Practice Coordinator

University of California, San Francisco•San Francisco, CA

About The Position

The Practice Coordinator 3 (PC3) represents the administrative team as the public face of UCSF Student Mental Health and Wellbeing (SMHW), supporting practice operations, customer service recovery, and coordination among administrative, clinical, and management teams. The role directs workflow for students and other enrollees and maintains routine clerical operations and communications. It supports appointment scheduling, registration, check-in, client messaging, telephone encounters, referrals, electronic medical record (EMR) administration, scanning and filing, authorizations, and coordination of care outside SMHW. The PC3 is the first point of non-clinical triage for students and other visitors, accurately routing requests to the appropriate provider, manager, or resource and escalating mental health distress or urgent needs when appropriate. The role helps students with policies and procedures, insurance and billing, Affordable Care Act coverage, UC Student Health Insurance Plan (UC SHIP) access and claims, and student immunization and health requirements. It provides accurate, confidential, and courteous service while supporting efficient practice flow and collaboration with UCSF Health departments and other service providers. The position also handles insurance and revenue-cycle support, cashiering, referral and authorization processing, medical records management, immunization-program support, reception-area upkeep, inventory, and assigned administrative projects. The PC3 is expected to be adaptable, self-reliant, collaborative, and able to use knowledge of practice operations to solve problems and prioritize complex transactions. The position contributes to a student-focused mission and to a culture of professionalism, respect, integrity, diversity, excellence, collaboration, and leadership.

Requirements

High school graduate or equivalent with four years of related experience; or a college degree and six months of related experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Successfully pass fingerprinting protocol and receive approval to serve as a cash collector.
Advanced customer-service skills and experience providing exceptional service to clients.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, both by telephone and in person.
Strong computer skills, including basic keyboarding, and experience with at least two office software programs such as Outlook, Word, and Excel.
Demonstrated ability to navigate multiple client-record systems.
Ability to sit at a computer terminal with telephone headphones for extended periods.
Ability to analyze situations, prioritize tasks and workload, develop solutions, and make recommendations.
Ability to work effectively as part of a team, collaborate closely with others, and adapt to changing priorities and new tasks.
Ability to synthesize knowledge of practice operations to problem-solve, prioritize, and facilitate complex transactions.
Ability to build rapport with clients quickly, remain calm in client interactions, and work effectively with minimal supervision.
Ability to use good judgment and work independently, including under deadline pressure.
Experience in a healthcare or mental health setting.
Prior experience with electronic medical records and/or billing software.
Complete, within six months of the start date and following training, the supervisor’s proficiency checklist for applicable functions, including referrals, scheduling, work queues, scanning, telephone encounters, messages, client advice requests, letters, client look-up, check-in and check-out, and related EMR tasks.

Nice To Haves

Experience working with students.
Billing and coding knowledge.
Some college-level coursework or a degree.
Knowledge of HIPAA and FERPA standards.

Responsibilities

Schedule and register clients, verify demographics and insurance eligibility, complete intake requirements, and support timely check-in and efficient practice flow.
Provide a professional and positive first point of contact for clients and referring physicians, answer phones, explain policies and procedures, and address or escalate service concerns and complaints.
Serve as the first line of non-clinical triage for students, visitors, vendors, and non-SMHW university employees; route requests appropriately and seek clinical support or escalate urgent needs when necessary.
Coordinate appointments with multiple providers, manage telephone calls and EMR work queues, process same-day and urgent requests, and collaborate with clinical staff on client care coordination.
Provide administrative support to providers, including client letters and educational materials, medication authorization assistance, referral processing, and follow-up of missed appointments.
Maintain accurate and confidential client records in the EMR, including organizing charts, scanning and filing documents, managing clinical notes and reports, obtaining missing lab results, and processing medical-record requests and disclosures.
Create and process specialty referrals and insurance authorizations, coordinate with specialty offices and service providers, and troubleshoot EMR or procedural issues with supervisors and IT staff.
Educate students about UC SHIP, Covered California plans, insurance benefits, claims, waivers, billing, managed care, and available online tools; refer students to financial counseling or other support when appropriate.
Support insurance eligibility and billing functions, act as a liaison with insurance and care vendors and UCSF billing units, process student waivers, and assist with claims and coverage issues.
Perform cashiering duties, including collecting and accounting for funds, processing credit-card transactions, maintaining payment records, reconciling daily collections, and preparing deposits and journals.
Manage assigned student immunization and tuberculosis-screening compliance, review and enter history data, explain requirements and submission processes, respond to status inquiries, and coordinate complex cases with nursing staff.
Maintain the reception area, educational materials, seating, temperature, equipment, and compliance with ergonomic and infection-control practices.
Participate in administrative team meetings and assigned projects, maintain office inventory and equipment, and submit purchase requests through BearBuy.