Ambulatory Office Assistant - Gilbertsville Mount Upton School-Based Health Center

Bassett Healthcare Network•Town of Butternuts, NY

About The Position

The Ambulatory Office Assistant III is the first point of contact for patients within Bassett Healthcare Network and an important member of the patient-centered care team. The role provides administrative and, as needed, clinical support to ambulatory patient care teams, with a focus on excellent customer service, accurate communication, scheduling, registration, and a high-quality patient experience. Duties may include collecting demographic and financial information, processing insurance eligibility, collecting payments, and providing direct patient care. The position supports patients throughout their visit, from appointment scheduling and referral coordination through registration, rooming, and follow-up. It also performs a broad range of office operations, records handling, cash management, supply and inventory work, and clinic support. The assistant may act as a subject matter expert or trainer, help coordinate staff and work queues, and support operational changes and improvement activities. The role requires maintaining confidentiality, following Bassett policies and regulatory requirements, and adapting to workflows across the network. Occasional travel and coverage at other locations or departments may be required with orientation.

Requirements

Relevant work experience is required; an associate degree or higher may be substituted.
BLS certification is required within six months of hire.
Computer skills.
Customer service skills.
Time-management skills.
Ability to multitask.
Communication skills.
Training skills.
Ability to meet the stated physical demands, including exerting up to 50 pounds occasionally, up to 20 pounds frequently, and up to 10 pounds constantly, along with the listed occasional and constant activities.

Nice To Haves

High school diploma or GED is preferred.
Experience in customer service is preferred.
Medical Office Assistant or Medical Assistant certification is preferred.

Responsibilities

Greet patients courteously and provide responsive, patient-focused service in person and by phone.
Answer calls according to department standards; take and follow up on messages and prescription requests through the electronic medical record messaging system.
Keep patient communication preferences current, inform patients about provider delays, and offer MyBassett enrollment.
Escalate emergent situations and patient concerns to the supervisor, supervising nurse, or appropriate provider.
Schedule appointments according to patient needs and department guidelines; offer alternate providers or locations when appropriate and manage appointment confirmations, reminders, edits, and rescheduling.
Collect and accurately enter or update patient demographic, insurance, registration, and financial information; support required regulatory documentation and audits.
Collect or support collection of copayments and other payments; handle, receipt, and balance cash and maintain petty cash records according to finance procedures.
Coordinate referrals, prior authorizations, referral tracking, and related queues; communicate appointment instructions and follow up with referred-to providers regarding appointments and results.
Prepare for provider clinics through chart review, obtaining relevant records and information, ensuring necessary supplies and equipment are available, and identifying language-access needs.
Room patients, use two identifiers, document work-up information such as vital signs, communicate patient concerns to providers, and perform point-of-care testing and EKGs as required by departmental protocols.
Clean and stock exam rooms; check medications and supplies for expiration dates and monitor inventory.
Support clinical documentation and scribing processes, prepare medication refill messages, enter charges for supplies and testing, and ensure orders are pended when needed.
Process incoming and outgoing patient information, forms, correspondence, records, scanning, indexing, and medical-record release requests according to Bassett procedures.
Maintain office supplies, forms, filing systems, databases, and departmental records; open or close clinics and provide coverage at other locations as requested.
Support operational reporting, work-queue monitoring, staffing assignments, supply ordering, downtime procedures, policy or technology changes, and code response as assigned.
Train and orient new staff, serve as a subject matter expert in assigned functions, attend required educational opportunities and meetings, and maintain job-specific competencies.
Protect patient health information and perform audits, tracers, and other quality and compliance tasks as assigned.
Perform other similar or related duties as requested or directed.