Hospital Access Management – October 1, 2009
October 1, 2009
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Do patients say good, or not so good, things about your access staff?
A physician is impatiently standing over your shoulder. You look up and see a long line of patients waiting to register and all the while, the phone is ringing off the hook. Right then, a patient starts yelling that he has been waiting too long and has to go to work. -
Put employees 'on stage,' boost satisfaction scores
After patient access employees at SSM Health Care in St. Louis are given extensive and specialized customer training, they are able to "deal with patients under a variety of circumstances," according to Jayne Wright, patient access director for the organization's North Operating Group. -
Defuse frustration: Give info on what patients owe
These days, with patients ending up owing hundreds or even thousands of dollars in co-pays and deductibles, you may face a very angry person if you grossly underestimate what they owe. -
Got an angry patient on your hands? Take these steps
Patient access staff often unwillingly play the part of the "bad guy" when they attempt to collect money from someone who has just lost his or her benefits or is blindsided with a huge bill. -
Revamp process for sudden surges in registrations
This spring during the H1N1 epidemic, registrations through EDs increased dramatically nationwide. The processes of virtually every patient access department were put to the test. -
Capture revenue, revamp your screening process
Unemployment is at its highest level in decades, which has led to the largest-ever number of uninsured Americans. This has a direct impact on your patient access department. -
News Brief: Number of patients leaving against advice increasing
Would it surprise you that the number of patients leaving a hospital against medical advice (AMA) increased 39% between 1997 and 2007?