Increasing Office Efficiency with Automated Messaging System

Today’s medical community is busier than ever with a greater amount of pressure to see as many patients as possible in a day or to ‘empty’ beds so new patients can come in and generate revenue. The process has become business oriented which can lead to a decrease in attention and service but there is a way to help customers during and after business hours that enhances the flow and delivers the expected quality.

The top med answering services understand that doctors and nurses cannot be everywhere at the same time and the budget can only handle a certain number of administrative staff members, so the automated system can be setup to answer the phones at any time. The benefit is that patients can choose which path they need to answer their question, speak with someone or be connected immediately with a doctor after hours for emergencies. The system then routes the call to the appropriate path for patients to leave a detailed message that will be picked up and reviewed by staff in a timely manner or the on-call physician is contacted.

The automation is more reliable, avoids human error and allows the patient to put the message in their own words so no information is lost in a transfer or re-worded incorrectly. Non-urgent messages taken when the office is closed are held and then electronically delivered in a secure manner to the office as requested so they can be reviewed and prioritized. When the staff member calls back, it is with correct information that will give the patient the answer they are looking for and the entire process can be worked into a schedule so that the office can focus on these calls and deal with them efficiently. Urgent after-hours calls are handled so that the on-call schedule is utilized so the right doctor is paged/called/texted.

If there is no response then the medical practice answering service moves to the next name on the list and so forth until the patient is connected with a health professional. The doctors do not have to call back or hide their number because it is ‘masked’ for them, so the patient only sees the office number thereby protecting the physician’s privacy and security. Along with office efficiency, an affordable flat rate creates budget efficiency which opens the door to purchasing newer equipment, hiring more personnel or whatever else the office needs to create a better experience for patients.

The key to good efficiency is planning ahead and having the right tools and resources so the job can get done correctly and quickly at a quality level. This gives patients peace of mind that they are being taken care of even when no one is in the office and there needs or questions are being addressed in a timely manner. The office workflow accounts for these calls and dedicates an individual to handle so that nurses and doctors are free to focus on patient care which is exactly where it should be.

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