FEATURE “It is absolutely critical that ASCs,
when they think about organizing their staff, must start with identifying the skills that are needed in each of the po- sitions,” he says. “Anyone in the front office needs to have excellent custom- er service capabilities in communicat- ing with the outside world.” Front office staff members should
Focus on the Front End
Positive communications up front prevent problems on the back end. BY ROBERT KURTZ
W
hen John Goehle, CASC, was an ASC administrator, he personal-
ly hired every receptionist who worked in his ASC. “Many people thought that was weird,” says Goehle, who, today, is the chief operating officer of the Roch- ester, New York-based ASC consulting firm Ambulatory Healthcare Strategies. “They wondered why the person who runs the place would be worried about who the receptionist is. “Frankly, that is probably one of the most important jobs in an ASC,” Goehle continues. “Receptionists are usually the first staff member anyone coming into the ASC sees and they are usually the person answering the phone, too. I always wanted to make sure to have a real ‘top gun’ there.” The front end of an ASC, which in- cludes the work of these receptionists, plays a significant—and sometimes underappreciated—role in an ASC’s
20 ASC FOCUS JULY 2013
operations, and these staff members can have a dramatic impact on the effi- ciency and success of the center and its back end, says Tom Jacobs, chief exec- utive officer and cofounder of MedHQ, a Westchester, Illinois, business office solutions provider. “Even things that seem little on the front end can be really big on the back end, both positively and nega- tively,” he says. “If relationships and communications with patients and physicians are happening very posi- tively on the front end, that can help prevent problems from developing on the back end.”
Bring in and Train the Right People As Goehle noted, developing a well- run front end begins with hiring the right people. This begins with deter- mining the appropriate skill sets for front-end positions, Jacobs notes.
have sales capabilities that lend them- selves to positioning the ASC and its physicians in the best light possible, Ja- cobs says. “Take the scheduler, for ex- ample. Their ability to sell the office staff and the doctor on why it is advantageous to work with the ASC and cooperate in the process of building a good schedule is critical. There is a sale and negotia- tion skill that has to be there. They must have the ability to negotiate or persuade people in such a way that there is a very positive feeling about the ASC and the benefits of the overall ASC schedule.” When considering necessary skills, ASCs should also take into account the future of health care and its growing re- liance on information systems and tech- nology, Jacobs adds. “Most ASCs are no longer using spiral-bound schedules and binders. They are working in computer systems. These front office people need to either be taught these skills or have the skills when they are hired. The business manager and administrator need to have a strategic vision for adopting and imple- menting technology and a plan for how they are going to make sure the staff is capable of using these systems to make the entire ASC more efficient.”
Good Processes for Unusual Circumstances
Hiring and then training well is only part of the equation for an efficient front end, Jacobs says. “The front of- fice staff has many responsibilities, and there are processes that need to be developed so staff members know what they need to do and how to per- form these responsibilities properly and consistently.”
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