Customer Service Specialist

**Summary**

**Job Description**

**Job Title: Customer Service Specialist**

**1.0 FTE, 40 hours per week, Day shift hours. Start time ranges from 7 A - 8:45 A**

**POSITION SUMMARY:** Provides complete and accurate patient scheduling, registration, insurance verification, ordering of tests and coordination of applicable screening, diagnostic, physician office and outpatient hospital services. Capable of coordinating and communicating effectively during increased volumes or with complex patients.

**ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:** Qualified individuals must have the ability (with or without reasonable accommodation) to perform the following duties:

+ Performs complete and accurate patient registration including but not limited to: walk in, check-in, and/or scheduled.

+ Demonstrates ability to successfully adapt and perform during times of high volumes and/or high patient acuity. Demonstrates skill to service both hospital and physician office patients, as assigned.

+ Supports inbound and outbound calls to or from patients, guests, or appropriate parties to provide services. Effectively manages general patient complaints/concerns in a professional manner, escalating more complex issues to supervisor/manager as needed.

+ Understands and supports Point of Service Collections. Performs all necessary functions needed to collect patient obligations.

+ Refers patient to appropriate person for questions regarding; collections, insurance coverages, and financial assistance.

+ Disseminates or discusses information with the patients regarding co-pays, out of pocket expenses, pre-appointment preparation, arrival times, etc.

+ Verifies patient, guarantor, coverage and hospital account information. Performs required referral/authorization processes and enters orders for applicable tests.

+ Understands insurance company coverage and referral/authorization requirements of payors. Performs electronic and manual verification of insurance coverage and understands how to read and accurately apply electronic insurance responses.

+ Prepares and/or releases records or orders in the e-Health record. Scans all necessary documents into appropriate medical record. Understands the importance of patient's medical information that is documented on paper. Sends all pertinent information to document imaging or heath information management team with in the established time frames.

+ Completes documentation for compliance and regulatory needs and/or release of orders. Retains knowledge and abides by all regulatory requirements pertaining to duties of position and overall operations (as applicable).

+ Screens and accurately relays messages using protocols established for emergent, urgent and non-urgent calls.

+ Demonstrates ability to register unscheduled patients requiring a full financial clearance.

+ Completes assigned patient scheduling and registration work queues according to performance standards.

+ Ability to resolve work queue issues and missing registration items via electronic medical record.

+ For LGHP, this role may necessitate occasional regional travel.

**For Regional Positions:**

+ Travels regularly to various sites within the region to support operational needs as listed above.

+ Assists at new practices and sites by mentoring and leading other team members during the initial onboarding period.

+ Special projects as assigned.

**SECONDARY FUNCTIONS:** **The following duties are considered secondary to the primary duties listed above:**

+ Nasal swabbing and general specimen collection may be required in select departments.

+ Other duties as assigned.

**JOB REQUIREMENTS**

**MINIMUM REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:**

+ High School Diploma or equivalent (GED).

+ One (1) year of clerical, customer service, or administrative support experience in a highly customer-oriented organization.

+ One (1) year experience with basic keyboarding, personal computer use, and other office setting equipment.

+ For Regional Positions only - Valid driver's license is required.

**PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:**

+ One (1) year of registration experience, point of service collection, insurance validation, understanding of compliance /regulatory guidelines and order release process(es).

+ One (1) year prior experience of Revenue Cycle in a Hospital/Medical Office Setting.

+ Previous Epic or equivalent Electronic Medical Record experience.

**COGNITIVE REQUIREMENTS**

**Attention/Concentration:**

+ The position requires the ability to attend to a specific stimulus without being distracted by extraneous environmental stimuli. The individual must be able to attend to environmental detail with the ability to separate essential from non-essential or irrelevant stimuli. The attention skills required are generally considered to be automatic - - passive, but focused with an intact capacity for select perception.

**New Learning and Memory:**

+ A large portion of this position required reliance on verbal memory and new learning. Efficiency in processing of verbal information, either in written or spoken form, is a major requirement and prerequisite of the job. The individual must be able to attend to and process multiple bits of information simultaneously. The individual must be able to organize and categorize this information effectively so that later recall is feasible.

**Problem Solving, Reasoning and Creative Thinking:**

+ The requirement for autonomous problem solving or creativity of thought in the position is minimal. Problems encountered tend to involve a few concrete variables in or from standardized situations. Typically involves adhering to a chart or set procedure.

