What are APIs and how can they benefit your therapy practice?

It’s Friday night, which means takeout for dinner and quality couch time. You pull up your favorite food delivery app and scan your neighborhood options, including the nearby deals and available promotions. How does the app know what restaurants are close to you AND tonight’s menu specials? How does it then send your order to the restaurant, take payment and track the driver?  

Answer to all the above: APIs.

API stands for Application Programming Interface and its primary purpose is to provide a way for different software applications to communicate.

Talking about software development can feel overwhelming so we will keep it simple to ensure you take full advantage of this essential technology. In fact, in a recent study, 83% of those surveyed found API integration “critical to business strategy” based on responses by nearly 400 integration professionals and IT executives. Without APIs, your software applications would be unable to communicate. Software systems use APIs to interact with each other in the same way that we use the screen to interact with our cellphone. 

It may be helpful to think of an API as a delivery truck that moves data between the software applications or data sources. APIs are the vehicles that connect each request or query to the data source that holds the answer behind their doors. When a query is made, the API delivers the request to the application, collects the response, and then returns the relevant data to the user.  

Now that you understand what an API is, you may be thinking- what can I do with this? Here are 4 ways APIs can benefit your therapy practice. 

4 Benefits of APIs:

Efficiency: Providing API access allows for data to be collected once and to be automatically made available for many other uses. This can improve data quality and support more efficient data migration. 

Automation: APIs allow machines to handle workflows, which would otherwise require the manual work of a human.  APIs enable not just your staff but also your business to update processes so that they can be done with fewer steps and human error. 

Integration: With APIs, data can be more easily utilized throughout your CRM and other applications for an integrated user experience. Streamline your business operations and simplify staff training by reducing the number of software systems that are used in their day to day.  

Scalability: As your practice grows, so do your software needs.  With APIs, developers can quickly implement new products and services using existing functionality instead of creating each solution from scratch. This quick turnaround time enables practice owners to create new revenue streams as opportunities come up.  

Whether you are ordering spring rolls for dinner or managing a growing multi-disciplinary therapy practice, APIs are essential in making your life easier.  

Curious as to how APIs and TotalTherapy can streamline your practice specifically? Book a demo today!