WEB-BASED TUTORIALAnnette Hendricks

AET/545

July 13, 2015

Dr. Christine Nortz

WELCOME TO COLORADO RHEUMATOLOGY

Tutorial for Office Staff:• This is for all new and established office staff to

learn or refresh on the policies and procedures of the office in compliance with governmental guidelines and regulations along with office policies.

NEEDS ASSESSMENTWho needs training?

• The instructional goal is to focus on training and refreshing office staff

• The goal is to create a tutorial for employees to learn the basics of office policies and procedures

• The training can teach new employees as well as under trained employees on etiquette and policies and procedures

PERFORMANCE BASED OBJECTIVES (PBO)• Use the ABCD Model for creating objectives

• Who is the Audience?

- The audience is composed of staff members that are either new or under trained.

• What is the expected Behavior?

- The expected behavior is to have the staff communicate in a professional manner with the patients, providers and other staff.

• What Conditions will the learning take place?

- The staff will take a quiz after each section in the e-learning training sessions. As a group the staff will discuss any questions or concerns.

• What is the Degree of accomplishment?

- The accomplishments will be received with a certificate upon completion.

SUMMATIVE OBJECTIVES & LEARNING OUTCOMES

• As students navigate through the tutorial, they will have opportunities to apply what they have learned in assessments. There will also be time for discussions and reflection with other members of the office staff and management.

• Once the training is complete, the employee will have a solid understanding of office policies and procedures and front office etiquette

• The quiz will be reviewed with the employee and any questions or areas of concerns will be addressed at that time.

INTRODUCTION TO TUTORIAL

• Office Policies and Procedures

• In this presentation, employees should be able to understand how to properly answer telephones and triage calls.

• There should be a solid understanding of how the front office works

• How to properly schedule appointments

• Greeting patients and acquiring the proper insurance information

• Have a solid understanding of HIPAA regulations and guidelines.

OFFICE PROCEDURES

Telephone Etiquette

ANSWERING THE TELEPHONE

Triage

How to Transfer calls to the proper destination

Etiquette

ETIQUETTE

“Thank you for calling the Arthritis office how may I direct your call? “

Dr. Jones is a board certified rheumatologist with 15 years experience. He sees patients Monday through Friday from 9 am to 4:30 pm.

“Let me transfer you to Dr. Jones’ medical assistant for further clarification.”

OFFICE PROCEDURES

Policies and Procedures

INFORMATIONPlease read and follow the next few slides to have a better understanding of what is to be expected in the office. There will be a quiz following these next few slides.

Quality in medical care is expected and requires that the health care team uses procedures and techniques that result in the best possible outcomes.

Its true that customer service etiquette asserts that the physician must provide the same knowledge, care, and skill that a similarly trained physician would provide under the same circumstances in the same locality.

Being assertive is not the same as imposing your personal opinions or trying to manipulate others.

All members of the office staff need to follow OSHA guidelines for the protection of patients and other employees.

INFORMATION CONTINUEDReception Staff Should do the following:

Provide a welcoming and efficient front office service.

Explore patient queries and requests fully, taking account of information in the medical record, to ensure that enquiries are handled by the most appropriate person, without the need for a clinician appointment when appropriate, and that any appointments booked are the most appropriate for the request.

Refer to procedures, guidance, colleagues or senior staff when unsure.

Book, cancel, rearrange and receive patients for appointments.

Deal with patient requests for home visits.

Process repeat prescriptions, ensuring appropriate checks are made.

INFORMATION CONTINUED

It’s true that the number of patients and the nature of the medical practice (e.g., solo practice or corporation) determine which receptionist duties or tasks the medical assistant performs.

Quality medical care is an expectation of all patients and requires that the health care team use procedures and techniques that result in the best possible outcomes for patients. In addition, patients must be satisfied with their care.

It is not accurate to say that customer service etiquette asserts that the physician must provide the same knowledge, care, and skill that a similarly trained physician would provide under the same circumstances in the same locality.

INFORMATION CONTINUED

Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)PATIENT: My doctor needs to discuss my treatment with other doctors and nurses. But the Privacy Rule prohibits doctors and nurses from discussing private health information if there is a possibility that someone will overhear. What if my doctor needs to discuss my condition with a nurse at a busy nursing station, or with me over the phone from someplace other than a private office? The privacy rule prevents these discussions.

This statement is not true, the Privacy Rule is not intended to prohibit physicians from communicating with one another about their patients.

INFORMATION CONTINUED

The privacy rule allows doctors and nurses to see a patient’s entire medical record, if I think they need it to do their jobs. The rule does not prohibit use or disclosure of, or requests for an entire medical record. The covered entity must document in its policies and procedures that the entire medical record is the amount reasonably necessary for certain identified purposes.

A friend or family member can still pick up a prescription for you, the privacy rule allows a pharmacist to use their own professional judgement and experience with common practice to make reasonable inferences of the patient’s best interest in allowing a person, other than the patient, to pick up a prescription

OFFICE PROCEDURES

Quiz

QUIZ True of False:

1. Customer service etiquette asserts that the physician must provide the same knowledge, care, and skill that a similarly trained physician would provide under the same circumstances in the same locality.

A. True

B . False

2. Being assertive is trying to impose your point of view on others or trying to manipulate other s.

A. True

B. False

QUIZ

3. The medical office's goal should be to establish a sense of rapport (i.e., an environment of cooperation) with patients, coworkers, supervisors, and vendors.

A. True

B. False

4. Quality medical care is an expectation of all patients and requires that the health care team use procedures and techniques that result in the best possible

outcomes for patients. In addition, patients must be satisfied with their care.

A. True

B. False

QUIZ CONTINUED

5. The number of patients and the nature of the medical practice (e.g., solo practice or corporation) determine which receptionist duties or tasks the medical assistant performs.

A. True

B. False

6. A physician, nurse or office staff can access a patient’s records if it is necessary to complete one’s job?

A. True

B. False

QUIZ CONTINUED

7. Quality care is an expectation of all patients and patients should be satisfied.

A. True

B. False

8. The Privacy rule does not allow for a friend or family member to pick up a prescription for someone and makes them got to the pharmacy now matter what condition they are in?

C. True

D. False

ANSWER KEY1. False

2. False

3. True

4. True

5. True

6. True

7. True

8. False

SUMMARY This concludes our tutorial on Medical office policies and procedures.

There has been information regarding office policies, telephone triage, transfer and etiquette and HIPAA guidelines. Staff should be able to review the tutorial and be able to answer all the questions within the quiz. The answer key is at the end of the lesson and employees will be asked to discuss and review the questions and policies.

The answers are provided within the tutorial to allow staff to be successful and be able to refer to a question and communicate any concerns or inquiries.

Staff is not expected to be perfect, but this allows for an overall introduction into what it takes to be a receptionist and team member of the office.

REFERENCES:

Gosfield, Alice G. (2002) THE HIPAA PRIVACY RULE: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions Retrieved from: http://www.aafp.org/fpm/2002/1100/p35.html