5 Service Parameters That A Medical Office Should Expect From A Quality Answering Service
When you run a medical office, you provide your patients with something more than just healthcare services. You sell them assurance alongside every service that you provide and this is how you create an environment of trust and reliability which works to build client loyalty. By hiring an answering service, you will not only be able to re-enforce your promise, but you and your staff will also be able to focus on fulfilling your key obligation- providing quality care to your patients. Here are 5 things that you should look for in an answering service:
- Availability: A medical office or a hospital is meant to operate on a 24/7 basis with doctors, nurses, technicians, and other clinical staff being available whenever they are called for. Similarly, your phones should be answered any time so that your patients can access you whenever they need to. A quality answering service comes equipped with advanced technologies and backup power, allowing you to remain accessible to your patients at any time of the day.
- Personalized Solutions: Your medical office is different from your competitors’ offices. Likewise, every medical situation is unique. So you should make sure that your calls are handled in an appropriate manner, in accordance with your service requirements. This may include the use of customized message formats and scripts and situation-based customized call handling.
- HIPAA Compliance: When you deliver healthcare services to your patients, you promise to safeguard their personal information. Likewise, your answering service should also respect the confidentiality of your patients’ information by upholding uncompromised levels of HIPAA compliance. By choosing to work with a HIPAA-compliant answering service, you eliminate the risk of data leakage and make sure that your patients’ data are used and stored in accordance with government standard.
- Promptness: When your patient or a potential client calls you, you will want their calls to be picked up promptly. A professional answering service will not only respond to your calls within the first two rings, but it should also ensure that your callers do not need to wait for more than one minute in order to get an appropriate response or to get connected to the right person.
- Trained Staff: Medical emergencies may occur anytime and this is why you may want to make sure that your calls are attended by trained and experienced professionals who understand the nature of your practice. A professional answering service will hire courteous and empathetic employees who can handle calls flawlessly, provide accurate information about doctors’ and nurses’ schedules, and schedule appointments.
If you are looking to hire an answering service for your medical office, you may want to check whether it will really benefit your office. Look for a service provider that agrees to offer you a free trial and you may assess whether an answering service can make a difference in how you shape your customer-service approach.