Patient Access Specialist

Northwestern Memorial Healthcare • Winfield, IL

7d

About The Position

The Patient Access Specialist supports Northwestern Medicine’s patient-first mission by providing customer service and helping patients navigate appointment scheduling, registration, referrals, insurance verification, and related financial processes. The role follows NMHC policies, procedures, compliance requirements, and applicable regulatory and accreditation standards, while maintaining patient confidentiality under HIPAA.

The specialist works with patients, hospital departments, physician offices, and scheduling staff to support accurate, timely, and patient-friendly service. Responsibilities include collecting and verifying patient and insurance information, checking medical necessity and eligibility, documenting in Epic, resolving service issues, and helping prevent problems that could affect a patient’s visit. The position also contributes to quality assurance and improvement, supports coworkers and new staff, and may cross-train across departments to help ensure coverage. Work schedules may change to reflect business needs.

Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• 2–3 years of customer service or medical office experience.
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Ability to read, write, and communicate effectively in English.
• Proficiency in computer data entry and typing; ability to type 40 words per minute.
• Basic computer skills and ability to use computer applications needed for the position.
• Ability to multitask.
• Customer-service orientation.
• Excellent organizational, time-management, analytical, and problem-solving skills.

Nice To Haves

• Additional education.
• Additional language skills.
• Healthcare finance and/or healthcare insurance experience.
• Knowledge and experience in a healthcare setting, especially patient scheduling and/or registration.

Responsibilities

• Provide courteous, patient-first customer service and establish a positive first impression of Northwestern Medicine.
• Respond to patient questions and concerns, resolve service breakdowns, and escalate extraordinary issues or concerns when appropriate.
• Maintain patient confidentiality in accordance with HIPAA regulations.
• Collect, identify, verify, and update patient demographic and registration information according to organizational standards.
• Coordinate with hospital departments and physician offices to schedule and direct patients through NMHC systems.
• Contact patients to schedule appointments as defined.
• Perform medical necessity checks when required and communicate available options when an appointment does not meet requirements.
• Inform patients of issues securing the financial account for an encounter and complete out-of-pocket estimates when requested.
• Communicate information about physician referrals, insurance referrals, and consultations; collect authorization numbers in appropriate systems when applicable.
• Retrieve or print patient orders using online systems and verify insurance eligibility and benefits using online tools or by telephone.
• Run real-time eligibility checks, follow applicable out-of-network policies, and document accurate handoff instructions in Epic.
• Send clear, descriptive, grammatically correct Epic messages and telephone encounter notes.
• Prevent visit issues by checking test type, preparation requirements, test conflicts, time and location, order documentation, and duplicate patient records.
• Monitor registration, scheduling, and insurance verification for compliance with quality standards; adjust processes as needed.
• Analyze account activity, identify problems, and initiate appropriate resolutions.
• Participate in quality assurance reviews and departmental quality-improvement activities.
• Evaluate procedures and suggest improvements to customer service and operational efficiency.
• Use organizational and department resources efficiently and manage assigned work and schedule effectively.
• Provide training and education as needed, and serve as a resource for new staff and coworkers on processes and workflows.
• Collaborate across units and departments, support staff in direct patient-care departments, and attend relevant meetings as needed.
• Complete other duties assigned by the manager.

Benefits

• Tuition reimbursement
• Loan forgiveness
• 401(k) matching
• A wide range of benefits intended to support employees’ physical, emotional, and financial well-being and provide protection for unexpected life events

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Education Level: High school or GED