Scheduler

West Tennessee Healthcare

About The Position

The Scheduler obtains, coordinates, and directs information from patients, physician offices, hospital departments, and clinics to schedule patient appointments. The role gathers complete and accurate demographic, financial, and clinical information to support appropriate hospital reimbursement. Under general management direction, the Scheduler handles appointments on an assigned shift five days a week and is subject to call back and overtime as required by the hospital.

Requirements

Ability to read, write, spell, and use correct grammar at a level normally acquired through high school graduation or equivalent.
Ability to perform clerical duties normally acquired through 2–4 years of clerical or work-related experience.
Strong interpersonal skills to communicate effectively with patients, clinicians, and hospital personnel.
Ability to analyze, problem-solve, and make decisions.
Telephone skills that convey competence and a caring attitude to patients, families, employees, and medical personnel.
Computer knowledge and data-entry efficiency.
Ability to work independently and manage one’s workload.
Manual dexterity.

Nice To Haves

2–4 years of clerical or work-related experience preferred; hospital or physician office experience preferred.
Medical terminology class preferred.

Responsibilities

Schedule patient appointments in accordance with hospital and departmental guidelines.
Obtain and verify demographic, financial, and clinical information.
Provide patients, physicians, and office personnel with appointment scheduling and outpatient testing preparation information according to unit guidelines.
Answer calls and send patient messages to the nurses’ message box.
Scan medical record documents into designated EMR folders in a timely manner.
Review the daily Televox report and contact patients who cancelled or missed appointments to reschedule.
Attend required staff meetings.
Assist patients with signing up for patient portal access.
Manage the outgoing EMR transcription queue and ensure referring providers’ contact information is correct.
Fax or mail reports to providers when electronic contact is unavailable.
Correctly identify appointments, obtain and enter required information in scheduling software, and provide appropriate appointment information and instructions.
Maintain knowledge of insurance requirements, including governmental programs, managed care contracts, and other third-party payers.
Ensure compliance with the hospital’s financial policy.
Coordinate services across multiple entities and identify coordination needs between departments and facilities to schedule patients correctly.
Seek advice from clinical staff as needed.
Coordinate and prioritize daily activities and complete assigned tasks.
Assist with updates to job standards, job duties, and departmental policies.
Help identify and resolve issues to promote continuous improvement within the department.
Maintain expertise in scheduling software and provide monitoring and training.
Work collaboratively and use guest excellence skills with internal and external customers.
Adapt to and practice the hospital’s Quality Plus culture; remain calm, professional, and flexible to meet the needs of customers, patients, and staff.
Perform related responsibilities as required or directed and accept additional assignments.