As the Healthcare industry continues to rapidly evolve, providing exceptional patient care requires more than just medical treatments and diagnoses. One critical aspect of healthcare delivery is ensuring that patients receive excellent customer support throughout their healthcare journey. To meet this growing demand, many healthcare organizations are used to Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing. In this Innovature BPO’s article, we will explore the advantages of Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing and how it can improve the patient experience and overall satisfaction.
What is Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing?
Healthcare call center outsourcing refers to the practice of contracting with a third-party vendor to manage the call center operations of a healthcare organization. This can include handling patient inquiries, appointment scheduling, billing inquiries, and other customer support services.
Specifically, Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing involves contracting with a third-party vendor to handle inbound calls that include protected health information (PHI). It is a form of business process outsourcing (BPO) and the vendor must comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to ensure patient privacy.
An experienced outsourced healthcare contact center can provide HIPAA-compliant call center answering services, insurance eligibility verification, toll-free numbers for patients or payers, appointment scheduling tools, patient information updates, physician referral requests, healthcare payer interactions, routing member inquiries to the appropriate hospital staff, medical billing support, outbound calling tasks such as appointment reminders, and multilingual patient support.
Healthcare practices can choose to outsource individual services or all call center operations, such as using a contact center for off-hours communication or deploying an outsourced hotline for emergency assistance. Services can be customized based on specific needs.
An outsourced healthcare contact center with an experienced team can:
- Deliver HIPAA-compliant call center answering services
- Complete an insurance eligibility verification
- Provide a toll-free number for patients or payers
- Offer patients access to appointment scheduling tools
- Update patient information for medical centers
- Request physician referrals on a patient’s behalf
- Interact with healthcare payers
- Route member inquiries to the correct hospital staff
- Handle medical billing questions
- Perform outbound calling tasks, such as appointment reminders
- Support multiple languages on patient calls
Costs and Benefits
The following are some of the pros of healthcare call center outsourcing:
- Cost Savings: Outsourcing call center operations can provide significant cost savings for healthcare organizations. It eliminates the need to invest in expensive call center infrastructure and technology, as well as staffing and training costs.
- Specialized Expertise: Third-party vendors specializing in call center operations have the expertise and experience to provide high-quality customer support services.
- Improved Customer Support: Outsourcing call center operations can improve customer support services and the overall patient experience. Third-party vendors often have advanced technology and tools to manage call routing, queue management, and customer service.
- Compliance with Regulations: Reputable outsourcing vendors are well-versed in regulations like HIPAA and can ensure compliance with these regulations, minimizing the risk of non-compliance fines, and penalties.
- Scalability: Outsourcing call center operations can provide healthcare organizations with the flexibility to scale up or down their operations based on fluctuating call volumes and staffing needs.
- Focus on Core Operations: Outsourcing call center operations allows healthcare organizations to focus on their core operations, such as providing medical treatments and diagnoses, rather than managing call center operations.
The cost of Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing depends on several factors, such as whether you choose a dedicated or shared service, whether you source domestic or foreign teams, and whether you pay by the hour or minute. Outsourcing companies will work with you to determine your specific needs, such as call volumes and specialty services required, such as a nurse hotline.
For US-based call center agents, pricing typically starts at around $20 per hour. The cost may increase when adding multiple communication channels, bilingual agents, and specialized representatives. Despite these added costs, healthcare practices can still achieve significant cost savings overall and additional benefits when outsourcing their call center operations.v
Medical Call Center Services: Choosing Between Outsourcing and In-House
If your healthcare organization is experiencing a high volume of calls, you have two options: ramp up your contact center operations or use outsourced medical answering services.
Here are some factors to consider when choosing between the two:
1. Cost: Outsourcing call center operations can provide significant cost savings, as it eliminates the need to invest in expensive call center infrastructure and technology, as well as staffing and training costs. In-house call centers require significant resources, including staffing, training, and technology investments.
2. Expertise: Third-party vendors specializing in call center operations have the expertise and experience to provide high-quality customer support services. In-house call centers can provide greater control over operations and can be tailored to meet specific organizational needs.
3. Compliance: Reputable outsourcing vendors are well-versed in regulations like HIPAA and can ensure compliance with these regulations, minimizing the risk of non-compliance fines and penalties. In-house call centers require strict adherence to regulations and may require additional resources to ensure compliance.
