Hospital Access Management – January 1, 2016
January 1, 2016
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HAM spotlights patient satisfaction
This month’s Hospital Access Management is a special issue on “the patient experience” and the important role of patient access. Our cover story reports on best practices to boost patient satisfaction in registration areas.
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Spotlight on ‘the patient experience’ in access: Registration sets the tone
When patient access leaders at Charlotte, NC-based Carolinas HealthCare System created a new customer service training class, they decided to call it “First Face, Last Face.”
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Hold staff accountable: Post ratings for all to see
Wendy M. Roach, director of patient access at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington, IL, holds staff members accountable for providing excellent customer service by posting individual registrars’ patient satisfaction ratings.
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Dramatically reduce complaints about access: Revamp your department’s approach
Patients who had prothrombin time/international normalized ratio labs drawn frequently at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia often complained about having to wait when they came so often for the same lab services.
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De-escalate upset patient who can’t pay balance
Patient access staff at The MetroHealth System, Cleveland, use the CARE approach to address patient concerns. The goal is to make an emotional connection with patients, says Donna Graham, senior director of revenue cycle.
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Satisfaction-boosting self-registration has limits, but patients want more
Patient access departments routinely use electronic tools to verify insurance, identify patients, and check eligibility, but what about keeping patients happy?
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More data on patient equal a better experience
The patient access experience can be enhanced dramatically by “retail-type technology,” according to Katherine H. Murphy, vice president of sales consulting in the Oakbrook Terrace, IL, office of Experian Health, a provider of technology for hospitals and healthcare providers.
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Some patients find self-reg kiosks to be impersonal — Combat dissatisfaction
Customer service was “front and center” when registration kiosks were rolled out in July 2015 at the South Lobby and Heart Hospital registration departments at Edward Hospital & Health Services and Elmhurst Memorial Healthcare in Naperville, IL, says Miguel Vigo IV, revenue cycle system director of the Patient Access and Pre-Service Center.
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Patients having trouble with registration? They’re ‘kicked out’ of kiosk for these reasons
If patients are having any type of trouble with kiosk registration at Naperville, IL-based Edward–Elmhurst Health, the kiosk instructs them to go to a registration person instead, without the patient having to ask for help.
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Keep your patients satisfied, despite unexpected delays in registration
Patient volume increases suddenly, clinical areas are running behind, or the registration area is unexpectedly understaffed. -
Update on regs on phone calls to patients
Patient access managers who question whether a separate consent is needed to contact patients regarding appointments or pre-registration can be reassured by a new ruling, according to Michael Sciarabba, chair of the National Association of Healthcare Access Management’s Public Policy and Government Relations Committee.
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The Joint Commission cautions about temporary newborn names
If the parents have not yet decided on a baby’s name, it is common at many hospitals to give the newborn a temporary name such as Babyboy Smith for use in the hospital. The Joint Commission is warning that the practice can lead to patient identification errors and should be reconsidered.
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Some Healthcare.gov enrollees could lower silver plan premiums
A new analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that in 73% of counties served by Healthcare.gov, people enrolled in the lowest-cost silver plan in 2015 could save money on premiums by switching to a different silver plan.