**APTITUDES:** The following are essential requirements of the position in relation to job-worker situations. These items describe how a worker must adapt, adjust, conform or act:

**Repetitive work:** Ability to continuously perform the same type of work for extended periods of time, according to set procedures, sequence or pace.

**Performing under stressful conditions:** Ability to perform under stress when confronted with emergency, critical, unusual, or dangerous situations, or in situations in which working speed and sustained attention are critical aspects of the job. Is subject to danger or risk, or to tension as a regular, consistent part of the job.

**Variety and change:** Ability to perform a variety of duties, often changing from one task to another of a different nature without loss of efficiency or composure involving significant differences in technologies, techniques, procedures, environmental factors, physical demands, or work situations.

**Communication:** Ability to exchange information with others clearly and concisely; to present ideas, facts and technical information.

**Interpersonal relations:** Ability to maintain relationships that facilitate task accomplishment; to cooperate and resolve conflicts; to recognize needs and be sensitive of others.

**EQUIPMENT USAGE REQUIREMENTS**

**Equipment/Tools:** Computer, Phone, Copier, Printer, Fax, Office Supplies

**Software:** Microsoft Office Products, clinical information system

**PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS**

**Rarely 0-10%; Occasionally 11-35%; Frequently 36-70%; Continuously 71-100%**

**Body Position/Movement** :

+ Sit: Frequently

+ Stand: Frequently

+ Walk: Frequently

+ Bend: Occasionally

+ Push: Occasionally

+ Pull: Occasionally

+ Kneel/Squat: Rarely

+ Reach: Occasionally

+ Twist: Occasionally

+ Balance: Rarely

+ Climb: Rarely

**Lifting:** Degree of physical exertion is:

**Moderate** , exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects.

**Sensory Abilities specifically required:**

+ Vision

+ Hearing

**PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT**

**WORKING CONDITIONS:** Exposure to hazardous conditions/ materials is negligible.

**_Disclaimer:_** This job description is not intended and should not be construed to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, skills, efforts, or working conditions associated with the job. It is intended to be a reflection of those principal job elements essential for recruitment and selection, for making fair job evaluations, and for establishing performance standards. The percentages of time spent performing job duties are estimates, and should not be considered absolute. The incumbent shall perform all other functions and/or be cross-trained as shall be determined at the sole discretion of management, who has the right to amend, modify, or terminate this job in part or in whole. Incumbent must be able to perform all job functions safely.

**Benefits At A Glance:**

PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH offers the following benefits to employees:

+ 100% Tuition Assistance at The Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences

+ Paid Time Off and Paid Holidays

+ Shift, Weekend and On-Call Differentials

+ Health, Dental and Vision Coverage

+ Short-Term and Long-Term Disability

+ Retirement Savings Account with Company Matching

+ Child Care Subsidies

+ Onsite Gym and Fitness Classes

**Disclaimer**

PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to hiring a diverse workforce. All openings will be filled based on qualifications without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, marital status, veteran status, disability, age, religion or any other classification protected by law.

Search Firm Representatives please read carefully: PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH is not seeking assistance or accepting unsolicited resumes from search firms for this employment opportunity. Regardless of past practice, all resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH via-email, the Internet or directly to hiring managers at Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health in any form without a valid written search agreement in place for that position will be deemed the sole property of PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH, and no fee will be paid in the event the candidate is hired by PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH as a result of the referral or through other means.

PENN MEDICINE LANCASTER GENERAL HEALTH, a member of the University of Pennsylvania Health System (Penn Medicine), is a not-for-profit health system with a comprehensive network of care encompassing Lancaster General Hospital (LGH), Women & Babies Hospital and the Lancaster Rehabilitation Hospital (a partnership with Kindred Healthcare). We are an Accredited Trauma Center-Level I through the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation with 805 Licensed beds. Our membership in Penn Medicine brings together the strengths of a world-renowned, not-for-profit academic medical center and a nationally recognized, not-for-profit community healthcare system.

Outpatient services are provided at the Downtown Outpatient and Suburban Outpatient Pavilions, along with additional outpatient centers and Express and Urgent Care locations throughout the region. Lancaster General Health Physicians is a network of more than 300 primary-care and specialty physicians, at more than 40 offices throughout the region.