-
Patient access jobs are challenging to fill for a variety of reasons. One is the need to recruit employees that are quick learners and flexible.
-
"The goal for our staff is to reach at least a 90% monthly accuracy rating for preadmits, activations, and discharges," says Bailey Holloway, admitting evening coordinator at Maine Medical Center in Portland.
-
Were departmental goals achieved or exceeded? If so, employees will feel a sense of accomplishment for a job well done, says Joy Wright, a patient registration supervisor at Lodi (OH) Community Hospital.
-
Will a completed registration be problem-free or result in a claims denial? The buck stops with the registrar.
-
Consider the old adage, "garbage in, is garbage out." "This truly has a distinct meaning where upfront errors are concerned," says Jackie Mitchler, a revenue cycle analyst in the patient business services department at Affinity Health System in Menasha, WI.
-
Sheri Lasater, manager of patient access for Penrose-St. Francis Health Services in Colorado Springs, says that wait times have been minimized for scheduled patients through a comprehensive pre-registration program.
-
The patient access department at Methodist Charlton Medical Center in Dallas recently switched to an automated quality assurance (QA) system. "I had recently come from a very automated facility and was well aware of the benefits a good automated system can provide," says Jeanette Foulk, director of patient access.
-
Time to upgrade some of your copiers? Are you planning to sell the old machines to recoup some money to use for new ones? Think twice before placing your "for sale" sign on the copier because you might be selling more than just the machine.
-
The role of your patient access staff has undoubtedly changed dramatically and will continue to become more complex. It's likely, though, that the way you evaluate competencies doesn't reflect this evolution.
-
Patient access staff are the very first contact many patients have with physicians and facilities. Whether staff are registering patients in the emergency department, call center or at the front desk of a physician's office, "this first impression has long-lasting effects," says Colleen McMahon, senior manager of the integrated call center/ University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) physician service division, registration and scheduling.
