Archive for the tag 'Appointment Reminder'

Online appointment scheduler –multitasking in medical management

Dr. Maulik November 16th, 2009

Online appointment scheduler is basically an online patient appointment scheduling system that fixes up the appointments of the patients using software.  When the world is toward globalization and everything has gone computerized, why leave the clinic or health care center behind! The software can tackle multiple tasks at the health care center that otherwise becomes expensive recruiting more people for different works.

The system that provides online appointment schedule can be used for several reasons. For instance, the system can be fed with tailored answers by the doctor or health care provider according to the need and wish. These answers can be played as and when required. It can also be turned into answering machine if the hospital or clinic has flood of calls from patients. Also, during some campaign where more calls are expected, this answering machine can tackle all of them without any hassles. In addition, answering machine can answer all calls and no caller would be getting a ‘busy, frustrating tone’. The answers are professionally tailored and the voice they hear is soothing and satisfying.

The beauty of answering machine cum online appointment scheduler is it can be also used as a patient reminding system! The system can call the patients and ask them about the follow up and regimen. Following up the patients means that they feel being personally treated and it brings a good rapport of the health care provider and also the center.

Driven by the latest technology and advanced settings, multiple language (multilingual) option is possible in this system. This helps in tackling foreigners who come as patients. Spanish, French and English, being the major languages can be set as per the requirement. Also, online appointment scheduler can synchronize appointments with Google Calendar that can be accessed using handheld devices such as iPhone, SmartPhone and Blackberry. This way, the health care provider or doctor is never away from the center and can be aware of what all schedules are fixed for today and coming days.

Other benefits that come with automated office system include…

  1. It is a 24/7 service so patients are never said to call between a few hours. Even after office hours, the health care center is accessible. This improves the availability.
  2. No patients are kept on the hold! All get response and this is very useful when there’s a flood of calls.
  3. Online appointment scheduler can fix up appointments anytime. It sends you data on your handheld devices and hence keeps you updated. No need for a human receptionist to inform you.
  4. It is more reliable and trustworthy. No tiredness from this virtual medical front office executive!

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My Experiments with Online Scheduler

Dr. Maulik November 4th, 2009

I am a health care provider and know what difficulties we, the doctors, face running our medical clinics! The things may sound easier before they come right in front of you! This is the truth and will remain unless you upgrade your entire setup i.e. automating the office. The automation comes in many ways but one of the most important among all is office automation using online scheduler that helps tackling patients’ flow.

I was invited by my doctor friend who had just installed virtual receptionist i.e. a system that works on a multiple tasks like automated patient reminding, answering patients’ calls and fixing online appointments. I was bit surprised when he said that this is possible and you do not need to pay anything for installing as the installation for online scheduler cum patient reminder service is absolutely free. Furthermore, this 24/7 medical office automated assistant is designed to be HIPPA compliant that come with strict security and privacy protections.

I understood that appointment reminder cum answering system comes with a lot of benefits that is much required for a smooth medical management. Right from appointment reminder to making medical follow up calls to the patients after doctor’s appointment and fixing up appointments online to answering patients’ calls; everything is possible by installing medical software that works as virtual medical assistant.

Unlike human medical assistant, sitting as front office executive, the online scheduler system does not keep your potential customers busy on the call whenever they dial the health care center. The best benefit among all for automated patient reminder service is it works round the clock without any interruption and hence, the customers can contact the health center anytime they want. In this way, the clinic or the center is accessible all the day and this, in turn, may increase the sales and revenue. The good thing is even during after-hours; answering machine takes care of all the calls come.

In this world of cutthroat competition, when the growth is dependent on the availability, quality of service and hospitality, installing medical management software will certainly prove as a wise step.

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Online Business Appointment At Your Fingertips 24/7 with Google Sync

Jon July 20th, 2009


It sounds too good to be true. You can access all of your appointments at your fingerprints, without being in or near the office.

From your iphone, BlackBerry or another smart phone, you can see when there is free time in your day to fit in another patient. You can access patient information and keep track of who is coming in and when. All of this – and the reality is you don’t even need the Internet. Face it – you’re often travelling, away from your office and you’re not always near a “hot-spot” with wireless Internet or near your computer. Well, fear not!

