Patient communication is at the core of running any healthcare practice, from scheduling appointments to managing payments, and all of these interactions can be a challenge for providers. By outsourcing communication to a patient contact center, you can ensure that both your patients and team members have the information they need. Working with a business process outsourcing (BPO) team that specializes in healthcare communications is the key to offering better patient support at a lower price, allowing your team to reach its full growth potential.
The Benefits of Patient Contact Center Support
Healthcare call centers take over your external communications, overseeing essential points of contact from initial scheduling to final follow-ups. By outsourcing this simple secondary task, you can leverage the advantages of healthcare BPO to enhance various aspects of your practice, benefiting both your business operations and the clients you serve.
Increasing Productivity
Calling patients to send appointment reminders, working through insurance verification, and responding to questions are critical to the healthcare process, but these tasks can quickly cut into your staff’s valuable time.
Even with dedicated front-desk staff, keeping up with external calls and communications while managing in-office patients can be distracting and overwhelming, cutting your team’s overall productivity. With support from a dedicated third-party team, providers and administrative staff can remain focused and productive throughout the day.
Expanding Patient Support
Many people will have questions or concerns about their care throughout the treatment process, and they expect prompt, attentive replies. However, healthcare staff may not always be available to answer questions directly. Well-trained contact center agents can answer basic questions on behalf of your team, whether they’re verifying appointment times or reconciling insurance details. Even if they’re simply taking a message or relaying simple updates, this enhanced communication can help each patient feel like they’re being valued and cared for.
Improving Scheduling
Scheduling appointments can be complex, from finding initial time slots to handling cancellations. Outsourced representatives streamline scheduling by handling each of these changes to your calendar. Additionally, they have systems to send out reminder texts and calls, helping you decrease no-shows and last-minute cancellations through proactive communication.
Streamlining Billing
Insurance, billing, and medical claims processing are some of the most time-consuming aspects of running a medical practice. When you outsource this entire function, your team can save a massive amount of time. Additionally, patients can call and get personalized guidance and support, making the process much less stressful. Meanwhile, your practice will be able to collect payments and process insurance reimbursements more effectively.
Saving on Overhead
Having a third-party team manage patient outreach is often much more cost-effective than having an in-house team. You can pay for the precise level of support you need without expanding your office space, onboarding new team members, or dealing with employee turnover costs. Healthcare BPO teams are also well-versed in patient outreach strategies, increasing call resolution rates and boosting patient satisfaction without stretching your budget.
Key Features of an Effective Healthcare Contact Center
To properly serve your audience, healthcare call centers need a variety of systems and tools designed to support patients. Here are a few features to look for when researching different options:
- HIPAA Compliance: If your call center is handling protected health information, they’ll need to have a deep understanding of BPO compliance and HIPAA regulations. They should offer secure platforms that protect patient data and have a commitment to training all agents on the ins and outs of patient privacy.
- Omnichannel Support and Patient Portal Management: Modern medical providers can communicate with their clients through phone calls, text messages, email, and specialized patient portals. Look for a provider experienced in omnichannel patient interactions to communicate with each patient through their preferred platform.
- 24/7 Answering Services: People may call at any time of day about their medical concerns, even if the office is closed. With 24/7 answering services, you can screen calls to on-call providers and direct patients to critical resources outside standard business hours.
- Appointment Management: Managing your practice calendar is essential for supporting both providers and patients. Healthcare call centers should have advanced booking systems for adding, updating, canceling, and rescheduling appointments, along with sending out timely reminders.
Optimizing Your Contact Center Workforce
Outsourcing your communication isn’t a one-step process. To get the most out of these services, building a relationship with your provider and periodically checking in to assess their performance is important. Implementing a few best practices for managing your patient contact center services will help you maintain a high-quality experience for your patients.
Conduct Thorough Onboarding
Before you even start using your call center, focus on the onboarding process. Qualified providers will want to learn everything about your practice, including your policies, information about your providers, standards for patient interactions, and customer service norms. Provide your partner with everything they need to know to support your clients properly, then ask about how they train their agents to meet your expectations. Experienced BPOs will not only have a team of qualified healthcare representatives in place, but they’ll also have training systems they can adapt to your specifications.
Set and Measure KPIs
Establish clear expectations by using shared key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure success. Identify your goals for patient satisfaction, call resolution time, and other critical metrics. Your partner will track this information and conduct regular quality assessments to ensure consistent, successful service. Once these metrics are in place, ensure you’re regularly checking in on the results and responding to any quality issues.
Host Alignment Meetings
Even though your BPO partner will handle the day-to-day management of their call center staff, you should still be involved on a strategic level. Schedule alignment meetings where you can share any updates, changes, and requests with your outsourcing provider. Open communication with your BPO organization will help you provide a consistent patient experience, even as your practice grows and evolves.
Discover Your Perfect Healthcare Call Center Solution
Working with a third-party patient call center offers several advantages, from saving money to strengthening patient relationships. By choosing an experienced healthcare call center with the proper tools to support your clients, you can improve outcomes and boost your overall efficiency without sacrificing the quality of your service.
Confie BPO is here to connect you with a massive team of experienced healthcare agents, including billing experts, appointment setters, and beyond. We have the systems in place to seamlessly manage a high volume of calls, from quickly routing urgent inquiries to on-call staff to managing complicated insurance questions.
If you’re ready to elevate your practice with outsourced support, call 800-684-2276 or reach out online to see how Confie can transform your business.
