The Highest Quality Telephone Answering Service in the United States

Centratel

Telephone Answering Service

medical call answering service

Meeting Healthcare Regulations and Compliance: The Importance of a Reliable Call Answering Service

December 7, 2023
Medical
By Centratel

Navigating the Complexities of Healthcare Regulations in Medical Call Answering

As we delve into the labyrinth of healthcare regulations in the realm of medical call answering, it becomes evident that the path is fraught with complexities. At Centratel, we are adept at navigating this intricate landscape, ensuring that our services are always in line with the ever-evolving regulatory standards. Our medical answering service is designed to meet the unique needs of various medical practices, from Primary Care and Internal Medicine to OBGYN, Pediatrics, and Orthopedics. 

We understand the importance of accurate and prompt response in this critical sector, and our commitment to professional live answering ensures that every call is handled with the utmost care and precision. Our stringent screening process minimizes interruptions, allowing us to alert medical professionals promptly about urgent calls. Furthermore, our HIPAA compliant message delivery systems, including 100% encrypted secure messaging, provide the assurance that confidential patient information will remain just that – confidential. In the dynamic and demanding world of healthcare, we stand as a reliable partner, offering a 24/7 medical answering service that is not just efficient and reliable, but also empathetic and understanding.

Understanding the Role of HIPAA Compliance in Emergency Medical Answering

As a leading provider of emergency medical answering services, we understand the critical role that HIPAA compliance plays in our operations. Our commitment to adhering to these regulations is unwavering, as we recognize that they are designed to protect the privacy and security of patient health information. In the fast-paced world of emergency medical response, every call we handle is treated with the utmost care and confidentiality. 

Our medical answering service is equipped with advanced technology systems that ensure secure communication and data management. We employ a stringent screening process to minimize interruptions and promptly alert medical professionals to urgent calls. Our HIPAA compliant message delivery systems, including 100% encrypted secure messaging, allow us to send messages between devices in a format that is not readable by anyone but the intended recipient. This not only assures compliance with privacy rules & regulations, but also provides the peace of mind that comes from knowing confidential information will remain confidential. Our dedication to these standards is a testament to our commitment to providing reliable, professional, and secure emergency medical answering services.

Ensuring Data Security in Patient Call Handling

Ensuring data security in patient call handling is a paramount concern in the call answering service industry, particularly within the medical sector. At Centratel, we prioritize the safeguarding of confidential patient information, employing advanced technology and stringent protocols to maintain the highest level of data security. Our HIPAA compliant message delivery systems, including 100% encrypted secure messaging, are designed to protect patient data, ensuring that messages are only accessible to the intended recipient. 

This not only ensures compliance with privacy rules and regulations but also provides peace of mind for both healthcare providers and patients. Our commitment to data security extends to every aspect of our medical answering service, from the initial call to the final dispatch. We understand that in the healthcare industry, every call matters, and every piece of information is critical. Therefore, we employ a team of professional, well-trained operators who handle each call with the utmost care, ensuring accurate, prompt, and confidential communication. Our 24/7 call answering service is designed to support healthcare providers in delivering quality patient care, while also ensuring the highest level of data security.

The Significance of Encrypted Secure Messaging in Medical Call Answering

Delving into the significance of encrypted secure messaging in medical call answering, it’s crucial to underscore its role in safeguarding patient information. In the medical field, where every call may contain sensitive patient data, the security of communication channels is paramount. At Centratel, we’ve integrated 100% encrypted secure messaging into our medical answering service, ensuring that every message exchanged between devices remains unreadable to anyone but the intended recipient. This robust security measure not only ensures compliance with Privacy Rules & Regulations but also instills a sense of trust and peace of mind in our clients, knowing that their confidential information will remain confidential. This commitment to data security is a testament to our dedication to providing a reliable, professional, and secure medical answering service, reinforcing our position as a leading provider in the industry.

