subject: A Medical Call Center Meets the Needs of Patients and Physicians [print this page] Medical practices and their patients have specialized needs and unique expectations when it comes to telephone calls. Patients who call their physician or specialist expect to receive an extremely high level of personalized care. Medical facilities are responsible for meeting their patients' needs as well as complying with very specific privacy and security laws.
Only a professional call center that specializes in the health care field will meet the requirements of both patients and medical practices. Generic phone answering services aren't likely to be trained in HIPPA specifics. Operators who serve all types of businesses won't have the in-depth, industry-specific training that enables medical call center operators to converse with patients in helpful, appropriate ways.
HIPPA addresses patients' rights to security and confidentiality regarding their personal medical histories. Anyone answering phone calls placed to a medical facility must be trained to ensure the privacy of every caller and patient. In addition, a medical answering service must utilize appropriately secured methods of transmitting patients' personal information. Regular answering services aren't likely to meet these very specific legal requirements.
A professional call center hires and trains staff that can provide the high level of personalized service patients expect from physicians. Medical call center operators can manage after-hours, weekend or holiday calls as knowledgeable, experienced medical practice representatives. They can manage emergency calls appropriately, set up appointments, verify insurance claims information and perform other tasks specific to a medical practice.
Regardless of the level of service a physician's office is seeking from an answering service, a specialized call center will meet their needs. Operators can answer the
phone professionally, provide information, take messages or make emergency contacts as needed. Virtually every aspect of patient service that is routinely handled over the phone by a medical practice's full-time, regular staff can be carried out by a quality medical call center service.
A Medical Call Center Meets the Needs of Patients and Physicians
