Access Team Lead

Northwestern Memorial Healthcare • DeKalb, IL

70d

About The Position

The Access Team Lead reflects the mission, vision, and values of NM, adheres to the organization's Code of Ethics and Corporate Compliance Program, and complies with all relevant policies, procedures, guidelines and all other regulatory and accreditation standards.

Requirements

• Minimum of two years experience in customer service or patient relations.
• Excellent interpersonal and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent problem solving skills.
• Received favorable annual performance reviews if internal applicant in the past one to two years.
• Ability to read and communicate effectively in English.
• Basic Computer Skills.
• Ability to type 40 wpm.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to multi-task.
• Customer Service Oriented.
• Excellent organizational, time management, analytical, and problem solving skills.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelors degree.
• Healthcare Finance and/or Healthcare Insurance Knowledge.
• Experience in a healthcare setting, especially patient scheduling and/or registration.
• Coding Certification.
• Certified Healthcare Associate Designation (NAHAM).
• Two - four years of progressive experience in a revenue cycle setting.
• Financial aptitude, business orientation or experience/knowledge of hospital based patient management/patient accounting systems.
• Knowledge of medical terminology.
• Epic experience.

Responsibilities

• Consistently practices Patients First philosophy and adheres to high standards of customer service.
• Forwards, directs and notifies Team Lead or Operations Coordinator of extraordinary issues as necessary.
• Maintains patient confidentiality per HIPAA regulations.
• Provides exceptional customer service to consumers which establish a positive first impression of Northwestern Medicine.
• Exceed all consumer requests and alert management of issues or concerns that require escalation.
• Correctly identifies and collects patient demographic information in accordance with organization standards.
• Interacts with various hospital departments and physicians offices to effectively schedule and direct patients through the NMHC systems.
• Reaches out to patients to schedule an appointment as defined.
• Performs medical necessity checks as necessary for scheduled services.
• Facilitates the pre-authorization of diagnostic exams between referring physicians and insurance carriers.
• Informs patients of any issues with securing the financial account for their encounter.
• Completes out-of-pocket estimations as requested by patients.
• Provides training and education as needed.
• Manages work schedule efficiently, completing tasks and assignments on time.
• Completes other duties assigned by manager.
• Cross-training between various departments may take place to ensure coverage.
• Participates in Quality Assurance reviews to ensure integrity of patient data information.
• Uses effective service recovery skills to solve problems or service breakdowns when they occur.
• Utilizes department and hospital policies and procedures to complete assigned tasks.
• Communicates information to the patient regarding questions about physician referrals, insurance referrals and consultations.
• Collects authorization numbers in appropriate systems as applicable.
• Provides professional and constructive environment for communication across units/departments.
• May attend intra/interdepartmental meetings which involve walking within NM Campus.
• Communicates customer satisfaction issues to appropriate individuals.
• Demonstrates teamwork by helping co-workers within and across departments.
• Communicates effectively with others, respects diverse opinions and styles.
• Interacts with internal customers to provide excellent support service to staff in departments which provide direct patient care.
• Utilizes multiple online order retrieval systems to verify or print the patient's order.
• Verifies insurance eligibility and benefit levels through the use of online tools or over the phone.
• Completes accurate handoff instructions and notes to scheduling staff.
• Is proactive in preventing issues with patient visit by double checking type of test, preps required.
• Understands minimum data set required for a complete registration.
• Proactively analyzes account activity, identifies problems, and initiates appropriate actions/resolutions.
• Evaluates procedures and suggests improvements to enhance customer service and operational efficiency.
• Participates in departmental quality improvement activities.
• Provides ideas and suggestions for process improvements within the department.
• Monitors registration and scheduling, including insurance verification to ensure processing within prescribed quality standards.
• Acts as a training resource for new staff and a resource for coworkers.
• Assists Operations Coordinator with staff training and development.
• Ensures staff understanding and compliance of NM policies, procedures and expectations.
• Identifies potential problems and notifies the Operations Coordinator and Manager.
• Coordinates advanced troubleshooting to staff when issues or questions arise.
• Serves as first line of assistance to staff.
• Investigates and resolves patient, technical and workflow problems.
• Helps coordinate and supervise section staffing to ensure sufficient staff.
• Works proactively with Operations Coordinator to adjust daily staff work assignments.
• Monitors queues to make real-time adjustments as necessary.
• Assures that all computer systems and technology are consistently working properly.
• Coordinates the maintenance and repair activities as related to equipment and facilities.
• Identifies and communicates key issues and trends to Operations Coordinators.
• Assesses and communicates staff development needs to Operations Coordinator.
• Develops, coordinates, presents and participates in staff education and training programs.
• Provides material and helps develop agendas for routine staff meetings.
• Assumes delegated responsibilities in the absence of the Operations Coordinator.
• Assists Operations Coordinator/Manager with responsibilities that include interviewing, hiring, training, and performance appraisals.
• Works with Operations Coordinator/Manager on enforcing Productivity and Quality standards.

Benefits

• Tuition reimbursement
• Loan forgiveness
• 401(k) matching
• Lifecycle benefits

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees