Breaking New Ground

Daman uses robotic process automation to cut adminstration processing times

The National Health Insurance Company Daman has announced that it has managed to cut the administrative processing times for a number of its key operations by almost half, following the successful introduction of robotic technology to its IT infrastructure.

By implementing robotic process automation (RPA) technology, Daman has significantly reduced processing times for a number of key customer requests, including the time taken to process a member addition to a Thiqa policy, such as a new-born infant, from around two and a half hours to just under one hour. Using RPA also reduces the amount of time it takes to cancel a member from a policy, such as in the case of a departing employee, from about one hour to just over 30 minutes.

Hamad Al Mehyas, Chief Executive Officer of the National Health Insurance Company — Daman, said: “These exceptional results are the product of our continued investment in our robust IT Infrastructure, aimed at placing modern digital solutions as the backbone of our operations and customer service offerings. Robotics represent the future of the health insurance industry.”

Rashed Al Neyadi, Information Technology Executive Director at Daman, commented: “We continue to be overwhelmed by the positive response from our customers on our evolving digital service offering. The investments we have made in RPA technology reflect our commitment to providing the best possible customer experience. Daman’s consistent focus on technology has seen, in recent months and years, the launch of smart online branches, sustained enhancements to the Daman and Thiqa applications, and broader improvements to our existing digital offerings.”

In the first half of 2021, Daman completed over 700,000 RPA-supported transactions for policy-holders and members. Currently, Daman has deployed 39 RPA bots across its network, a third of which run on a 24/7 basis, with the rest activated whenever their respective processes are requested. As Daman celebrates its 15-year anniversary, the company continues to lead the industry in the adoption of ground-breaking technological innovations. Over the years, Daman has launched a number of industry first innovations. Recently, the company has invested in a diverse range of digital initiatives, including a partnership with Microsoft to enable an AI-powered online bot that provides self-assessment of Covid-19 symptoms, and more recently, the launch of its fully digital smart branch service, Hayakom, to provide members with online access to its full range of in-branch services. Daman’s IT services and capabilities are ISO 20000 certified for quality management. It is the first health insurer in the region to receive the certification, demonstrating the company’s continued investment and development of innovative digital services and technical infrastructure which provides members, medical facilities, and business partners with seamless service access.

It is the first health insurer in the region to receive the certification, demonstrating the company’s continued investment and development of innovative digital services and technical infrastructure which provides members, medical facilities, and business partners with seamless service access.