Appointment Clerk (Bilingual

Position: Appointment Clerk (Bilingual)
Location: Harbor City

Job Summary:

This position provides high level member assistance by scheduling various appointments requested, transferring calls appropriately, composing messages, and providing general information.

Essential Responsibilities:

* Upholds Kaiser Permanentes Policies and Procedures, Principles of Responsibilities and applicable state, federal and local laws.

* Operates in a high volume, highly structured call center environment by responding to incoming calls.

* Determines the type of appointment requested or needed, reviews scheduling mix of various physicians/providers, and them makes appointment utilizing appropriate guidelines.

* Prioritizes member needs and offers alternatives to members when appropriate.

* Utilizes superior customer service skills to provide service to members when diffusing difficult member encounters.

* Uses tact and diplomacy in handling difficult interactions with members.

* Determine if calls are urgent or emergent by listening to the member, following established guidelines, and then transferring the call to a Registered Nurse when appropriate.

* Composes messages for physician/providers, Registered Nurses or other medical staff based on member requests.

* Responds in a courteous and professional manner to general questions, using on-line databases to provide information to any member or other personnel calling the center.

* Identifies ways to improve quality of service to members and recommends steps used to accomplish these changes.

* Must perform all of the above duties while meeting established standard of performance for quality and productivity.

* Performs clerical duties which may include assigning new members a primary care physician, processing self-referral requests, calling patients and booking appointment for specialty appointments, calling members to cancel and reschedule appointments.

* Answer incoming calls.

* Determine type of appointment needed, determine appointment availability and schedule appointments.

* Prioritize members need and offer alternatives to member when appropriate.

* Determine if calls are urgent or emergent and refer to RNs as appropriate following established guidelines.

* Compose messages to providers or other medical staff based on member requests.

* Utilize databases to give information to members and other callers as requested.

* Refer members to eligibility department as appropriate.

* Notify members of appointment/scheduling changes by telephone as directed.

* Schedule, reschedule and/or verify appointments.

* Answer member inquiries.

* Contact appropriate department to obtain medical record numbers of new enrollees.

* Assist in resolving problems related to duplicate medical record numbers.

* Initiate change of physician requests.

* Initiate change forms for corrected medical record numbers.

* Verify and update member demographics.

* Perform on-line inquiry functions.

* Perform data retrieval of computerized data.

* Record and maintain activity logs.

* Clear paper jams and other routine maintenance of printers/copiers.

* Recommend procedure changes.

* Train and orient new or less experienced personnel.

* Serve as resource persons to co-workers and assist in problem solving.

* Perform other activities and duties as directed.

* Initiate telephone calls to physicians or other medical office staff when indicated to assist members.

* Assume other activities and responsibilities from time to time as directed.

Basic Qualifications:

Experience

* One (1) year of customer service experience in a service related industry, preferably healthcare.

* Per the National Agreement, current KP Coalition employees have this experience requirement waived.

Education

* High school diploma or equivalent.

License, Certification, Registration

* N/A

Additional Requirements:

* Effective telephone communication skills and excellent interpersonal skills.

* Must obtain passing score on Customer Care Simulation assessment.

* The Customer Care Simulation assessment score must be current within one (1) year (contact Local HR Office for testing).

* Must be able to effectively communicate, verbally and in writing, in English.

* Must complete Service Orientation Assessment.

* As part of applicant process, must…