Office Assistant - IRMC Physician Group - (Full Time, Part Time, Casual)

Indiana Regional Medical Center•East Mahoning Township, PA

About The Position

The Office Assistant supports front-office operations for IRMC Physician Group. The role greets and registers patients and visitors, processes registration and insurance information, verifies eligibility, collects payments, answers and routes calls, manages messages, schedules appointments, and supports records, authorizations, supplies, deliveries, and general office upkeep. The assistant follows confidentiality, security, HIPAA, sterile-technique, and universal-precaution requirements and may travel to other IPG offices when requested to provide front-office coverage. The position requires a high school diploma or equivalent. Two years of medical-office or customer-service experience and completion of a recognized medical secretarial program are preferred. The role calls for knowledge of medical-office processes and terminology, computer and clerical systems, patient forms and confidentiality requirements, along with strong communication, interpersonal, organization, critical-thinking, and coordination skills.

Requirements

High school graduate or equivalent required.
Ability to make a strong first impression and sustain it.
Ability to answer multilane telephones and operate automated systems, computers, and fax machines.
Ability to uphold ICARE core values with every patient.
Strong interpersonal skills and ability to maintain cooperative relationships with staff, patients, physicians, and management.
Ability to communicate clearly and concisely.
Critical-thinking skills.
Ability to maintain organized and accurate records.
Team-coordination skills.
Ability to serve as a patient advocate.
Ability to maintain a professional appearance by adhering to the dress-code policy.

Nice To Haves

Two years of medical-office or customer-service experience preferred.
Completion of a recognized medical secretarial program preferred.
Knowledge of medical-practice clerical equipment, operations, and processes; basic medical terminology and abbreviations; computer systems; medical forms, reports, and processing methods; and confidentiality laws governing the patient-physician relationship.

Responsibilities

Greet and register patients and visitors promptly and pleasantly, determine their needs, and respond appropriately.
Retrieve, review for correctness, and process patient registration forms.
Collect, scan, and update personal and financial information, including insurance cards and driver's licenses.
Run insurance verification and eligibility checks for every patient and address insurance eligibility alerts.
Collect patient payments and provide receipts.
Retrieve answering-service and voicemail messages each morning, after lunch, and throughout the workday.
Answer incoming telephone calls and direct them to the appropriate physician, clinical staff, or support staff through the message center.
Work Cerner message-center pools and complete messages as applicable.
Schedule patient appointments according to provider protocol.
Maintain copay, petty-cash, and receipt logs.
Forward medical-record requests to the Health Information Management Department promptly and in accordance with organizational policy.
Monitor the patient reminder system daily for cancellations, reschedules, and no-shows; follow up as appropriate.
Follow HIPAA, confidentiality, and security rules when providing information to outside sources.
Accept and sign for mail, parcels, and other deliveries according to office policy.
Use sterile techniques and universal precautions when accepting patient specimens over the counter.
Provide a lead or manager with a list of clerical supplies as needed.
Keep the front desk and waiting room orderly, neat, and clean.
Retrieve faxes routinely.
Obtain prior authorizations required by patient insurance for tests and procedures.
Travel to other IPG offices when requested to cover the front office.
Perform other tasks as requested.