and dispatch were all performed manually by human operators. Unfortunately, this meant these key processes were at risk of being compromised by human error.

Relying on AI to take over routing and scheduling removes the likelihood of inaccuracies. It will also let your company access valuable new features like the ones covered below.

1. AI for Route Optimization 

NEMT software can analyze traffic conditions based on predictive analytics. Driving data, such as the route taken by your vehicles, can be captured and then used to refine the process even further. AI-enhanced route optimization helps avoid delays or obstacles while ensuring patients ride to their appointments on time.

2. In-Depth Analysis With AI

Predictive analytics will completely reshape how your NEMT business plans its next phase of operations. These forecasts are drawn from reliable transportation data to identify the high-demand areas and the most- and least-crowded days of the week. This manner of predicting demand for non-emergency patient transportation services helps you make proactive decisions about resource allocation. 

3. Real-Time, Dynamic Scheduling

Scheduling is central to your NEMT business if you want it to run smoothly. Regardless of the size of your fleet, AI-powered scheduling processes will help increase your efficiency. AI software creates the optimal schedule by weighing multiple factors, including patient preferences, carrying capacity, medical equipment onboard, and driver availability.

Challenges of Using AI for NEMT Businesses

While AI can give your business a strong boost, switching to AI doesn’t happen overnight. There are several challenges you will have to overcome while undergoing an AI transformation, including:

• Covering set-up and subscription costs for NEMT software
• Training employees to use the software
• Ensuring the software is compliant with cyber-security regulations

These hurdles, along with general resistance to new technology and changes in work methods, present the most significant obstacles. 

Grow Your NEMT Business with AI-Powered Software

Finding a technological solution that works for your non-emergency medical transport business is like putting the final piece of a puzzle in place—everything comes together. If you want to take your NEMT services to the next level, opt for the best NEMT software for businesses of any size, RouteGenie. 

Whether you’re a small-scale NEMT provider with only two vehicles in a fleet or a much larger one with a fleet numbering in the dozens, RouteGenie will help you discover a better way of running an NEMT business