Background
Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust’s vision is to provide high quality, compassionate care for people living with mental ill health, autism and learning disabilities, and be the provider of choice for our patients, carers, staff and partners.
The Trust employs over 2,600 staff, working in a range of community and inpatient mental health, learning disabilities and autism services across the southwest of England.
Proactis Invoice Capture was implemented in 2018, and the Trust has been successfully using the system, working in tandem with Unit4 Business World, to process between 6,000 and 7,000 invoices a month. Avon and Wiltshire has been using Unit4 Business World for many years, and the seamless integration between Unit4 and Proactis Invoice Capture makes it the perfect system to process invoices.
How Proactis helps
The Trust adheres to the Better Payment Practice Code, that sets standards for payment practices and best practice, with the aim of paying at least 95% of invoices within agreed terms. All invoices, once approved, are now paid on the payment run prior to the invoice due date.
“We are committed to dealing fairly and professionally with all of our supplier partners. One way that we do this is by working to the Better Payment Practice Code,” explains Sam. “Thanks to Proactis, we are able to achieve the payment of at least 95% of invoices within 30 days of the date of invoice. In fact, so far this year, we have achieved 99.5% of NHS and 99.6% of non-NHS being paid within the 30 day target. This has really set the standard, and makes us one of the highest performers in the South of England.”
Through the introduction of document scanning and the import of PDF invoices, purchase invoices can be scanned with the invoice information extracted and validated. Bringing in invoices, already scanned, checked and matched, means that they now drop straight into Unit4 with a huge amount of the checking already done, and without the need for manual scanning.
“This has proved hugely helpful, as many of our employees work off site, and our processes can still run smoothly with suppliers being paid quickly and efficiently.”
Benefits
The control that comes with automatically capturing, scanning and importing invoices improves the resolution of non-compliant invoices and drives transparency throughout the process, and significantly reduces wasted time and money previously spent on discrepancies. “This means that our colleagues can focus on more valuable activities such as reconciling accounts.”
By combining Proactis Invoice Capture with Unit4, many accounts payable (AP) processes have been automated. Invoice processing has become more streamlined and manageable, enabling seamless, straight-through processing. In alignment with the Better Payment Practice Code, Sam and the Finance team collaborate closely with the Procurement team to ensure suppliers are paid on time while, on occasion, also negotiating discounts for early payments.
"Proactis Invoice Capture has greatly improved our efficiency," Sam concluded. "It has not only automated and enhanced invoice processing, but it has also significantly reduced both the costs and time involved, leading to exceptional process efficiency. And we are safe in the knowledge that the Proactis team is there to help and support us whenever we need it."