The Role of Technology in Safeguarding Patient Information

Technology plays a pivotal role in safeguarding patient information, particularly in the realm of medical answering services. At the heart of our operations is the use of advanced, secure systems that ensure the confidentiality of patient data. Our encrypted secure messaging is a testament to this commitment, allowing us to transmit messages between devices in a format that is unreadable by anyone but the intended recipient. This not only assures compliance with privacy rules and regulations, but also provides the peace of mind that confidential information will remain confidential. In the fast-paced world of healthcare, where every call could be a matter of life and death, this level of data security is not just a luxury, but a necessity. It enables us to offer a 24/7 medical answering service that is not only reliable and efficient, but also respects the sanctity of patient information. As a leading telephone answering service provider, we understand the importance of leveraging technology to enhance our services, while maintaining the human touch that sets us apart.

Discover the Benefits of Centratel’s Medical Answering Service

Unveiling the myriad benefits of Centratel’s Medical Answering Service, it’s clear why we are a trusted partner for numerous healthcare providers. Our service is a seamless blend of professionalism, efficiency, and reliability, designed to cater to the diverse needs of medical practices. From Primary Care to Orthopedics, our expertise spans across various medical specialties, ensuring every call is handled with precision and empathy. Our 24/7 availability ensures that no call goes unanswered, providing unwavering support to healthcare providers and their patients. 

Our communication approach is customized for each medical office we serve, guaranteeing prompt response and accurate message delivery. Our commitment to data security is unwavering, with HIPAA compliant message delivery systems and 100% encrypted secure messaging, ensuring that confidential information remains confidential. We are proud to offer a service that not only meets regulatory standards but also provides peace of mind for healthcare providers and patients alike. Our medical answering service is more than just a call answering solution; it’s a commitment to quality, reliability, and confidentiality. To experience the benefits of our service firsthand, we invite you to Get a Free Quote.

Image by Drazen Zigic on Freepik

A Telephone Answering Service Representative taking calls at Centratel

Centratel is an elite national telephone answering service located in Bend, Oregon. Its Medical Answering Service assists hundreds of practices both during and after business hours throughout the United States. By a variety of statistics, it is the highest quality answering service among the approximately 800 services nationwide.

Taking the Next Step

For more specifics on cost, to start the onboarding process, or to just talk to us, fill out this form with your basic information and if it’s during regular working hours (M-F 8am to 8pm EST or 5am to 5pm PST), we’ll get back to you within minutes. Or, during the above hours, you can simply call us at 800-664-7159 or send us an email to inquiry@centratel.com.

(And note: for a quick orientation on how we operate, take a moment to review one or more of the key points listed below.)

For more specifics on cost, to start the onboarding process, or to just talk to us, fill out this form with your basic information and if it’s during regular working hours (M-F 8am to 8pm EST or 5am to 5pm PST), we’ll get back to you within minutes. Or, during the above hours, you can simply call us at 800-664-7159 or send us an email to inquiry@centratel.com.

(And note: for a quick orientation on how we operate, take a moment to review one or more of the key points listed on the right.)

Terms of Service

Why Choose Centratel

BY SAM CARPENTER
October 1, 2024

1.CENTRATEL’S UNIQUE 30-DAY FREE TRIAL

Why is this important? Because it will provide you a truly accurate estimate of cost (we bill monthly), it will demonstrate our quality, and it gives both sides of this equation—you and Centratel—the necessary time to refine and perfect operational details.

Here’s a testimonial from a new medical client that had just finished their 30-day trial: “Of course, I love the cost as it is close to the amount I was allowed by the president of the company. I told him that if we did not continue with Centratel, I would resign as the Director of Customer Service, and I meant it. It’s a great fit. We have had NOT ONE complaint from a patient or in-house which, as you know, we received daily with our former answering service. I love you, Centratel, and the price. I’m ready to sign whatever documents you require. Thanks for the great service, and the free month! To a great partnership! -KB, Phoenix“

2.STATISTICALLY, THE BEST IN THE U.S.?

Answering service quality is 100% dependent on human action and reaction, and in the course of a single day a multitude of human decisions are made by the people who process the calls: Telephone Service Representatives, or TSRs. (Some answering services refer to them as “agents.” Others, “operators.”)

