In a medical facility or doctor office, admin staff has to struggle incongruously to handle afterhours or weekend calls. It becomes daunting to contact doctors at the right time in emergency cases. To solve this issue, office managers hastily appoint an answering service for doctors’ office without adopting a deliberate approach. As a result, it intensifies the problem and creates more complications. Here are the pitfalls that you must evade for installing a technically-sound and efficient medical answering service in your premises.
1. Is The Staff Competent And Trained?
It is imperative for any medical answering service provider to employ a well-trained staff comprising medical professionals. The entire team should be trained with HIPAA regulations and other provisions stated by the laws related to this field. They should be capable of handling and relaying calls as per the level of urgency with an absolute professionalism and a friendly tone.
2. Does The Company Adhere To HIPAA Regulations?
HIPAA or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, 1996 has specified certain provisions for non-disclosure of patient information in any circumstances. Every health care facility and clinician must adhere to this regulation. A breach is not only punishable with fine but also detrimental for the reputation of concerned doctors. Hence, whenever you choose a service provider for medical answering system, ensure that the company is 100% HIPAA compliant and certified by an authorized review body.
3. Does It Have A Data Management System In Place?
Companies often make tall claims about efficiency in their systems but these claims go kaput once they begin working for you. Hence, prefer the company having on-site and off-site storage capability to prevent any loss of critical data due to system failures. The disaster recovery systems must ensure successful retrieval of information in an organized and timely manner.
4. What Is Their Pricing Policy?
This is the most perilous pitfall in medical answering business. Companies will offer you lucrative discounts and low call charges initially but the same is escalated with every invoice due to some confusing hidden costs. In this regard, you may prefer the providers offering flat rate pricing inclusive of all charges without any additional hidden costs. However, check out other points as well to ensure high standards of services and reliability of the service providers.
By asking these questions, you can safeguard your interests and find the most efficient and cost-effective answering service for doctors’ office in your medical facility.