Patient Access Center Representative (PRN)

Houston Methodist•Katy, TX

6d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Patient Access Center Representative is responsible for scheduling patients for services at their assigned location and ensuring patients are financially cleared before their appointments through accurate and timely scheduling, registration, and verification of eligibility and benefits. The representative provides customer service to patients and communicates with physicians, clinical and hospital staff, and management about issues that could cause service delays or reimbursement denials. The role also supports management through observations, process-improvement suggestions, and audits or quality reviews of scheduling and registration. This PRN position covers high call volume, vacations, and leaves. Full-time onsite training is required at the Katy location; after training, the representative may work from home. The role is non-exempt and requires business-professional attire. On-call work may be required during emergencies. Travel may be required within the Houston metropolitan area, but not outside it.

Requirements

High school diploma or equivalent education.
Three years of experience in a healthcare setting, call center, or customer service operations, or successful completion of the one-year Houston Methodist Call Center Apprenticeship in lieu of the experience requirement.
Ability to communicate effectively in English, including speaking, reading, and writing sufficient to perform essential job functions.
Ability to communicate effectively and professionally with patients, physicians, family members, and coworkers, including by telephone and in person.
Proficiency in medical terminology, including diagnoses, operative procedures, and CPT codes.
Excellent spelling and grammar skills.
Working knowledge of a Windows PC environment, word processing, and basic Excel; ability to enter data by keyboard throughout the work schedule.
Ability to navigate several registration-related applications and websites simultaneously.
Managed care knowledge and ability to distinguish among insurance plans such as PPO, POS, and HMO.
Ability to use critical thinking and healthcare knowledge in primary care, specialty care, and ancillary scheduling processes.
Ability to exercise independent judgment to accommodate customer requests as appropriate.
Ability to maintain patient confidentiality and follow HIPAA requirements.
Ability to perform assigned duties safely and meet ongoing skills, competency, and performance assessments.

Nice To Haves

Healthcare-setting knowledge and experience with a strong understanding of medical terminology.

Responsibilities

Schedule and register patients for requested services using computerized scheduling and registration systems and other applications.
Verify patient eligibility and insurance benefits and help ensure financial clearance before appointments.
Collect patient demographic, insurance, identification, guarantor, and clinical information needed for scheduling, registration, and financial clearance.
Answer and triage incoming calls, including calls from patients, physician offices, and hospital departments.
Provide patients with appointment-preparation information and support Patient Portal enrollment in accordance with HIPAA requirements.
Coordinate with patients, physicians, clinic staff, hospital departments, and service areas to resolve scheduling or registration issues and communicate actions taken.
Support urgent referrals and appointments, including requests for same-day or within-24-hour scheduling when needed.
Follow department scripts, scheduling policies, electronic medical record workflows, privacy requirements, and applicable protocols.
Maintain department productivity and scheduling goals, including applicable abandonment-rate and productivity-per-hour targets.
Document potential issues that could cause service delays or cancellations due to lack of financial clearance.
Assist management with observations, audits, quality reviews, and process-improvement efforts.
Apply new learning, share knowledge, embrace change, and work toward best practices and excellence.