Pearson's Comprehensive Medical Assisting

Transcription

1 Pearson's Comprehensive Medical Assisting Administrative and Clinical Competencies Second Edition CHAPTER CHAPTER 9 Appointment Scheduling Lesson 1: Scheduling Systems

2 Lesson Objectives Lesson Objectives Upon completion of this lesson, students should be able to Define and spell the terms to learn for this chapter. Name and describe six scheduling systems.

3 Critical Thinking Question 1. What factors do you think need to be considered when selecting a scheduling system for a medical office?

4 Factors to Selecting a Scheduling System Physician s preference Type and size of practice Availability of equipment Staff availability Amount of required flexibility Insurance coverage Patient needs

5 Two Basic Appointment Scheduling Systems Scheduled appointments Open office hours

6 Purpose of a Scheduling System Assists in the flow of the office Provides time management Increases efficiency Helps to ensure quality of patient care

7 Variations of Appointment Schedules Specified time scheduling Wave scheduling Modified wave scheduling Scheduling by grouping procedures Double booking patients Open office hours system Lets take a closer look at each one of these!

8 Specified Time Scheduling Length of appointment is determined by patient need Up to each staff member to reduce cycle time Problems in scheduling occur when the patient does not indicate the full extent of the problem and not enough time is provided on the schedule Important for the office to build in catch up time

9 Wave Scheduling Provides flexibility for unforeseen events Purpose is to begin and end each hour on time Each hour is divided into equal parts of time Three 20-minute or four 15-minute appointments could be seen in an hour Patients are told to come in at the beginning of each hour

10 Wave Scheduling Patients are seen in the order in which they arrive Actual time used by patients averages out over the hour

11 Modified Wave Scheduling Built on the hour as the base of each block of time Many variations of this type of scheduling exist

12 Modified Wave Scheduling One example: Have three patients scheduled at intervals during the first half hour with none scheduled for the second half hour All three patients would be seen during the entire hour period, but the physician would not be waiting for a late arriving patient With this system the physician can still spend 20 minutes with each patient without having to wait for any patients to arrive

13 Another Form of Modified Wave Have 3 patients arrive on the hour Have these patients be seen within the first half of the hour in the order they arrived During the second half of the hour one patient would be scheduled, with another patient scheduled on the threequarter hour Scheduling

14 Scheduling by Grouping Procedures Scheduling similar procedures and examinations during a block of time Examples: Well-baby checkups New patients

15 Double Booking Patients The practice of scheduling two patients to be seen during the same time slot without allowing for any additional time in the schedule Not an efficient type of scheduling system Disadvantage: If each patient needs a 20-minute appointment, and both are scheduled from 1:00 to 1:20, then the entire afternoon s schedule will be at least 20 minutes late

16 Open Office Hours System Least structured of all the systems Patients may arrive at any time during business hours Patients are seen in the order they arrive Due to disruption of missed appointments, this method is preferred by some Disadvantages to this system include: Too many patients arriving at the same time producing longer patient cycle time Overworked physician and staff members during peak times

17 Critical Thinking Question 1. Why might an office choose to stay with a manual scheduling system rather than invest in a computerized system?

18 Computerized Scheduling Systems Advantages: Completed in a real-time environment Provides the ability to view appointment information with ease Maximizes office process flow and patient cycle time Provides the ability to track patterns of the medical practice Disadvantages: Privacy and security issues Technological factors

19 Manual Scheduling Systems Still used in some small practices and specialties Consists of a hard-copy schedule book Schedule books come in various styles, sizes, and features Book is selected based on practice needs and preferences As with a computerized system, use of a manual system must be in compliance with HIPAA

20 Requirements for both Computerized and Manual Systems The appointment book is a legal document that can be subpoenaed by the court It is a record of the physician s day and time spent in contact with patients Appointment books should be archived (stored) for future reference and kept for several years in the event of a court case that may subpoena information found in the appointment book

21 Requirements for both Computerized and Manual Systems Files are archived by placing the appointment book or back-up disks in a storage container or facility and keeping then for a predetermined number of years If there are any changes from the scheduled patients in the appointment book these should be noted both in the appointment book and in the patient s medical record If the appointment has been rescheduled, then this should be appropriately documented as well

22 Questions?