The debate over quality versus quantity in the healthcare world has never been louder—practitioners are being directed to work more efficiently in shorter and shorter time slots, while patients are often left in the waiting room wondering when they’ll be called for their fifteen minutes of attention.

The pace isn’t just picking up within the examination rooms either, it’s happening through the phone lines, emails, and web chats as well. In our ever-connected world, patients expect to be able to interact with their doctors’ offices 24/7, 365 days a week. To manage, many healthcare practices are turning to answering services or call centers to achieve consistent quality customer communications. At Voice Link of Columbus, Inc., new clients often ask, “So is it the number of calls handled or the manner in which they’re handled that matters more?”

How patient inquiries are handled can make all the difference in the growth or decline of a medical practice. Whether you’re considering hiring an answering service on a full-time, after hours, or an as-needed basis, no doubt quickness in handling calls will be a priority. But when it comes to patient communications, being thorough is more important than speed.

For example, you may think that hiring an answering service with live operators rather than an automated service may sacrifice speed, but it’s actually the opposite. When a patient or family member calls, it’s generally concerning a medical necessity and sometimes an emergency. Being greeted by an automated voice that instructs the caller to navigate various prompts all too often leads to frustration, inaccurate information, and an undetermined call-back wait time.

But when a patient is greeted by a live agent who takes the time to hear their concerns and ask pertinent questions, the calls are more quickly either resolved or transferred to the correct staff member if further action is required. The important measurement really is careful efficiency, which doesn’t come at the expense of either quantity or quality.

When your patients connect with compassionate, professional operators who are representing your practice with a calm and competent demeanor, they feel valued and more confident that their concerns were heard. Being acknowledged and feeling valued are two of the top qualities that create patient loyalty and word of mouth referrals. So, when selecting a live voice answering service for your practice, opt for quality of how calls will be handled over quantity—your patients will thank you.

Day or night, outsourcing your calls will ensure that your customers are attended to with care and compassion, 24/7, 365 days a year. Voice link offers 26 years of experience in medical and healthcare answering services and provides professional live answering services that exceed your expectations. Request information online or call us at (800) 262-2799 for a free consultation.

[cta id=”7503″ align=”none”]