4. Scalability: Outsourcing call center operations can provide healthcare organizations with the flexibility to scale up or down their operations based on fluctuating call volumes and staffing needs. In-house call centers may require additional investment to scale up operations.
5. Control: In-house call centers provide greater control over operations and can be tailored to meet specific organizational needs. However, outsourcing call center operations can provide healthcare organizations with more time and resources to focus on their core operations, such as providing medical treatments and diagnoses.
Ultimately, the decision to outsource or keep call center operations in-house will depend on the specific needs and goals of the healthcare organization. Outsourcing call center operations can provide significant benefits, including cost savings, specialized expertise, improved customer support, compliance with regulations, and scalability. However, in-house call centers provide greater control over operations and can be tailored to meet specific organizational needs.
Leveraging Advanced Technology in the Healthcare Industry
Healthtech investments have been increasing in recent years, with Deloitte reporting that investment in health tech reached $14 billion in 2020 compared to about $7.4 billion in 2019. Healthcare call centers also use various technologies to track patients’ health, provide medical care, and monitor calls. The applications used by outsourcing partners can significantly impact healthcare practices.
Additionally, telemedicine technology also is becoming more prevalent in healthcare, allowing patients to receive virtual consultations with healthcare providers. This technology can be integrated with call center operations to provide a seamless patient experience.
To avoid the risks associated with Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing, many healthcare organizations select HIPAA-compliant contact center software. This allows the company to maintain complete control of the patient experience, and staff members can provide support across multiple channels, including in-app chat and video or voice calls.
Overall, healthcare organizations can leverage advanced technology to improve patient care, streamline operations, and reduce costs, while outsourcing partners can provide advanced features to enhance customer support services.
10 indications recognizing the for your Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing
As healthcare organizations continue to face increasing demands, hospital call centers are critical in delivering high-quality patient care. However, managing an in-house call center can be challenging, especially in the face of constant changes in call volume, staffing, and technology. In such cases, Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing may be the best solution. Here are ten signs that suggest it’s time to outsource your hospital call center:
1. Increasing Call Volumes: If there has been a sudden surge in call volumes that your in-house call center cannot handle, outsourcing to a third-party vendor with more resources and expertise can help manage the increased demand.
2. Staffing Challenges: If your call center is experiencing high turnover rates or difficulty recruiting and retaining qualified staff, outsourcing can provide a solution. A third-party vendor can offer access to a larger pool of qualified candidates and provide training and support.
3. Inconsistent Quality: If the quality of your in-house call center operations is inconsistent, it may be time to consider outsourcing. A third-party vendor with a focus on quality assurance can help improve the consistency of your call center operations.
4. Limited Hours of Operation: If your in-house call center has limited hours of operation, outsourcing to a vendor that provides 24/7 support can improve patient satisfaction and reduce missed calls.
5. Inefficient Call Handling: If call handling times are too long, or calls are being routed to the wrong departments, outsourcing to a vendor with more advanced call routing and handling technologies can help improve efficiency and patient satisfaction.
6. Cost Savings: If your in-house call center is expensive to maintain, outsourcing can provide significant cost savings through economies of scale and reduced staffing costs.
7. Lack of HIPAA Compliance: If your in-house call center is not fully HIPAA-compliant, outsourcing to a vendor with specialized expertise in healthcare compliance can help you avoid costly compliance violations.
8. Limited Language Support: If your in-house call center does not support multiple languages, outsourcing to a vendor with multilingual staff can improve patient satisfaction and reduce miscommunication.
9. Lack of Advanced Technology: If your in-house call center lacks advanced technologies like chatbots, IVR, or speech recognition, outsourcing to a vendor with more advanced capabilities can improve call center efficiency and patient satisfaction.
10. Focus on Core Business: If your in-house call center is taking up too much time and resources, outsourcing can allow you to refocus on your core business and improve overall operations.
Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing can provide significant benefits. By outsourcing your hospital call center, you can focus on your core business and provide high-quality patient care while leaving the call center operations to experts.
In summary, Healthcare Call Center Outsourcing can provide significant benefits for organizations, including cost savings and improved customer support services. However, organizations must carefully weigh the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing and select a reputable vendor that can meet their specific needs.
See more»
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