Like any other answering service, at Centratel we’re dealing with real live human beings and so human errors occur. But within this labor intensive service industry that is historically known for marginal quality, Centratel’s error rate is light years ahead of established standards. Our most recent Customer Reported Error Rate (July through September, 2024) was 1 customer-reported error for every 6,077 message transactions processed. That statistic is unmatched.

There’s no artificial intelligence manipulation, we do not offshore calls, and we were founded and have always operated within the United States. (Note that since early 2020, the COVID six-foot social distancing mandate drove thousands of small-to-medium sized answering services out of business. Large, foreign-owned multi-nationals, often disguised by the name of the local answering services they acquired, now thoroughly dominate the industry. Hence, an even further decline in general service quality. See this analysis.)

3.CUSTOMER SERVICE EXTRAORDINAIRE

Your concerns and requests will be instantly acted upon. It’s a work ethic that stands out in stark contrast from the general quality decline in human-to-human business-customer communications. You’ve seen it yourself, all around. At Centratel you will know the customer service people you’re working with by name, appreciating their special listening abilities as well as their take-action-now comportments i.e. see the testimonial in point #1 above. ‘Nuff said!

4.GETTING STARTED: IT’S SIMPLE AND FAST

Getting your new Centratel answering service 30-day free trial started is accomplished within 24-48 hours. From the start, your “onboarding” customer service representative will be with you every step of the way, listening carefully to your concerns, answering questions, and offering suggestions.

5.NEW TO USING AN ANSWERING SERVICE?

A majority of our current answering service accounts switched to us from another service because of quality problems. However, if you have not used a service before, you are not familiar with the options, benefits, and pitfalls. As noted, our 30-day free trial provides you—and us—plenty of time to precisely refine your desired message-taking and delivery protocols; to get things exactly the way you want them to be without any financial risk, undue pressure, or obligation. 

6.PRICING

Starting at $89 per month, our rates rank in the mid-range of the industry. For call processing, we charge by the “transaction unit” rather than the duration of time spent handling calls. Large “mega-services” operating in the U.S. prefer time billing because it ensures the company is compensated for lower-paid/high-turnover — and thus slower — agents. No matter the quality or how long they keep your callers on hold, they still make a profit. And yes, it can get expensive.

In any answering service, it takes a long time for a new agent to become fast, efficient, and stable. At Centratel, we pamper and reward experienced agents (via higher pay and great benefits) and therefore have extremely low staff turnover. Needless to say, experienced agents make fewer errors than trainees who learn on-the-job.

7.ACCURATELY COMPARING ANSWERING SERVICE PRICING IS COMPLICATED

It’s apples and oranges. There isn’t an industry standard for billing, and each answering service has its own formula. Also, as noted above, some services charge by agent “time” while others charge by “work units.” Some others combine the two. At Centratel, we charge for the work we do, not by the time we spend. The raw truth is that the only reliable way to determine monthly cost for a new service is to use that service for a solid month. Most answering services offer a 7-day free trial or no trial at all.

8.BEWARE: MONTHLY OR 28-DAY BILLING?

Important! At Centratel, we use a “monthly” billing cycle in which invoices are compiled from the first day of a month to the last day of that month. When soliciting quotes from other services, be sure to ask if the base-rate charges are billed monthly or on a “28-day billing cycle.” There is no good reason for a 28-day billing cycle! It’s bait-and-switch: customers billed on a 28-day cycle actually receive thirteen billings per year and therefore the overall cost is higher.

9.NO CONTRACT AND SIMPLE TERMS OF SERVICE

We do not require a yearly contract for service because we believe you should have the opportunity to evaluate us real-time, without restraint. Our terms of service are simple and straight-forward.

10.VALUABLE FREE GIFT FOR CONTACTING US

If you take the time to discuss answering service with us, on the same day we will ship you a hardcover copy of Sam Carpenter’s bestselling book, Work The System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less, now in its 5th edition. We’ll send you a copy just for contacting us. (Sam is the founder and President of Centratel. December 1st 2024 marks his fortieth year of ownership.)