As patients' share of healthcare costs rises, strong point-of-service collection practices are becoming increasingly important for hospitals to maximize revenue.
Jim Lazarus, Managing Director of Strategy and Innovation, Revenue Cycle Solutions Division, The Advisory Board Company: Patient obligation estimation technology can improve POS collections, but technology alone isn't enough. You need to train your staff to have informed conversations with patients about financial obligations.
It is not easy to speak with patients about money. Your staff must feel comfortable and well prepared to talk about financial obligations in a respectful while still effective manner. Role playing and scripting will help with this first obstacle. Second, it's critical to get your staff excited about collections. If you inspire your staff and encourage them to set new goals, you'll find that POS collections continue to rise.
Click here to read the "From Collections to Competition: How to Motivate Front Office Staff" blog post to learn more about best practices to incentivize staff and set up successful collections campaigns.
If you would like to share your RCM best practices, please email Carrie Pallardy at cpallardy@beckershealthcare.com to be featured in the "RCM tip of the day" series.