Why does the healthcare field need remote medical receptionist? Traditionally, patients will have to walk inside a doctor’s clinic to report their sickness. However, a new trend was created due to the rise of digitalization.
Patients nowadays report their health conditions or sickness using phone calls or social media platforms. According to a PWC report, 91% of consumers reported using video virtual clinical care.
That’s where virtual medical receptionists come in.
These skilled professionals offer effective solutions by extending medical and patient care remotely.
As our patients’ needs evolve so does our way of providing service and hiring a remote receptionist is no longer an option –– it’s a necessity.
In this blog, we’ll explore why every healthcare provider needs to have a virtual receptionist in their clinic or hospital.
Remote medical receptionists vs. In-office medical receptionists
Now, let’s talk about the key differences between a virtual medical receptionist and a traditional in-house receptionist.
One significant benefit of a virtual medical receptionist is their flexibility. Since they can work in any location, they can provide extensive hours of patient assistance.
From a business standpoint, their remote work setup is a cost-effective solution that eliminates the need for a physical office and reduces your business costs.
On the other hand, a traditional receptionist is physically present, handling face-to-face interactions and immediate patient needs.
Although it looks beneficial, this work arrangement oftentimes results in higher operating costs.
Choosing the right work setup depends on your practice’s or service needs, but the benefits of remote work are clear.
Efficiency and Productivity
Based on the study by Shah et al., medical clinics saved 47.60 working hours by using a mobile app-based remote medical receptionist.
These clinics saved more time because of a virtual medical receptionist handling clerical tasks such as:
Scheduling appointments
Insurance verification
Managing patients’ questions
Now that these tasks are handled, their in-house staff can focus on direct patient care.
Which results in increased productivity in the medical office.
These professionals follow standard operating departmental procedures, ensuring consistency and reliability of their work.
With remote receptionists available, medical offices can extend their operating hours, giving each patient greater flexibility and access.
This change provides a significant impact during peak hours, particularly in helping manage the call volumes efficiently.
Because let’s admit it, it’s not easy to manage patients in the queue calls and incoming calls.
Cost Effectiveness
In terms of cost-effectiveness, remote medical receptionists provide time and money savings to any medical clinic or hospital.
Since they work on a contract basis, hospitals or doctors’ clinics will only pay for their rendered services.
By reducing the need for an on-site staff, practices can save on overhead costs such as office spaces, utilities, and equipment
This gives them more resources to allocate to other key service areas.
The flexibility of a remote receptionist can mean two things:
Work is based on the demand or need
Medical facilities will never be understaffed or overstaffed.
This is particularly beneficial for managing call volumes where timely responses are crucial.
Also, developing training tools for their virtual medical receptionist team ensures smooth operations in the clinic.
These tools can be strategically customized to the needs of each patient and office.
How to become a successful remote medical receptionist
As a virtual medical receptionists, you must master handling escalated calls, medical technical data, attention to detail, and specific healthcare industry knowledge.
The role of a medical receptionist is the same as any other receptionist.
The only difference this time is that you work in a remote arrangement.
This means you’ll do clerical tasks, refill patient prescriptions, and report details about a patient’s case or prescription.
Understanding the role
Some medical receptionists are registered nurses or have nursing staff experience in the healthcare industry.
Here are some day-to-day tasks of a virtual medical receptionist:
Daily health screening
Answer phone calls and resolve process issues
Refilling patient prescriptions
Issue patient prescriptions and triage patients’ needs
Pursue prompt payment
Resolving process issues
Coordinate with third-party insurance providers
Assist in verifying insurance claims
These responsibilities can be managed by a tool provided by the clinic or hospital.
This is to ensure data protection and collaboration with the team. 
Like any other medical field-related role you need relevant experience to become a remote medical receptionist.
Oftentimes, companies prefer hiring skilled individuals with preferred licenses or certifications.
Why? Your relevant years of experience will enable you to manage clerical and administrative tasks.
One advantage of remote medical receptionists is their flexible schedule which allows them to work extended hours, accommodating patients beyond regular business hours.
This flexibility gives them more time to answer phone calls, manage patient inquiries, and schedule appointments efficiently.
Qualifications and experience
One of the biggest questions regarding career shifting is the job qualifications for a role you’re eyeing.
The good news is it’s like almost every in-house medical receptionist.
Some companies and hospitals will require you the following:
Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) Certifications
Nursing license
It’s a plus if you have a master’s degree in behavioral health or a related field, which can greatly increase your chances of getting hired.
Preparing for Remote Work
A remote medical receptionist’s role goes beyond the login and log-out of your shift.
Some companies and hospitals will require you to use workforce management tools to manage tasks efficiently.
Each morning, they use these tools to streamline their schedule, prioritize tasks, and ensure they are ready to handle patient and caller identifiers seamlessly.
If you have a nursing license, you’ll be assigned to a technical role that will use your clinical skills and experience.
Here’s a sample of your typical day-to-day tasks:
Patient management
Patient care coordination
Phone call management
Clerical tasks
Reviewing patient management
Setting up secure communication channels
Daily routine and task management
Every time you start your day, it’s best to set a clear plan.
The first step is to review the day’s schedule, noting highly-priority appointments and low-priority calls that can be handled during less busy times.
But let’s admit it. Most of the time there will be urgent tasks that are not on our list.
When this moment comes, you need to strategically categorize each task based on deadlines.
Remember, if every task is urgent then nothing is urgent.
Prioritizing is the key and part of effective task management also involves coordination with fellow healthcare team members to facilitate an effective adoption of new workforce management tools.
Always ask for help if you know you can’t handle the load alone.
This ensures a smoother clinical operation and collaboration within the team.
In summary
Having a remote medical receptionist is a game-changer for your medical practice. So if you want to improve the efficiency of your medical clinic, it’s time for you to hire one.
