Practice Assistant II - Thoracic Surgery - Front Desk Coordinator

1. Answer all incoming phone calls in a polite and courteous manner. Triage all phone calls appropriately throughout the division and hospital. Page Physician Assistants with medical questions from patients, in accordance with protocol.
2. Schedule patients for outpatient clinic appointments, both in person and over the telephone, in as timely a fashion as possible and in accordance with the Attending's directions.
3. Thoroughly create and schedule all coordinating chest x-rays and chest CT scans for the outpatient clinic appointments mentioned above, also in as timely a fashion as possible and in accordance with the Attending's directions.
4. Clearly communicate appointment/imaging information to patients both at time of booking, as well as during confirmation calls
5. Check-in patients, including collecting from patient any medical records or updates to their demographics/care team, and collecting any applicable copays.
6. "Batch-out" copays and deliver copays and batches to Practice Manager/Practice Coordinator prior to leaving each day.
7. Check all patient insurance eligibility and work with Insurance Coordinator to obtain all necessary referrals/authorizations
8. Responsible for managing the billing rejection and appeal database through the insurance workqueue.
9. Maintain "No-Show" list and make notes in Epic and/or mail letters as necessary in regard to patient no-show's/cancellations.
10. Contact patients on "Bump" list according to "Bump" list protocol, making notes in Epic appointment message and/or mailing letters as necessary according to said protocol.
11. Work with Insurance Coordinator and PA Admin to request, financially clear, obtain and upload any outside Radiology scans for established patients.
12. Check Front Desk voicemail throughout the day, and follow up on all voicemails by 5pm.
13. Prepare all temporary charts for established patients' office visits prior to clinic. Assemble all charts for late add-on's and walk-in's.
14. Disassemble charts after clinic and scan any medical records received and/or created during patient's visit.
15. Communicate with the clinic team, including manager, all patient precautions that the clinic needs to be aware of in regards to treatment.
16. Fax/mail all medical requests to the requesting facility or Physician, in accordance with HIPAA guidelines and regulations.
17. All other duties as assigned by manager.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• High school diploma or GED required; post-high school education preferred.
• Minimum one year of applicable work experience required.
• Additional training in office systems preferred.

SKILLS/ ABILITIES/ COMPETENCIES REQUIRED:

• Knowledge of practice operations and standards.
• Understanding of procedures including filing, copying, scanning, printing, and faxing.
• Ability to use phone system (answer and screen calls, put on hold), answer routine questions, and give routine information.
• Ability to interpret information as appropriate, answer routine questions in the most professional manner, and communicate in a professional, courteous, clear, and concise manner.
• Ability to manage work processes in a neat and orderly way and to sort and alphabetize.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks effectively, follow established protocols, and work within systems.
• Ability to correspond and communicate with others clearly and effectively in writing (via e-mail, memo, or interoffice note) and to take complete and accurate messages.
• Ability to type and enter data at an entry level. Entry level understanding of applicable systems.
• Understanding of the appropriate use and importance of related forms.
• Basic understanding and use of medical terminology.
• Basic comprehension of insurance types and referral process.
• Basic comprehension of registration and fiscal information.
• Knowledgeable and compliant with all hospital, State, and Federal requirements (where applicable to job performance), including policy and procedures with The Joint Commission and HIPAA.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

Hospital based ambulatory practice. Normal patient environments where there are some exposures to communicable diseases, unpleasant odors, needle, and blood products.

HOSPITAL WIDE RESPONSIBILITIES:

Works within legal, regulatory, accreditation and ethical practice standards relevant to the position and as established by BWH/Partners; follows safe practices required for the position; complies with appropriate BWH and Partners policies and procedures; fulfills any training required by BWH and/or Partners, as appropriate; brings potential matters of non-compliance to the attention of the supervisor or other appropriate hospital staff.