Business Insight presented by Arlington Dermatology New Rules... Old Rules I wonder if you experienced the vicious circle of calling an institution, perhaps even a doctor's office, and you must go through a number of prompts, and when you finally reach a person, it turns out it is not your doctor's office but rather centrali scheduling in a different state, a place that does not know you, your history, spelling of your name, nothing except the scheduling program on the computer. And sometimes, you faxed some crucial information to the actual office, but the person selecting faxes was sick and nobody did the job, so you re- fax it again and again, and must call again. And eventually, you get upset and start being not-so-pleasant to the person who speaks with you, and... ultimately, you accomplish nothing. It happened to me many times and. it happens daily to many people. When it happens to people seeking medical. attention, it is even more frustrating. It is about their health. Maybe about their life. Maybe about the life and health of their loved ones. This is not what we want to experience and unfortunately, we do. Where is the problem? The problem is complex, and it lives on several levels. First, many employers, especially in large corporations and consolidated medical practices, intend to save money on non- essential services. And customer service is considered non-essential. So, when they consolidate 10-12 medical practices, rather than keep the receptions and phone services in-house, they centralize them in a call center, often in another state. They pay less for the front desk service, but they also lose direct contact with the customers. Secondly, people working in those centralized call centers do not see the patients. They do not feel the 'medical' atmosphere and the need to extend empathy or simply, a good word. They do not care. Thirdly, often, the staff hired to do these functions is paid low wages, often no benefits, and the historical turn-over in call centers has been the highest you can imagine. Thus, you never seem to be speaking to the same person. Finally, the administration and management of many large companies do not really know what the customers want. They do not relate to the customers. Many managers from the insurance industry of medical call centers for hospitals or medical practices never visited any of the medical places they serve. How can you serve someone well if you do not know who they are? The solutions cannot be easily found to these problems. I am not sure if there is a way back or even an attempt to fix the problem. Technology, while super important and improving our lives, has made a lot of old rules obsolete and with that, good customer service and a quality of care are gone. Some people and patients do not mind dealing with computers rather than people in the service industry. But, when we really need help and assistance, no computer will replace a warm touch and a good word of a human being. I think we should re- consider monster-large medical centers, with understaffed nursing personnel and no human at the reception. We should do it before it is too late. Michael Bukhalo, MD Arlington Dermatology 5301 Keystone Court Rolling Meadows, IL 60008 Tel. 847 392 5440 | www.arlingtondermatology.net Business Insight presented by Arlington Dermatology New Rules ... Old Rules I wonder if you experienced the vicious circle of calling an institution , perhaps even a doctor's office , and you must go through a number of prompts , and when you finally reach a person , it turns out it is not your doctor's office but rather centrali scheduling in a different state , a place that does not know you , your history , spelling of your name , nothing except the scheduling program on the computer . And sometimes , you faxed some crucial information to the actual office , but the person selecting faxes was sick and nobody did the job , so you re fax it again and again , and must call again . And eventually , you get upset and start being not - so - pleasant to the person who speaks with you , and ... ultimately , you accomplish nothing . It happened to me many times and . it happens daily to many people . When it happens to people seeking medical . attention , it is even more frustrating . It is about their health . Maybe about their life . Maybe about the life and health of their loved ones . This is not what we want to experience and unfortunately , we do . Where is the problem ? The problem is complex , and it lives on several levels . First , many employers , especially in large corporations and consolidated medical practices , intend to save money on non essential services . And customer service is considered non - essential . So , when they consolidate 10-12 medical practices , rather than keep the receptions and phone services in - house , they centralize them in a call center , often in another state . They pay less for the front desk service , but they also lose direct contact with the customers . Secondly , people working in those centralized call centers do not see the patients . They do not feel the ' medical ' atmosphere and the need to extend empathy or simply , a good word . They do not care . Thirdly , often , the staff hired to do these functions is paid low wages , often no benefits , and the historical turn - over in call centers has been the highest you can imagine . Thus , you never seem to be speaking to the same person . Finally , the administration and management of many large companies do not really know what the customers want . They do not relate to the customers . Many managers from the insurance industry of medical call centers for hospitals or medical practices never visited any of the medical places they serve . How can you serve someone well if you do not know who they are ? The solutions cannot be easily found to these problems . I am not sure if there is a way back or even an attempt to fix the problem . Technology , while super important and improving our lives , has made a lot of old rules obsolete and with that , good customer service and a quality of care are gone . Some people and patients do not mind dealing with computers rather than people in the service industry . But , when we really need help and assistance , no computer will replace a warm touch and a good word of a human being . I think we should re consider monster - large medical centers , with understaffed nursing personnel and no human at the reception . We should do it before it is too late . Michael Bukhalo , MD Arlington Dermatology 5301 Keystone Court Rolling Meadows , IL 60008 Tel . 847 392 5440 | www.arlingtondermatology.net