Your healthcare answering service may not be what you expected. If so, you should think about changing companies. But how do you go about this, and what is the best service to use? Here are some helpful tips on choosing the right service for your practice.
Budget Issues
How much do you want to spend on a healthcare answering service? Naturally, you’d like to spend the least amount of money possible, but this may not be realistic. However, you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars per week or even per month.
Would you like your monthly healthcare answering service bill to be the same each month? Of course, this is the best strategy but is it possible? The truth is, it’s very possible when you choose a flat rate service, and here is why:
• A flat rate service does not charge you by the call.
• There are no “by the minute” charges.
• Your fee covers an unlimited amount of calls each month.
• You get the exact same monthly bill every month. This makes it very simple to plan your budget and expenses.
Privacy Issues
Since the new privacy laws and updates went into effect, it places a great deal more responsibility on the shoulders of the medical professional. This is why it is absolutely essential to choose a healthcare answering service known for its HIPAA compliancy. When you select the right company, you won’t have to be concerned with information breaches from your answering service.
Older Technology
What kind of technology are you looking for? If you want 20th Century technology, you might want to consider a service with full-time operators taking calls and talking directly to patients. However, there are several problems with this strategy:
It could be very expensive and beyond your operating budget.
Human operators may not always do the right thing and some may actually make the mistake of giving advice to patients. This advice can get you into serious trouble, if it causes problems.
We all make mistakes and human operators can make errors which end up costing you dearly.
Modern Technology
Thanks to advanced technology, today’s fully automated healthcare answering service is efficient and affordable. In fact, it can be as inexpensive as $65 a month when you go with a service like No More Phone Tag. In addition, you can try the service out for two weeks at no charge, and no credit card is required.
