Have you heard the saying “It takes a village to raise a child”? Well, it takes every department to run an office, and a doctor’s office is no different. Client intake is very critical when it comes to medicine because any small thing missed could create a big problem! In this post, we will go over a few things that may be helpful in the process.
Paper or Electronic Documents?
Every intake consists of answering a lot of questions about everything from current physical ailments, medical history, family medical history, and insurance or payment information. All of this is generally filled out using paper forms provided by the office. This is a perfectly fine method to use if you keep in mind the ease of reading and filling out these forms. Offering a set of forms with larger type for those with vision problems would be a great way to make the intake process easier on those patients.
Electronic forms are also a good way to make things easier on your patient, your office staff, and you! The patient may either print the forms off and fill them out before their appointment or complete the forms online from a secured patient portal managed by your office. By having the patient fill out the forms online, it saves time in the waiting room and your office staff won’t have to worry about information input since it has already been done. This allows them to focus on more important things, like the patients themselves! Patients save time (and stress!), too. They’re able to complete the forms on their own time and in the comfort of their own environment.
The choice is yours! You chose the tried and true paper method, embrace technology, or give your patients a choice between the two.
Intake Over the Phone
There is also the option of taking down the patient’s information over the phone. Then, the patient just needs to review the documents for accuracy and sign the forms when they come in for their appointment. This can be time consuming for office staff, but more personal and helpful for the patient. Clients ARM offers intake assistance for a variety of different business practices, including physicians’ offices! We can help make things in your office easier for you by taking this piece of the process and doing it for you!
Intake Follow Up
After all the paperwork has been filled out, turned in, and entered into the computer, it is then important to follow up with the patient. Having someone review what the patient provided is the first step in making sure nothing is missing, incomplete, or out of place. If something doesn’t make sense, it is important to find out right away. Your patient’s health depends on your personnel understanding what the patient is saying or trying to say on those forms. Clarity is key! It is imperative to ask any pertinent questions of the patient about their medications, medical history, and current health. This prevents future problems with insurance coding, billing, and even in medical care. If there are any changes or updates needed, they should be made right away so that the physician has accurate and up to date information when it is time to see the patient. .
Let Clients ARM’s Experience Benefit You
Patient intake can be a multi-step process that takes time and knowledge of your business’s expertise. We have been helping with client intake for years and have firsthand experience to make it easier on your and your patients. Let Clients ARM show you how we can help with your client intake process with our free consultation.