The savior is a online business scheduler with google sync and it’s about to revolutionize the way you run your medical practice. It’s appointment access at your fingertips 24/7. And, it’s a way you can gain an added advantage over your competition. Not only is it convenient for you, but it’s convenient for your patients as well.

It all starts with online appointment scheduler. This is a 24/7 web-based scheduling system that enables your patients to log on at anytime of the day or night to schedule visits. The patients could be scheduling initial visits, or follow-ups. They can also put all of their insurance information online as well so it frees up your staff from having to do hours and hours of administrative work.

What’s more – you and your entire practice can be notified immediately when someone schedules an appointment. The online appointment scheduler makes it easy for you to see your day, week and month at a glance – and allows you to avoid overbooking. It also allows you to easily see where you can fit in emergency appointments and how best you can plan the day for you and your patients. Your patients can also put additional notes into the system that you will see when you log on.

There are times when you are out of office- and so clearly you don’t have access to your appointment book. Guess what? Even without email or internet access, you can have access to updated appointment information from your handheld device or cell phone. By syncing appointments to google calendar – you can have access to all of your appointments twenty-four hours a day! What’s more – it’s easy!

There are a few easy-to-follow steps to sync up your device with your online appointment scheduler. Once all of the information and contacts are loaded into your google calendar, it only takes a minute or so to sync it up with your mobile device. And, it works with nearly every device! You name it. Do you have the new Iphone? It works. The new blackberry? Yes, that too. An older version Nokia standard phone? No problem!

Google sync also has other great features. You are even able to sync multiple calendars if you have multiple office locations. You can also sort the data however you want. It is truly a great way to run a more efficient and effective practice. And, there are so many good benefits for your patients as well. Your patients will get better customer service from your administrative staff because your staff won’t have to worry so much about all of the administrative work.

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Which Medical Appointment Reminder Suits your Practice; the Email Reminder or Telephone Reminder?

Martin Wright July 14th, 2009


When you decided to become a private practitioner you probably started out with a handful of patients. Appointments were easy to keep track of and you probably thought that your medical receptionist was the most efficient front desk receptionist available. You knew each patient down to their dog’s name and so did everyone in the practice.

Your practice has probably grown since then and keeping track of your patients and their appointments is becoming more of a challenge for both your patients and especially for your medical receptionist. You can help ease the burden on your front desk receptionist and the rest of your medical staff by investing in an email reminder or telephone reminder. A telephone or email reminder will remind patients of their appointment either online or via a telephone call according to your preference.

The success of your reminder service will directly affect the success of your practice. Deciding on which type of appointment reminder service will suit you best will be influenced by your practice and your patients. Check your patients’ personal records for their contact information. If most of them have email addresses then an email reminder would be suitable. If most of your patients do not have email addresses then a telephone reminder would be more logical.

You ought to consider the type of practice you are running and the type of people you receive as patients. If majority of your patients are elderly or from poor neighborhoods, an email reminder may not reach as many of your patients as you would like. Even if these patients had email addresses they would not spend much time surfing as they either cannot afford to or do not know how to. An email reminder would be suitable in a practice where the patients have access to the Internet and check their emails regularly.

Doctors should also consider the preference of their patients. Some patients will be irritated by receiving telephone calls reminding them of appointments at regular intervals. Such patients would much rather have an email reminder sent to their email addresses. Others would prefer to be alerted via telephone as they are probably prone to forgetting about their appointments easily. This is especially true for elderly patients.

Both a telephone and email reminder are only 90% effective. No doctor can be assured 100% of the successful delivery of all reminders on either service. A telephone reminder may not be delivered as the patient may not answer the telephone. An email reminder may not be read as the patient may fail to check his or her email in good time.

It is therefore advisable for a doctor to invest in both a telephone and email reminder. It may seem expensive in the beginning but the returns will be well worth it. Both services are inexpensive to maintain and working together will guarantee you a more successful delivery. Your patients can even choose the reminder service they prefer.

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Why online appointment scheduler serve your better with Google Calendar Sync?

Jon June 17th, 2009


How many times have you said to yourself – I wish I had internet access right now? We all do it. We are all tied to the internet in many important ways. If you’re a doctor – or any other small business person (hair salon employees and therapists come to mind) you need to have access to your schedule 24/7 whether or not you have internet access. You need to know when you’re clients are coming in, when you can take a break, and when you can fit someone in at the last moment.

