Medical answering services are usually thought of in the context of patient satisfaction and safety. A practice signs on with a live answering service in order to better serve patients. But there is another side to the coin: practice staff. Their experiences with the phones can be equally impactful.
We worked with plenty of clients whose office staff struggled to answer the phones before we came along to lend a hand. In the most challenging cases, office staff had to answer phone calls in addition to other duties that, at times, seemed more pressing. In every situation of this type, there are staff pain points that live answering services directly address. Let us look at three of them.
1. Competing Priorities
Office staff hired as reception have two key priorities: greeting visitors and answering the phones. The two tasks are fairly manageable. But when office staff have other responsibilities to attend to, incoming phone calls become a problem.
- The Pain Point: Being constantly interrupted by a persistently ringing phone. Offer staff struggle to check in patients, verify insurance information, and process co-pays.
- The Impact: Both office workers and patients find themselves frustrated. There is too much to do and not enough time, resources, or people to get it all done.
A medical answering service directly addresses competing priorities by eliminating them. A service like Apello can take call overflow or handle all the practice’s calls entirely. Either way, office staff are no longer forced to divide their attention between calls and other priorities.
2. High Call Volumes
During peak hours of the day, a practice’s phones can ring off the hook. Early mornings, just before lunch, and right near the end of the day bring the biggest challenges.
- The Pain Point: Too many calls in a short period can lead to backlogs, call overflow, and calls that are entirely missed or abandoned. Voicemail systems can quickly become overwhelmed.
- The Impact: Calls left unanswered equates to missed opportunities for bringing on new patients. They also represent dissatisfaction among existing patients who cannot get through. They take their frustrations out on office staff.
A medical answering service directly addresses this pain point by ensuring that all calls are answered regardless of volume. Even at peak times, patients are greeted by a friendly voice. They get answers to their questions, solutions to their problems, or whatever else they need.
3. Daily Call Triage
Many of the calls that come into a practice are considered routine. Others are not. It is up to whoever answers the phone to perform triage. As triage needs become more complex, receptionists and multi-tasking office staff struggle to keep up.
- The Pain Point: Triage is for the benefit of both patient and practice. For office staff, there is a fine line to walk while providing triage. Patient health and safety are the priority, but office protocols and HIPAA compliance cannot be ignored either.
- The Impact: Poor triage tends to lead to unnecessary physician interruptions for non-critical issues. It can also lead to delayed care for patients facing a critical situation.
A medical answering service directly addresses this pain point by handling triage professionally and to the highest possible standard. At Apello, all our medical agents are fully trained and competent in triage.
It is true that incoming phone calls offer plenty of pain points for callers. But there are just as many pain points for office staff trying to balance the phones with other priorities. If your practice is struggling with that balance, perhaps it’s time to turn your phones over to Apello.
