Manager Patient Access

Patient Access Manager

The Patient Access Manager in a hospital leads the department responsible for the patient's first interaction with the facility, overseeing admissions, scheduling, registration, and insurance verification. The Patient Access Manager will act as a critical liaison between patients and medical staff to ensure seamless care, regulatory compliance (HIPAA), and optimized revenue cycle performance.

William Newton Hospital's Standards of Behavior allow a mechanism for holding each employee accountable and encourages us to "raise the bar". All employees are expected to familiarize themselves with the Standards and practice them daily.

Integrity: We act with unwavering moral principle, transparency, and sincerity in every interaction.

Patient-Centered: We meet patients where they are, ensuring the are active participants in their care journey. We prioritize the patient's physical and emotional well-being over all else.

Accountability: We own our actions. We set clear expectations and hold all team members to the same high standards.

Compassion: We treat every patient, family member, and colleague with kindness, empathy, and dignity.

Excellence: We approach every task, large or small, with enthusiasm. We continually pursue mastery and best practices in our field.

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

• Responsible to pre-register patients for scheduled admissions and out-patient procedures.
• Responsible to interview patients or their representative, to obtain personal information or verify information already on file, including emergency numbers and insurance information, including Medicare Secondary Payer and accident information as applicable.
• Responsible to obtain signatures on Conditions of Admission and affix patient identification bracelet.
• Responsible to ensure that patients' valuables are secured in the safe upon receipt of valuables envelope from nursing service.
• Communicates appropriately and clearly to Supervisor, Nursing Service, co-workers, physicians and ancillary departments.
• Responsible, when payment is received after Business Office closes, to collect such payments, provide receipt and forward to the Business Office personnel.
• Refers patient to Collections Manager when financial arrangements need to be made.
• Demonstrates an ability to be flexible, organized and function well under stressful situations.
• Treats patients and their families with respect and dignity; ensures confidentiality of patients' protected information.
• Interacts professionally with patient/family and provide explanations and verbal reassurance as necessary, demonstrating customer service skills.
• Maintains a good working relationship both within the department and with other departments.
• Ensures documentation meets current standards and policies.
• Answers telephone in a polite manner and communicates information to the appropriate personnel/family.
• Manages and operates equipment safely and correctly.
• Operates switchboard to route incoming calls and to place outgoing calls.
• Provides directory information to internal and external inquirers.
• Maintains a daily list of all facility staff on-call, including home phone numbers and cellular numbers readily available, whichever is applicable.
• Knowledge of emergency procedures and location of Safety/Disaster Manual.
• Performs other duties as assigned.
• Department Operations: Directs daily operations including 24/7 registration, emergency department check-ins, pre-registration, and the communications center.
• Revenue Cycle Management: Oversees insurance verification, prior authorizations, and upfront point-of-service cash collections to minimize claim denials.
• Staff Leadership: Handles hiring, training, performance evaluations, and scheduling for registration staff and supervisors.
• Patient Satisfaction: Resolves escalated patient concerns, reduces wait times, and improves the overall front-desk experience.
• Compliance: Ensures staff adherence to healthcare regulations, including CMS guidelines, HIPAA, and hospital information security policies.

Requirements:

Education: Typically requires a Bachelor's degree in Healthcare Administration, Business, or a related field.

Experience: Requires 3 to 5+ years of experience in healthcare revenue cycle, patient financial services, or registration.

Skills: Strong knowledge of Electronic Medical Record (EMR) software, proficiency in analyzing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and excellent crisis-management and communication skills

Professional Expectations:

• Adheres to dress code, appearance is neat and clean.
• Completes annual educational requirements.
• Maintains regulatory requirements, including all state, federal and CMS regulations.
• Reports to work on time and as scheduled, completes work within designated time.
• Wears identification while on duty, uses computerized time system correctly.
• Attends in-services and educational opportunities.
• Attends staff meetings and reads all memos. Utilizes Procedure Manual. Complies with William Newton Hospital policies. Familiar with Employee Handbook.
• Maintains and ensures patient confidentiality at all times.
• Works at maintaining a good rapport and a cooperative working relationship with physicians, departments and staff.
• Represents the organization in a positive and professional manner.
• Attends committee, CQI and management meetings, as appropriate.
• Ensure compliance with policies and procedures regarding department operations, fire, safety and infection control.
• Complies with all organizational policies regarding ethical business practices.
• Communicates the mission, vision and core values of the hospital.

Physical Requirements:

• Mobility: Prolonged periods of sitting, standing, and walking across hospital or clinical floors.
• Lifting & Carrying: Frequently lifting or carrying files, equipment, or documents weighing up to 25 lbs. Occasionally, duties may require lifting or pulling up to 50 lbs. unassisted.
• Dexterity & Fine Motor Skills: Frequent use of hands/wrists for computer keyboards, telephones, and medical records.
• Sensory: Specific vision abilities are required (close vision, depth perception, and ability to read monitors without strain) along with hearing acuity to facilitate phone and in-person conversations.
• Stress Management: The position involves sitting in an environment subjected to high-stress scenarios, fluctuating workloads, and on-call responsibilities.