Well, you’re in luck. 24/7 online appointment scheduler is the way to go for you and your patients and customers. They can log onto the internet at anytime of the day or night and make appointments. They can also send you notes, provide insurance information and do any number of things to improve the patients or clients’ experience.

As for you, you can now – through google calendar sync – sync up your appointment and calendar book with any handheld device you have (BlackBerry, IPhone or any smart phone) Wow, you can have access to everything you need within a moment, simply by looking at your handheld device!

Fill in your Gmail login information insider your scheduler account, all of your contacts, and appointment information can be synced up with your Google Calendar and can be then viewed on your blackberry, iPhone – or any other smart-phone device. And – get this – you won’t even need internet access to view your calendar at any hour of the day. You will be able to view all of the information – 24/7- regardless of whether or not you can get online.

Sometimes you’re so busy you can’t get onto the internet. Or, you may not have internet access in your office. Or, you may be traveling. Or, you may simply not want to log onto the computer! Well, there is no reason to fear. There is still a way to see all of your appointments at a glance. The reason: with 24/7 online appointment scheduler with google calendar sync- once you sync all of the information onto your handheld, fear not! You will be able to see all of your appointments and contacts regardless of whether you have internet access at the time! This is an invaluable resource because no matter where you are you will be able to check your appointments and see your calendar at a glance on your handheld device! Imagine when you’re traveling and can’t get internet access – or if you’re just too busy to log on. All of the information will be at your fingertips – on your handheld.

And, as an added bonus, google calendar sync will also synchronize all of your contacts. You will be able to access this information anytime and from anywhere in case of an emergency or the need for a change. This is a wonderful resource for doctors, small business owners, and patients!

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Turn “uh-oh no-show” into $$$ with automated reminder service

Jon May 21st, 2009


Some doctors insist on letting their own staff to make patient reminder calls instead of using reminder service! They believe such calls make the service more “personal”.

Is it really better, for patient or for medical office, if a reminder call is made by staff (or more “personal”) than automated system?

Let’s face it. We all live busy lives, and none of us have too much extra time for small talk. The last time my doctor’s office called me to remind me of an upcoming appointment the receptionist began with, “Hi, how are you feeling?” It was a very nice sentiment – but one in which my busy day, I don’t have time to be engaged in. I was very nice, but a call that should’ve taken 10 seconds, ended up taking 3 minutes. And, really- who wants to waste anytime let alone speaking to a receptionist at your doctor’s office?

Vice versa, I am pretty sure there are receptionists that get caught into an undesired long conversation by patients bring up issues that are beyond their control. “Can you tell doctor that I still have this pain over…”. “How comes the medicine I took is not working…”.

It got me to thinking – wouldn’t that a receptionist’s time be better served talking to patients in person at the office and not bantering over the phone? And, wouldn’t it make more sense for the receptionist to be doing something more productive for the practice?
And, that’s where the idea of the automated reminder service comes in.

A reminder service automatically calls patients and reminds them of their appointments. With the virtual system in place, the call is made on time and is quick and easy. Patients like it because you’re not taking up their valuable time. And, there is a hidden benefit for the medical practice as well.

The hidden benefit is by using a reminder service – you are actually cutting your cost and increasing revenue. Why? First of all, you are turning potential “no-shows” into returning patients. The more patients you can maintain in your practice, the more your revenue increases. In addition, this frees up your live receptionist to do more important business around the office. For example, because the automatic reminder service is handling reminding patients about their appointments, the receptionist can focus on attracting new patients. Attracting new patients is something an automated system may not do – but reminding current patients of their appointments is absolutely something the virtual service can and will do effectively. And, when no-shows at your medical practice go down and customer satisfaction goes up because of the automated reminders – you have struck gold!

And all of this, without perhaps alienating your patients by unnecessary small talk or – even worse – by being put on hold during the appointment reminder process. The automated reminder cuts down on many different things that could adversely affect the patient’s experience.

And, there is one more thing to keep in mind as well. An automated appointment reminder system can be programmed to do many different things. Calling and reminding patients of their appointments is just one small aspect. Imagine programming the system to speak in the language the patient speaks – automatically! Or, imagine the automated reminder system calling to remind patients about prescription refills or other necessary items that could impact their health? There are many different uses for the virtual reminder system – all of which help bring in more patients and help keep your current patients satisfied. And, when your patients are happy, the practice is happy because chances are those patients are telling their friends what a wonderful office experience they had!

