Case Study: Enhancing Patient Payment Services for a Clinic and Surgical Specialty

Client Background: The client is a well-established multi-state clinic and surgical specialty group catering to a diverse range of patients. They offer comprehensive medical services, including diagnostics, consultations, surgeries, and post-operative care. However, despite their excellent medical services, the client faced challenges in managing patient payments efficiently. Before engaging with our payment services, they experienced discrepancies in payment collections, lacked streamlined payment options, and encountered difficulties in providing satisfactory customer service related to billing queries.

Challenges Faced:

1. Inefficient Payment Collection: The client struggled with inefficient payment collection processes, leading to delays and discrepancies in revenue reconciliation.

2. Limited Payment Options: Patients faced limited payment options, resulting in inconvenience and potential delays in settling bills.

3. Customer Service Experience: Due to limited resources, the client faced difficulties in providing prompt and personalized customer service to address billing queries and concerns.

4. Lack of Consolidated Statements: Patients found it challenging to track and manage their medical expenses due to the absence of consolidated account statements.

Solution Provided: In response to the client's challenges, our company proposed a comprehensive suite of patient payment services aimed at enhancing payment collection efficiency, improving customer service experience, and offering convenient payment options. Key features of the solution included:

1. Consolidated Account Statements: Implemented a system to provide patients with consolidated account statements, enabling them to track and manage their medical expenses more efficiently.

2. Inbound and Outbound Live Local Patient Service Representatives: Established a dedicated team of local patient service representatives to handle inbound queries and provide proactive outbound support, ensuring a personalized and compassionately responsive customer service experience.

3. Diverse Payment Options: Integrated various payment options, including Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal, Venmo, credit/debit cards, etc., to offer patients flexibility and convenience in paying their bills in full or with payment plans that work for them.

4. Opt-in Email/Text Bill Notifications: Introduced an opt-in system for patients to receive email/text notifications for upcoming bills, ensuring timely reminders and improving payment compliance.

5. Pre-Service Payments: Implemented pre-service payment options to streamline upfront payments for services, reducing the burden on billing processes and improving revenue predictability.

Results Achieved: After implementing our payment services solution, the client witnessed significant improvements in their payment collection processes and customer service experience. The results obtained over a six-month period were as follows:

1. Total Patient Payments Increased by 32%: The overall patient payments increased by 32% compared to the previous six months, reflecting the effectiveness of the implemented solution in enhancing revenue collection.

2. Non Co-payments and Pre-Service Payments Increased by 66%: Excluding co-payments and pre-service payments, which the client was already collecting, every other line saw a remarkable increase of 66%, indicating a substantial improvement in revenue streams.

3. Streamlined Payment Processes: The introduction of diverse payment options and opt-in notifications streamlined payment processes, resulting in faster payment settlements and reduced outstanding balances.

4. Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: The provision of live local patient service representatives and consolidated account statements significantly improved the customer service experience, leading to higher patient satisfaction and loyalty.

Conclusion: Through the implementation of our comprehensive patient payment and early out services, the clinic and surgical specialty center experienced significant improvements in payment collection efficiency, customer service experience, and revenue generation. The client's decision to partner with our company resulted in tangible benefits, including increased revenue streams and enhanced patient satisfaction. Moving forward, continued collaboration and custom innovation will be key to sustaining and further optimizing these positive outcomes.