The Highest Quality Telephone Answering Service in the United States

Centratel

Telephone Answering Service

medical answering service

Prioritizing Patient Privacy: HIPAA-Compliant Medical Answering Service

August 25, 2023
Medical
By Centratel

In the realm of medical care, few aspects are as critical as the privacy and confidentiality of patient information. With an increasing reliance on digital communication and telehealth, safeguarding this sensitive data has never been more imperative. This is where a HIPAA-compliant medical answering service like Centratel can make a significant difference for your medical practice.

Why is HIPAA Compliance Necessary?

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is not merely a guideline; it’s a legal requirement for any entity dealing with protected health information (PHI). Violations can lead to hefty fines, legal complications, and a tarnished reputation. For medical clinics, HIPAA compliance is non-negotiable.

The Alarming Reality of Phone Call Handling

Did you know that a significant percentage of medical facilities still struggle with effective telephone call management? A study showed that 30% of calls to medical practices go unanswered. This leaves patient information at risk, with unattended voicemails or unsecured methods of relaying messages. With a dedicated, HIPAA-compliant medical answering service, this gap can be bridged effectively and securely.

Benefits of Using Centratel’s HIPAA-Compliant Medical Answering Service

  1. Confidentiality Ensured: Every call received will be handled with the utmost discretion, ensuring patient data remains uncompromised.
  2. 24/7 Availability: Never miss an urgent call or patient concern. With round-the-clock service, your practice remains reachable, even outside of regular working hours.
  3. Professional Handling: With specific training pertaining to the medical sector, Centratel’s agents provide a seamless and informed interaction for every caller.
  4. Tech-Driven Solutions: Embrace the latest in call handling technology, ensuring each call is recorded, tracked, and stored with HIPAA-compliant methods.

To learn more about how Centratel can revolutionize your call management system.

Your Medical Practice Deserves the Best

It’s not just about meeting legal requirements; it’s about offering patients the trust and security they deserve. As the medical landscape evolves with technological advancements, ensuring you’re equipped with the right tools to handle sensitive data is paramount.

Interested in securing a top-tier, HIPAA-compliant medical answering service for your medical practice? Request a price quote today and take the first step towards a safer, more efficient telecommunication solution for your clinic.

In conclusion, prioritizing patient privacy doesn’t have to be a daunting task. By partnering with a reliable, specialized, and HIPAA-compliant medical answering service like Centratel, your medical practice can maintain its impeccable standards while ensuring each patient feels valued and protected. Take action now and elevate your patient communication to the next level by getting a price quote.

Image by wavebreakmedia_micro 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 if you have questions, 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
December 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.)