Patient Access Specialist I | Orthopedic | E Colorado St

Monument Health•Spearfish, SD

1d•$17 - $20•Onsite

About The Position

The Patient Access Specialist I is responsible for front-end patient access and registration functions that support patient care and the revenue cycle. The position serves as a first point of contact for patients and provides service to patients, families, physicians, clinicians, and internal departments. No prior experience is necessary to begin a healthcare career in this role. The specialist collects and verifies patient, guarantor, and coverage information; supports financial clearance, scheduling, registration, and check-out; and performs related business office duties. The role also provides a welcoming and informative patient experience, maintains registration work queues, and coordinates with clinical teams as needed. Employees may be required to work beyond scheduled shifts and must follow Monument Health policies and procedures.

Requirements

Ability to work assigned schedules and hours as determined by the department.
Ability to comply with Monument Health's Attendance Policy; employees may be required to work beyond normally scheduled shifts.

Nice To Haves

High school diploma or GED equivalent.
At least 1 year of customer service experience.
At least 1 year of patient relations experience.
At least 1 year of medical patient accounts or financial services experience.

Responsibilities

Accurately collect patient demographics, confirm identity, assign guarantors, verify coverage, and obtain necessary check-in or admission documents across patient settings.
Follow Revenue Cycle guidelines and participate in quality assurance and improvement activities.
Apply knowledge of payer information and benefits, including Medicare, Medicaid, commercial payers, and third-party liability payers.
Collect prepayments, outstanding balances, copayments, and coinsurance; reconcile the cash drawer daily and provide basic account reconciliation to patients.
Provide cost estimates for scheduled services, initiate financial clearance, and appropriately escalate financial clearance needs.
Review authorization and referral records to confirm financial clearance.
Distribute and obtain required forms and signatures, including treatment consents, financial agreements, ABN/waivers, and other regulatory forms.
Perform business office duties, including handling calls and messages, patient and interdepartmental communications, scanning and faxing, taxi vouchers, mail distribution, lost and found, and safe and valuables procedures.
Provide reception, way-finding, and attentive, caring service that supports patients' emotional and physical needs and maintains communication throughout their experience.
Obtain referrals and order transcription when applicable to the service area.
Schedule patients and perform check-out, including pre-arrival management for upcoming services and management of wait lists and recall lists according to protocols.
Maintain registration-related work queues and resolve errors on an ongoing basis.
Use the electronic medical record for functions such as advanced directives, release of information, and patient portal proxy forms; educate patients on their purpose and applicable regulations.
Address account inquiries and resolve or escalate them as appropriate.
Perform patient movement activities in the electronic medical record when needed.
Arrange patient transportation and other enabling services when needed.
Assist the clinical care team as needed, including providing transport under clinical team direction.
Attend mandatory education, compliance, and safety program sessions.
Comply with current and future policies and procedures, report directly to the supervisor, and perform other duties as assigned.