Think First’s recommendation to centralize patient scheduling and registration for ambulatory clinics implemented

Think First announced today that the Hospital of Saint Raphael (HSR) has successfully implemented Think First’s recommendation to centralize patient scheduling and registration for their ambulatory clinics. The Hospital of Saint Raphael has worked closely with Think First consultants to execute this plan and has seen immediate results.

Saint Raphael’s ambulatory clinics had been experiencing high rates of abandoned calls and low rates of first answer calls, resulting in many patient complaints. The issue was largely due to the fact that front desk personnel were responsible for answering phones while checking in patients and collecting their insurance co-payments. “We knew we had a problem with registration accuracy and efficiency. We were not putting our staff in a position to be successful,” says Medical Director Dr. Stephanie Arlis-Mayor.

Using their signature methodology, Measure. Improve. Sustain.™ - Think First was able to focus on achieving Saint Raphael’s business objectives of more accurate registration and improved customer service. Continued Dr. Arlis-Mayor, “The Think First team facilitated the implementation of the Central Scheduling and Registration program (CS&R) while fully empowering our current staff to maintain ownership and assume a leadership role. The Think First approach allowed us to implement an efficient business function, but more importantly, was able to situate us to realize the on-going benefits of the CS&R, long after the Think First engagement is completed.”

Working with HSR staff, Think First was able to implement this model with remarkable results. Abandoned call rates dropped from 21% to 13% in the first three weeks of operation. And while industry call centers average answered call rates of 80%, HSR’s new CS&R has increased its answered call rate from 55% to 88%.

"We are very pleased with the higher levels of organizational performance that HSR has been able to achieve in their ambulatory clinics because of the CS&R. Patients calling in are no longer hanging up because they cannot get through and the CS&R staff is successfully scheduling appointments and recording accurate registration information the first time,” says Kristen Weisenberger, Senior Project Manager, Think First. “We accurately anticipated that our best practice methodology would have an immediate and sustainable impact on patient satisfaction.”