Medical Secretary at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts

1. Maintains computerized or manual patient appointment schedule. Schedules meetings, communicates with other hospital/practice departments, nursing homes and various community services as necessary.

2. Schedules patient tests and examinations at various sites. Informs patients of schedules and preparations necessary. Educates patients when testing requires special preparations.

3. Maintains patient medical records in an accurate manner. Responds to requests for medical information when necessary.

4. Answers all incoming calls for the professional staff, takes messages, and routes appropriately. Notifies physicians or takes steps to locate covering physicians for patient emergencies. Uses sound judgment in triaging patients in other areas when necessary. Assists physicians and other professional staff in returning telephone calls, calling in prescriptions, and informing patients of results.

5. Prepares correspondence for patients and physicians when required.

6. Maintains office supplies and stock and communicates all stocking needs to office practice supervisor.

7. Rotates through the check in and check out positions. Greets all patients and family members in a professional and courteous manner. Verifies all demographic and insurance information and changes as necessary. Collects co-payments when required and maintains an accurate cash log of all dollars collected.

8. Schedules all specialty appointments as indicated at the direction of the physician. Processes all necessary referrals and follows up on all insurance questions and inquiries as needed.

9. Opens, sorts, and processes all incoming and outgoing mail. Assists physicians with responding to information inquiries, patient requests, and medical record copies.

10. Coordinates patient visits with other off-site practices to ensure that patients are seen in a timely manner. Communicates with primary care physician when necessary to schedule urgent care visits.

11. Depending on the location and specialty of the physician and practice, the secretary is responsible for scheduling hospital admissions and surgical procedures. Communicates with Operating Room scheduling, Pre-admission Review, and Admitting all diagnosis and insurance information. Informs patients of arrangements.

12. Reviews all encounter forms for accuracy of information. Provides CPT and ICD10 coding on all forms. Enters appropriate charges in the IDX system and verifies data on a weekly and monthly basis. Assists patients with billing questions. Acts as a liaison between the billing service and patients.

13. Works under direction of administrative manager.