subject: What Physicians Should Look For In A Call Center [print this page] Busy physician practices often rely on the services of a call center to route their incoming calls. While this has become an ideal method, there are certain things you want to look out for before you contract with any company. The call center will be the first point of contact for your patients, and other professionals. They should know exactly what to say and how to deal with your clients. By carefully selecting a company that has industry experience, you will ensure that a professional image is displayed for your clinic.
Some companies hire call center representatives that have customer service work experience in retail areas. While this certainly helps, you need a company with medical industry experience. The people answering your calls need to be able to communicate with professionals on all levels, and should understand that patients may not always know who they're looking for when they call. The representative should be trained in the medical area enough to recognize keywords that will prompt them to direct the call to the proper person.
The call center should also have HIPAA compliance training as part of their normal employee orientation program. Because they will deal with patients over the phone, it is essential that they understand privacy laws and how to keep patient information confidential. This is one of the main things that you should look for in a company and, one of the most important. Serious and repeat violations of HIPAA compliance laws could not only leave you without a medical practice, it could also tarnish your name in the industry. When you speak with the call center managers, ask them what steps they take to ensure that patient information is kept private, and if staff are required to sign off on a HIPAA training document.
Finding the right service to handle your calls can be difficult. If you have a particular company in mind, but are unsure about their services, ask if they could refer you to a few of their customers. They should be able to do this for you without a problem, and if not, you could check them out with the Better Business Bureau. The main goal is to make sure that the company you ultimately hire is reputable, and very experienced. Because your customers personal information and safety is on the line, you should do as much research on the company as possible.
