{"id":1610,"date":"2026-05-12T13:18:57","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T13:18:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.petal-health.com\/?p=1610"},"modified":"2026-05-12T13:27:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T13:27:47","slug":"why-healthcare-still-uses-fax","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.petal-health.com\/fr\/blog\/clinicians\/why-healthcare-still-uses-fax\/","title":{"rendered":"Why fax machines still exist in healthcare (and 3 other outdated tools that need to go)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Key takeaways<\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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  1. Legacy tools persist despite better alternatives:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0Fax machines and pagers\u00a0remain\u00a0embedded due to interoperability gaps, regulatory familiarity, and workflow inertia\u2014not because\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0efficient.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Administrative friction is the bigger hidden cost:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0Manual scheduling and paper-based intake systems quietly consume hours, introduce errors, and delay care across the\u00a0patient\u00a0journey.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Modernization delivers immediate operational gains:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0Replacing outdated tools improves coordination and seamlessly unlocks time across care teams.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    Fax machines still exist in healthcare because they solve interoperability gaps, are widely accepted for compliance, and are deeply embedded in clinical workflows.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    But they persist\u00a0at\u00a0the cost of efficiency.\u00a0As communication\u00a0slows\u00a0and\u00a0administrative\u00a0burden increases,\u00a0care\u00a0becomes\u00a0delayed.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Things change.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0inevitable, especially in healthcare. Processes change, people move on, and\u00a0technology\u00a0becomes obsolete.\u00a0Obsolete not because the use case no longer exists, but because a better solution was developed.\u00a0At the turn of the 20<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0Century,\u00a0we still had to get from point A to point B, but we were quickly speeding into the age of the automobile instead of a horse and buggy.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Now, physicians in Canada are losing\u00a0<\/span>nearly\u00a020\u00a0million hours\u00a0annually<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to admin burden.\u00a0And with\u00a0<\/span>53% of physicians<\/span><\/a>\u00a0saying admin workload has increased in the past 12 months, we need to reduce the trend before even\u00a0<\/span>more physicians become burnt-out<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The reality is that\u00a0countless\u00a0healthcare\u00a0organizations\u00a0still rely on tools that\u00a0haven\u2019t\u00a0meaningfully evolved in decades, even if better tools and systems have been created to do it better.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Fax machines. Pagers. Paper forms. Manual scheduling logs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    These systems persist not because\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0efficient, but because\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0deeply embedded. They sit at the intersection of compliance, habit, and fragmented infrastructure,\u00a0making them difficult to replace, even when better options exist\u00a0that save time, money, and expand access to care.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Understanding why\u00a0they\u2019ve\u00a0lasted this long is the first step to replacing them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    1) <\/span>Why do fax machines still exist in healthcare<\/span>?<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    Fax machines still exist because they act as a universal communication method across disconnected healthcare systems.\u00a0They\u2019re\u00a0considered\u00a0compliant\u00a0and are embedded in long-standing workflows.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Fax machines are\u00a0one of\u00a0the most visible symbols\u00a0of\u00a0healthcare\u2019s\u00a0attachment to legacy tools,\u00a0and for good reason. In an era of cloud computing,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not unusual for patient referrals, lab results, and discharge summaries to still be sent via fax.\u00a0The fax machine\u00a0was invented in 1964.\u00a0We\u2019re\u00a0still using a solution that debuted when only 3% of households had a\u00a0colour\u00a0television. Why?<\/span><\/p>\n

    Why fax persists:<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n