Introduction
In healthcare and other highly regulated industries, documents aren’t just paperwork – they’re the lifeblood of operations. Referrals, lab results, prior auths, consent forms… they all drive critical workflows. But when those documents are handled manually – printed, scanned, routed, rekeyed – it slows everything down.
Manual document processes:
- Drain administrative time
- Increase the risk of errors and compliance issues
- Delay patient care and service delivery
If you’re serious about modernizing how your organization works, Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) is one of the most important technologies to understand. It doesn’t just digitize paper – it turns documents into structured, usable data that can flow automatically across systems.
And when paired with a Cloud Fax API like Documo’s, IDP becomes the connective tissue that powers fully automated, end-to-end document workflows.
Table of Contents
What Is IDP?
Intelligent Document Processing is a technology stack that enables systems to read, interpret, and process documents automatically. It combines components like OCR (Optical Character Recognition), machine learning, and natural language processing to turn static files into structured, usable data.
At Documo, IDP is a key part of our fax and document automation platform – helping organizations reduce manual effort, improve accuracy, and streamline compliance-heavy workflows.
Understanding the Core Components of IDP
Let’s break down the three foundational layers of any intelligent document workflow: OCR, classification, and extraction.
1. OCR
What it does: OCR converts scanned documents, images, or faxes into machine-readable text.
Why it matters: It’s the first step in making a document actionable. Without OCR, a document is just an image – unsearchable, uneditable, and uncopy-able.
How Documo helps: Documo applies advanced OCR to ensure even handwriting, low-resolution, and distorted faxes can be reliably converted to text. Converting images into machine readable text unlocks the rest of the automation process.
2. Classification
What it does: Classification identifies the type of document being processed.
Why it matters: Knowing whether a document is a patient referral, a lab report, or a consent form is critical to routing it to the correct workflow or department.
How Documo helps: We train custom classification models tailored to your document types and business logic. Documo also offers a community model that can differentiate among very common healthcare document types. Classifying your documents ensures your faxes and uploaded documents can be prioritized, sorted, and sent to the right place – saving time and reducing errors.
3. Data Extraction
What it does: Extraction pulls key fields or information from a document.
Why it matters: Instead of retyping patient names, identification numbers, or birth dates, teams can automate that data flow directly into their systems.
How Documo helps: Our IDP technology extracts structured and unstructured data from your documents with high accuracy. We focus on extracting what matters most to your workflows – securely and at scale.
Why It Matters in Healthcare and Other Regulated Industries
For healthcare providers, insurance carriers, and enterprise partners, document workflows aren’t just about productivity – they’re about compliance, security, and service delivery. Delays or errors can impact patient care or violate regulations.
With Documo’s IDP capabilities, organizations can:
- Reduce time spent on manual data entry
- Increase accuracy and reduce risk of human error
- Accelerate turnaround for critical communications
- Scale operations without adding administrative headcount
- Maintain HIPAA compliance and industry security standards
IDP in Action: The Documo Advantage
IDP isn’t an afterthought at Documo – it’s embedded in the core of how we manage faxes and document workflows, end to end.
Whether you’re modernizing healthcare communication, streamlining outdated processes, or scaling a white-labeled fax solution, our native IDP tools are built to flex with your needs – and grow alongside your business.
But more importantly, Documo helps give time back to the people who need it most – frontline staff, administrators, and care teams.
By turning document tasks that used to take minutes into seconds, we eliminate the need for manual sorting, rekeying, and routing. That means less time buried in paperwork, and more time focused on delivering care.
When every minute counts, automation isn’t just a productivity gain – it’s how you protect your staff’s time, reduce burnout, and create space for meaningful patient interactions.