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Online Medical Office Assistant Technology Is a Great Business Solution

Richard E PANTALONY April 19th, 2009


Are you considering using an All-in-One virtual receptionist for your medical practice? Is it a good time now to consider your overall technology needs within your medical practice?  If you feel your own medical office is out of step with technology, what should be done to improve your office efficiency?

Online an All-in-One virtual office assistant offers numerous features that will certainly elevate your practice into the 21st century as far as your telecommunications are concerned; At a fraction of the live agent cost, you can expect an virtual receptionist to performe most of your medical front desk tasks. To name a few; making patient reminder call, dispatch emergency call and believe or not, talking to patients in natural language and set appointment for them. 

There are vendors of software designed specifically for the medical community and as you are upgrading to an online medical office assistant service you should investigate other forms of technology to improve upon office organization and performance. If ever there were a business practice that lived up to the motto “time is money” it would be the medical field. Better use of time through technology means your staff will be operating at peak performance.

There is no better time to take the final step into a computer literate environment for your office then when you are in the process of introducing a virtual receptionist. Your staff will be excited by the new technology and if they are even somewhat literate with computers and certain software applications such as windows OS’s or other basic programs, they will adjust to new software applications you introduce at once with your remote reception service.

Once you start to investigate various technologies for your medical practice, someone within the office should be responsible for keeping up to date with these programs and upgrades. They would act as your in-house IT go to person if there were operation questions, quick fixes required etc. It might even be prudent to send one of your trusted employees or even yourself for classroom training to become current with new technology and Internet based software applications in general.

The thing about computer technology and becoming accomplished with it is it takes a basic understanding of how computers work and some fundamentals of software applications – web based and off the shelf. The more you work with it the more comfortable you will become. Before you know it, your staff will not only be enjoying their lightened workload due to the new virtual medical office assistant online but they will also develop into skilful medical software virtuosos!

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Virtual Receptionist and Appointment Reminder Software: How It Has Helped Medical Practices Through This Recession

Martin Wright January 29th, 2009


After the inauguration of Barrack Obama as the 44th president of the USA, Americans and indeed the whole world has shown renewed optimism and many believe that the new administration will bring some tangible change. The economy is still struggling and massive layoffs continue to hit our headlines. Businesses are looking for ways of remaining afloat. 

One method businesses are using to enhance their survival is through cutting costs by reducing the number of staff requiring insurance cover and other benefits. Apart from downsizing, automation is the other way of cutting costs. Since the deleterious effects of the global economic downturn have affected all manner of businesses medical practices also have had to find ways of surviving. An example is investing in a virtual receptionist.

A medical receptionist has come in handy to help the practices retain and attract new clients. With the services of a medical office front office receptionist patients can call any time of day or night and book an appointment. In addition, they do not have to wait for long for their call to go through. In case of an emergency they can reach the right person without any delays. This endears them to the practice and thus increasing referrals. The number of patient no-shows has declined as the appointment reminder sends reminders to patients with appointments well before the appointment day.

Customer satisfaction more than ever before has become a major ingredient for the success of any business. Use of the virtual answering service has freed the hands of the staff working at medical practices enabling them to dedicate more time to more important tasks like medical billing and ensuring that clients are well served. This has been possible because the mundane tasks can now be done very effectively by the medical office receptionist. This is a sure way of beating the competition that is being witnessed currently in the business world as every body tries to prevent their businesses from going under. It is a sure way of ‘killing’ the proverbial two birds with one stone. Ensuring customer satisfaction while not necessarily hiring more staff and hence spending less in the long run.

As we look forward to a better economy (hoping it happens soon) in the coming days especially with the new economic rescue package by the Obama administration it pays to ensure that your business does not ‘die out’ completely. Use all means possible to ‘hibernate’ your medical practice until when better days come. Automation wherever possible is a sure way of doing that. It will help you cut operating costs to their bare minimum and hence increasing your bottom line. This could be the reason why the neighboring medical practice seems not to be suffering from the effects of the financial slump.

Give your practice all that important new lease of life and see it pull through the recession. It could make the difference between life and death. This cost effective solution will bring you the turn around you have been looking for all along.  Invest in appointment reminder software today and enjoy the benefits!

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