Patient Scheduling Specialist

Patient Scheduling Specialist

Position Summary / Career Interest

The Patient Scheduling Specialist in a call center location monitors incoming call volume throughout the day and assigns staff accordingly to various scheduling duties. This specialist may also function as an associate/representative as needed. Patient Scheduling Specialists located in Clinic locations are responsible for creating a seamless experience by coordinating and scheduling appointments for patients, including imaging, laboratory, clinic, infusion, treatment, and/or procedures. The Specialist is an important member of the physician's care team and critical in creating a pleasant patient experience within an ambulatory clinic. This position may provide support for front desk operations, including greeting and checking in customers and visitors, answering calls, copay collection, completing MyChart and EMR appointment requests, processing external medical records, and helping the physician care team prepare for their daily appointments. This team member has demonstrated their ability to manage the most advanced scheduling and rescheduling workflows in the clinic. This position may be an escalation point for lower-level schedulers. This position may also be required to leverage additional scheduling systems to coordinate schedules for patient care.

Responsibilities And Essential Job Functions

• Responds to a high-volume of incoming telephone calls.
• Responsible for accurate scheduling/re-scheduling/cancellations of patient visits, including clinic appointments (in person and telehealth), treatments such as (chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgeries, procedures, and/or ancillary services) using extensive knowledge of appointment types, locations, providers, and specialties. The specialist will be responsible for more complex disciplines (GI, Multi-Discipline Clinics, Study Patients, etc.).
• Responsible for registration of the patient during the scheduling process, including entering demographics, insurance verification, completing the Medicare Secondary Payer Questionnaire (MSPQ), scanning and document preparation, updating documentation, and processing of referrals/orders/appointment requests.
• Verifies referring physician orders against scheduled appointments for accuracy.
• The Patient Scheduling Specialist delivers expert knowledge and understanding of scheduling guidelines, patient registration, pre-certification requirements, and basic levels of health insurance and billing procedures regarding specific processes. Familiarity with insurance coverage types (HMO, PPO, VA, Medicare).
• The specialist role models the health system values in all daily interactions and inspires others to follow those established values.
• Diligently and efficiently manages scheduling workload from assigned Appointment Request Workqueue (WQ), filters and prioritizes appointment requests per specialty standards, keeping close communication with the providers and clinical team members to verify any change requests and ensure continuity of care.
• Is proficient, accurate, and demonstrates attention to detail in all aspects of the job, which includes scheduling, order entry and scanning capabilities, as well as coordination of all aspects of anesthesia studies.
• Communicates with Financial Advisor when the patient has concerns/questions about financial responsibility for appointments/treatments/procedures scheduled.
• Directs patients to call insurance provider for copay or benefits information or transfers callers to Financial Advisor for specific payment inquiries, including self-pay plans.
• Trains new employees on department, POD, and clinic-specific operational protocols and workflows using approved materials and approaches. Uses training delivery methods per the curriculum plan, including classroom content, on-the-job, and interactive hands-on exercises. Evaluates trainee progress using provided assessment tools. Provides feedback to management on trainee's progress.
• Schedules referral appointments for external offices, faxes/sends necessary referral and medical records to the referred physician office utilizing specialty software modules such as Beacon.
• Builds and maintains trusting relationships with provider and clinical team to provide holistic and patient-centered scheduling services, while advocating for patient's needs (transportation, financial, logistical) and coordinating care appointments across multiple campuses.
• Depending on work location, may manage department Scheduling In-basket and voicemails.
• Engages with patients in a timely manner; provides complete and accurate information to the patient regarding prep and other exam-related notes.
• Responsible for checking out patients from clinic visits, providing options for receipt of after-visit summary and support for EMR patient portal (EPIC MyChart) sign-up.
• Handles calls as needed to ensure department meets service level goals.
• Identifies urgent customer needs or operational issues and escalates appropriately.
• Provides courteous and timely response to scheduling requests via electronic patient communication/interactions, including MyChart messages and Artera text messaging platform.
• Conveys authenticity, gaining the trust of others. Behaves consistently and acts in accordance with moral, ethical, professional, and organizational guidelines. Displays unwavering credibility through trustworthiness, reliability, dependability, integrity, character reputation, and acceptability.
• Supports both front desk and scheduling (telephone and MyChart) workflows.
• Assists patients with MyChart activation and support, including how to complete check-in online prior to the appointment.
• Monitors daily call volume to assign staff based on fluctuations.
• Ensures proper front desk coverage and remains in the clinic until the last patient is checked out and any follow-up visits are scheduled.
• Demonstrates knowledge of, adheres to, and educates others for the promotion of safety regulations, disaster plans, emergency response, infection control, fire safety, and hazardous material policies and procedures.
• Post-Visit (Check-out/Follow Up Scheduling): Schedule follow-up internal and external diagnostic and therapeutic orders, creating a patient itinerary based on provider orders.
• May be expected to provide coverage at alternate locations to help meet critical staffing level needs, as delegated by management.
• Attends and actively participates in staff training or educational activities relating to the job role.
• Attends and participates in department/clinic daily huddles and process improvement initiatives.
• Understands patient experience performance expectations for ease of scheduling appointments, degree to which you were informed of delays, likelihood to recommend practice, courtesy of front desk, and staff worked together for your care.
• Has a working knowledge of patient-related policies and procedures as well as an understanding of The University of Kansas Health System services and programs.
• Responsible and accountable for achieving organizational targets related to patient experience, people, sustainability, safety & operational excellence.
• Must meet the competencies for this role before being eligible for advancement to the next level scheduling role.
• Must be able to perform the professional, clinical, and/or technical competencies of the assigned unit or department.
• These statements are intended to describe the essential functions of the job and are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities. Skills and duties may vary dependent upon your department or unit. Other duties may be assigned as required.

Required Education And Experience

• High School Graduate or GED.
• 2 or more years of progressively responsible and directly related work experience in a healthcare setting OR some combination of health care or contact center experience, including 1 year in a UKHS patient scheduling position.
• Proven ability to effectively schedule for situations with interval timing of appointments for complex care regimens.
• Proficient in navigating EPIC EMR, to include MyChart messaging, as well as use additional scheduling modules (e.g., Beacon Scheduling Orders).

Preferred Education And Experience

• College coursework completed towards an Associate’s or Bachelor’s Degree.
• Highest level of customer service skills focusing on problem resolution.

Preferred Language Skills

• If bilingual: Documented proof of competencies via language proficiency assessments.

Knowledge Requirements

• Ability to read, write, speak, and understand English.
• Basic computer skills, including Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook, and Teams.
• High level of customer service skills, focusing on problem resolution.

Time Type

Full time

Job Requisition ID

R-52722

Important Information For You To Know As You Apply

• The health system is an equal employment opportunity employer. Qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, ancestry, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally-protected status. See also Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
• The health system provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. If you need to request reasonable accommodations for your disability as you navigate the recruitment process, please let our recruiters know by requesting an Accommodation Request form using this link: asktalentacquisition@kumc.edu.
• Employment with the health system is contingent upon, among other things, agreeing to the health-system-dispute-resolution-program.pdf and signing the agreement to the DRP.

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Key skills/competency

• Patient Scheduling Specialist
• Epic EMR
• MyChart
• Customer Service
• Healthcare Administration
• Medical Terminology
• Appointment Coordination
• Insurance Verification
• Patient Registration
• Call Center Operations