Communications Generalist - LGH Ground Transport/Full Time Days

Centra Health•Lynchburg, VA

About The Position

The Communication Generalist is responsible for managing incoming communications and coordinating patient care logistics across the health system. This role receives and processes incoming calls and written requests related to patient appointments and transportation, ensuring timely and accurate scheduling. The position coordinates directly with physician offices, clinics, and healthcare facilities to arrange appointments and provide appropriate transportation support. Additionally, the Communication Generalist oversees the internal transport dispatch system (Capacity Management), ensuring efficient patient flow and resource utilization. The role is responsible for obtaining prior and post authorizations for all non-Medicare B transports, accurately entering authorization information into the data collection system to support claims processing. The Communication Generalist communicates operational questions and escalations to the Dispatch Supervisor, Nursing Supervision, and/or Flow Coordinator as they arise, ensuring seamless coordination and high-quality patient service.

Requirements

High school diploma or equivalent required
Strong critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, with the ability to prioritize and manage multiple high-acuity situations independently.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to convey clinical and operational information clearly to multidisciplinary teams and external partners.
Must obtain CAC (Certified Ambulance Coder) certification before the end of orientation.
Knowledge of and compliance with HIPAA, EMTALA, ADA , and other applicable regulatory and accreditation standards
Ability to maintain strict confidentiality and professionalism in all patient-related and operational communications

Nice To Haves

Advanced knowledge of medical terminology, clinical workflows, emergency protocols, and patient transport processes .
Medical Billing and Coding Certificate
Demonstrated experience obtaining prior and post authorizations for patient transports and entering accurate billing/pre-registration data into electronic systems.

Responsibilities

Serves as hub for patient appointments, transportation, and related communications across the health system, ensuring timely, accurate, and efficient service.
Receive, assess, prioritize, and manage incoming calls, written requests, and electronic communications related to patient scheduling, transportation, and administrative needs.
Coordinate directly with physician offices, clinics, and healthcare facilities to schedule patient appointments and ensure transportation is appropriately arranged.
Oversee the internal transport dispatch system (Capacity Management), monitoring patient flow, optimizing resource allocation, and ensuring operational efficiency.
Perform transport pre-registration and billing , including obtaining prior and post authorizations for all non-Medicare B transports, and entering authorization and billing data into the system to support accurate claims processing.
Monitor, track, and escalate complex or high-priority transport and scheduling issues, ensuring timely resolution and communication with appropriate leadership.
Communicate operational or clinical questions, escalations, and workflow challenges to the Dispatch Supervisor/Manager, Nursing Supervision, Shift Lead and/or Flow Coordinator as needed.
Maintain documentation and data entry in accordance with regulatory, compliance, and accreditation standards, including HIPAA and organizational policies.
Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams and external agencies to ensure seamless coordination of patient care and transportation services.
Identify workflow inefficiencies, potential risks, or system gaps and recommend process improvements to leadership.
Participate in quality improvement initiatives, policy development, and process optimization related to transport, scheduling, billing, and communication workflows.
Responsible for call quality and customer service standards in the call center
Maintains strict confidentiality of all information, including financial/operational, employee/human resource, healthcare/patient data and information.
Performs other duties as assigned.