Patient Access Monthly Journal
Source: The Academy of Healthcare Revenue

Customer Service Tips and Strategies for Patient Access Staff

A great deal of news coverage has recently been devoted to hospitals’ quality of patient care; however, almost as important, and just as worthy of attention, is hospitals’ customer service quality. When healthcare facilities deliver good customer service and improve patients’ experiences, their reputations and even their revenues can be positively affected. For this reason, patient access staff members must utilize effective strategies to ensure customer service success. This is particularly important in patient access because many patients’ first impression of a hospital is formed by their interaction with patient access staff, including schedulers, pre-registration team members, and registrars. 

It is important for access staff to develop a “service mentality” based on key personality traits that will positively impact patient experience. Several of these key characteristics are outlined below:1

Empathy. Individuals rarely visit hospitals when they are feeling well. This simple fact can help staff members realize the importance of empathy in customer service. Staff members must first understand and empathize with patients before they can hope to obtain or explain any information.

Enthusiasm. Keeping in mind that hospital visitors are probably not there in the best of circumstances, staff members’ enthusiasm is crucial to customer service. Not only can enthusiasm put patients at ease, but it can also show that staff members are able and happy to help.

Responsibility. Staff members must also hold themselves accountable for their own actions and the actions of the entire hospital. Even when not directly responsible for potential problems that may occur, staff members must have the mentality that patients see them as the hospital’s only representatives at that time; therefore, responsibility lies with patient access to help identify and resolve these issues.

Adaptability. Being able to adapt to changing situations is another customer service ideal. This could mean working efficiently through unplanned occurrences (such as a very high volume of patients waiting to be registered) or moving on from an unpleasant patient encounter without allowing the experience to negatively impact future patient encounters.

Balance. Finally, staff members must maintain a balance between helping patients and fulfilling their revenue cycle responsibilities. In addition to keeping the patient’s needs in mind, staff members must also realize what must be done to ensure the hospital has all necessary patient information.

Now that these key traits of customer service have been established, it is necessary to identify some key customer service guidelines for staff to remember:2

Be Polite. Staff members should use polite phrases (such as “please” and “thank you”) and not belittling, abrupt, or seemingly harsh phrases (such as “What is this in reference to?”).

Be Attentive. Engaging in side conversations with other staff members, taking other calls, and even rushing while helping a patient are bad practices. Staff members must listen carefully and provide thoughtful responses when communicating with patients.

Maintain a Positive Attitude. Staff members should also never appear to be having a bad day. Smiling and showing enthusiasm in every task makes staff members appear positive and approachable, making processes flow more effectively and efficiently. Even if patients are frustrated, staff members must remain calm, listen, show empathy, and help solve potential problems. Staff members should never hang up on, walk away from, or ignore patients, regardless of the situation.

Ensure Understanding. The importance of clarity in healthcare extends to customer service provided by patient access. Staff members must avoid using organizational jargon or industry language when interacting with patients who are likely unfamiliar with such terms. Clearly explaining instructions and other vital information to patients, and then verifying that patients understand, are good customer service practices.

Follow up. When patients contact the hospital, staff members must always respond by returning phone calls and e-mails and apologize if responses are late. Additionally, if patients are kept waiting or placed on hold, staff members must not forget to follow up and apologize for the wait.

Some hospitals monitor customer service practices through “mystery shoppers,” who test and report hospital staff members’ customer service performance. These mystery shoppers pose as patients and observe staff by either visiting hospitals or calling to make appointments. For example, in Boston, one mystery shopper pretended to read a magazine in a hospital waiting room, while actually taking notes on staff members’ performance.3

Because they are often the first hospital representatives patients encounter, patient access staff members must improve patients’ experiences through the utilization of effective customer service strategies and techniques. Focusing attention on improved customer service can ultimately help increase patient satisfaction and loyalty.

1 Nancy Friedman, “What’s Your Service Mentality IQ?” Monthly Communications Journals, March 2005.

2 Nancy Friedman, “Are You Guilty? (15 Customer Service No-Nos),” Monthly Communications Journals, April 2005.

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