Artificial intelligence (AI) has come a long way just in the last five years. So much so that AI communication solutions are popping up all over the place. From text-based chatbots to AI-powered computer phone operators, AI is changing the way businesses manage communicating with customers. However, AI phone solutions are not necessarily a good choice for the medical industry.
Medical offices, particularly primary care and GP offices, communicate with callers on a different plane. Those callers are customers in a business sense. But in a medical sense, they are human beings with legitimate health needs. They require a level of communication that is not easily achievable with AI, despite the advancements AI has made over the years.
Responding to Emotional Cues
Rarely does a patient call a medical office just to say ‘hi’ or thank the office staff for doing such a wonderful job. Most calls are directly related to ongoing medical needs. Why does that matter? Because a skilled receptionist can do something no AI-powered machine can do – respond to emotional cues.
AI is not capable of identifying emotions like frustration, fear, urgency, or anger. Imagine a parent calling the doctor’s office because a child has fallen and injured herself. An AI operator can analyze words and respond with generic prompts from a script, but it cannot recognize the urgency in the parent’s voice – urgency that would prompt a human operator to recommend visiting the ER.
Medical answering services staffed by real human beings have the ability to identify and respond to emotional cues. Answering service operators are the next best option to speaking directly with medical office staff.
Not Good With Complex Questions
Another big downfall with AI is its inability to deal with complex medical questions. Simple things, like scheduling or modifying appointments, are easy enough for AI systems. But suppose a patient has a question about billing, insurance, and payment discrepancies? The chances are that even the best AI-powered system will not be able to help.
One of the big reasons AI fails in this regard is a lack of context. AI solutions can only respond based on the information given. An AI chatbot doesn’t know or understand a patient’s history. It is not programmed with the latest updates in medical terminology, billing practices, and so forth. And without proper context, complex questions are simply too big an ask.
Instead of providing accurate and comprehensive answers, an AI system is left working its way through a script deemed appropriate to the call. Oftentimes, that means patients hearing the same prompts time and again. It means receiving the same pat answers that offer no real value. This only serves to frustrate patients.
Give Patients What They Want
Fairness dictates admitting that AI tools can enhance the way medical offices handle their phones. There is no need to ban them altogether. But surveys continue to indicate the patients want to speak with live operators when they call. Why not give them what they want?
Such is our goal here at Apello. As an answering service specializing in medical calls, we know what it takes to foster trust and loyalty among patients. We offer a variety of services covering everything from taking messages to forwarding calls to providing basic triage.
Our human operators can do what no AI-driven tool can. And from our perspective, that makes all the difference in the world. Here’s hoping you agree. If so, why not take a few minutes to learn more about Apello services? We could prove to be the only medical answering service you will ever need.
