prompter: Why do doctors still use fax machines?

assistant: There are a number of reasons why medical doctors may still use fax machine. Fax machines are HIPAA approved, so doctors can legally send patient information using them. Fax machines may also allow medical professionals to continue working in situations where other communication may be inoperative, as fax machines only need the phone lines to be intact to operate correctly. Finally, fax machines are familiar equipment to many medical professionals.

prompter: Is there a way for me to fax documents without the use of a fax machine? Is there a way for me to receive a fax without the use of a fax machine?

assistant: Yes, there are ways to send and receive faxes without the use of a physical fax machine. One popular method is to use online fax services, which allow you to send and receive faxes through the internet.

To send a fax using an online service, you typically need to upload your document to the service's website or app, enter the recipient's fax number, and then hit send. The service will then convert your document into a format that can be sent over the phone lines and transmit it to the recipient's fax machine.

To receive a fax using an online service, you can usually choose to have incoming faxes delivered to your email inbox as a PDF attachment or to view them on the service's website or app. Some services also offer the option to receive faxes via a virtual fax number, which allows you to receive faxes without the need for a physical fax machine.

Using online fax services can be a convenient and cost-effective alternative to traditional fax machines, as they typically don't require any specialized equipment and can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection.

assistant: While fax machines might seem archaic now, the truth is that many companies and organizations still use them.

This can cause real problems if you need to send a fax, but don't have access to a fax machine of your own.

Luckily, there are a variety of ways to send faxes without a fax machine. One of these options is GotFreeFax, which lets you send a limited number of pages for free, and then more for a small fee afterwards. Other options, like Send2Fax, have you pay a set price upfront to send a large number of faxes.

prompter: Are there any open-source libraries that will allow you to send faxes electronically?

assistant: Fax machines are still widely used in the healthcare industry because they are a secure and reliable way to transmit sensitive patient information. They are also a convenient way to share documents with other healthcare providers, as they can be used to send documents to multiple recipients at once. In addition, fax machines are easy to use and do not require a high level of technical knowledge, which makes them a popular choice for healthcare providers.

prompter: Is there any effort to transition the healthcare industry to use electronic documents instead of fax? None of the above are better done via fax vs via electronic documents.

assistant: Yes, for example the NHS in England transitioned away from Fax machines in 2020 after the use of Fax machines was banned. Other countries could pass similar laws for security reasons to transition away from fax machine usage in the healthcare industry.

prompter: Can I request my medical profile from my doctor's office, if so, would they fax it to me?

assistant: Because of the siloing of healthcare systems across several hospitals, Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems are limited in their usefulness to patients. Various services exist to transmit EHR records to other hospitals via encrypted connections that are compliant with HIPPA but ultimately require using fax as a master communication protocol, accumulating additional fees in the process. In fact, a 2018 survey among licensed primary care physicians who had used EHRs conducted by The Harris Poll found that 59% of physicians believed the EHR records system needed a complete overhaul while 44% believed that the EHR's were primarily used for data storage. All of this points towards inter-agency complications between EHR systems that require greater collaboration before transitioning to an electronic communication system.

It's important to note, however, that most physicians still agree that EHR systems have led to increased quality in patient care. In the future, a national EHR system similar to ones currently under construction in countries with national healthcare systems (Canada, the UK, Australia) can be instituted in the US but would likely require expansion of social nets before it is possible. There are also significant concerns expressed in US politics that a national EHR system would lead to another expansion of government scope that could be used for authoritarian purposes or that troubled persons with, for example, a history of substance abuse in the past could be permanently remembered and scrutinized by government agencies.

prompter: How do I maximize the quality of the faxes I send?