Description

Job Summary

Call center representatives are the voice of the company. The first contact all patients will interact with will be with the Call Center Representative. You must treat people with respect and compassion. You are expected to be friendly and helpful and always remember that we deal with patients and they are our customers. It is important to remember that many of these people are sick and/or seeking help. It is your job to ensure their journey to LA CENTA is comfortable and convenient and provides a great first impression.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

• Welcomes and greets patients and visitors, in person or on the telephone; answering or referring inquiries.
• Verifies insurance/eligibility information and ensures appropriate forms are signed and dated.
• Verifies patient demographics and insurance information when scheduling appointments.
• Optimizes patients' satisfaction, physician time, and treatment room utilization by notifying back office staff when patients have arrived (if applicable).
• Prepares lab requisition forms as requested by physicians (if applicable).
• Scans Radiology and Lab requisitions to patient files (if applicable).
• Records outcome of reminder calls made to patients scheduled for procedures, Radiology, Labs and in-office appointments in AdvancedMD
• Keeps patient appointments on schedule by reviewing service delivery compared to schedule; and notifying Manager/Supervisor of service delays.
• Comforts patients by anticipating patients' anxieties; answering patients' questions; maintaining the reception area (if applicable).
• Ensures availability of treatment information by filing and retrieving patient records.
• Maintains patient accounts by obtaining, recording, and updating personal and financial information.
• Helps patients in distress by responding to emergencies.
• Protects patients' rights by maintaining confidentiality of personal and financial information.
• Maintains operations by following policies and procedures; reporting needed changes.
• Contributes to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.
• Assist in the creation of new patient welcome packets.
• Consistently exhibits behavior and communication skills that demonstrate LA CENTA commitment to superior customer service, including quality, care and concern with each internal and external customer.
• Demonstrates knowledge of the complete operation of switchboards and follows opening and closing switchboard procedures according to site-specific policies (if applicable).
• Handles all phases of telephone communications, including scheduling in-office appointments, allergy testing and obtains test authorizations.
• Routes all calls to appropriate departments and takes accurate and neat messages and forwards them in a timely manner.
• Handles all emergency calls appropriately according to site-specific policies.
• Briefs Call Center Manager/Supervisor of all outstanding calls or information.
• Maintains accurate directories of providers’ phone numbers.
• Maintains accurate daily schedule and communicates as appropriate.
• Maintains awareness of duties of each department in order to process calls efficiently.
• Acts as translator as needed with patients and as requested by physicians (if applicable).
• Assists with entering information into the EMR system.
• Requests patient records as needed for physicians (if applicable).
• Inform physicians when consults are requested.
• Reports urgently needed switchboard equipment repairs to Supervisor/Manager.
• Uses, protects, and discloses patients’ protected health information according to HIPPA guidelines.
• Adheres to safety policies and procedures at all times.
• Practice discretion about internal clinical policies and procedures when speaking to patients.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Qualifications and Experience

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are reflective of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

• HS Diploma/ GED Required
• 1-2 years operator PBX/switchboard experience
• At least 1 year of front desk/ patient experience in a medical setting
• Ear Nose Throat & Allergy specialty clinic experience preferred
• Must be bilingual-fluent in both English and Spanish
• General knowledge of HIPAA and CPT codes
• Must be able to travel within our various Los Angeles based clinics
• Excellent communication skills with patients, physicians, and staff
• Excellent organizational, interpersonal and decision-making skills
• Ability to work in a relatively unsupervised environment with a high degree of accuracy

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Individual will be required to:

• Sit for long periods at a time
• Use hands and fingers in repetitive motions, daily
• Ability to lift, push, pull up to 20 lbs. periodically
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential function