A reliable medical answering service is essential for any healthcare organization taking after-hours calls. With the right service, healthcare providers can streamline their operations, improve patient satisfaction, and enhance overall efficiency. But with so many options available, how do you choose the best medical answering service for your healthcare organization?
Keep reading to understand why existing answering solutions may be subpar—and gain strategies for finding the perfect service for your organization.
The problem with the status quo
Most healthcare organizations’ strategies for handling after-hours calls, including call centers and call triaging, are outdated. However, there are common issues that most providers face with their current call triaging systems, including:
- Lack of customization: Many medical answering services offer a one-size-fits-all approach, which may not meet your organization’s specific needs. This can lead to missed calls, provider dissatisfaction, and patient confusion.
- Poor communication: Medical information needs to be communicated accurately. When relying on people with no medical training to answer calls, organizations risk getting information that’s inaccurate or incomplete.
- Limited availability: Many medical answering services only work during certain times, which can be problematic for healthcare organizations that need to take calls outside regular business hours. This can result in frustrated patients and delayed care.
- Lack of integration: Some medical answering services don’t integrate with practice management (PM) and electronic health record (EHR) systems. That means staff and clinicians must manually document calls, which can lead to inefficiencies and errors.
Why do patients want a better after-hours answering experience?
Common answering services like call centers often frustrate patients, especially when they encounter long hold times and impersonal interactions. Moreover, most call center workers are not trained medical professionals, so they can’t answer a patient’s medical questions. And if patients feel like their needs aren’t being fully met or understood, they may hesitate to reach out for help in the future.
Instead, patients want to be able to reach their provider directly and have peace of mind knowing their provider is always within reach. When an urgent situation comes up outside normal business hours, patients want to be able to talk to someone immediately. This level of accessibility and convenience can improve patient satisfaction and loyalty, and it can strengthen the patient-provider relationship. With a sophisticated medical answering service, patients can trust that their healthcare needs will be met promptly and efficiently, making it a valuable investment for both patients and healthcare organizations alike.
How to choose the right medical answering service for your organization
Most medical answering services leave much to be desired, especially when it comes to solving providers’ most pressing problems and meeting patients’ expectations. If your organization is ready to find a better way to handle after-hours calls, take these steps as you look for a new vendor.
- Evaluate your practice’s needs: Before diving into the selection process, assess your organization’s unique requirements. Consider factors such as call volume, after-hours coverage, and specialty-specific workflows. Mapping out your needs before starting research will help you narrow down your options and find a service that aligns with your goals.
- Look for a HIPAA-compliant solution: Patient privacy and data security are paramount in healthcare. When choosing a medical answering service, make sure that they are fully compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which means that they have the necessary safeguards in place to protect patient information and maintain confidentiality.
- Consider call-handling capabilities: Efficient call handling is essential for a medical answering service. Look for features such as call triaging, where calls are prioritized based on urgency, and automatic documentation, which ports notes directly into your EHR. Additionally, consider whether the service offers secure text messaging capabilities, allowing for HIPAA-compliant communication with patients.
- Assess integration options: To streamline your practice’s workflows, it’s important to choose a medical answering service that integrates seamlessly with your existing systems. Look for services that can integrate with your EHR system, scheduling software, and other essential tools. This integration will ensure a smooth flow of information and minimize manual data entry.
- Evaluate customer support: A reliable medical answering service should provide excellent customer support. Consider the service’s availability, response time and the level of support they offer. Look for a service that has a dedicated client support team to address any issues or concerns you may have.
- Read reviews and seek recommendations: One of the best ways to gauge a service’s quality is by reading reviews and seeking recommendations from other healthcare professionals. Look for testimonials from healthcare organizations like yours and consider their experiences with the service. This will give you valuable insights into the service’s reliability and performance.
- Pricing and contract terms: While cost shouldn’t be the sole determining factor for the medical answering service you choose, it’s still important to consider pricing and contract terms. You should also investigate whether the answering service is a point solution or if it’s part of a larger service package that can help you with other challenges, such as patient intake or time-of-service payments.
How to get buy-in for a new medical answering service
Once you have thoroughly researched and selected a medical answering service, it’s important to gain buy-in from your staff and colleagues. Share what you learned during the research process, including potential benefits for clinicians and patients, customer support options, and other services included with the answering service. Involving your team in the decision-making process can help to create a smoother transition to the new service.
Another important strategy is to ask for a free trial so your staff can experience the service firsthand before committing to it over the long term. This will allow them to see the benefits in action and provide feedback for any necessary adjustments.
Overall, clear communication and involvement of your team in the decision-making process can help to gain buy-in for a new medical answering service and ensure its successful implementation in your healthcare organization.
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