Rehab Patient Access Specialist-Part Time Rotating Shift

At Northwestern Medicine, every patient interaction makes a difference in cultivating a positive workplace. This patient-first approach is what sets us apart as a leader in the healthcare industry. As an integral part of our team, you'll have the opportunity to join our quest for better health care, no matter where you work within the Northwestern Medicine system. We pride ourselves on providing competitive benefits: from tuition reimbursement and loan forgiveness to 401(k) matching and lifecycle benefits, our goal is to take care of our employees. Ready to join our quest for better?

**This is a part time position at 20 hours per week located at the Lake Forest Outpatient Rehab Clinic. This position requires working evening shifts and the ideal applicant will have a flexible schedule to meet the needs of the clinic.  **

The Rehabilitation Patient Access Specialistreflects the mission, vision, and values of NM, adheres to the organization’s Code of Ethics and Corporate Compliance Program, and complies with all relevant policies, procedures, guidelines and all other regulatory and accreditation standards.

Performs department-based reception and clerical functions.

Responsibilities:

• May act as a receptionist for the department, greeting staff and customers in a polite manner, and referring to appropriate staff when needed.
• Answers department telephone calls in a polite manner, communicating messages appropriately and clearly to all staff members.
• Is customer oriented and able to communicate and work effectively with all levels of staff and department customers. 
• Successfully takes on special projects as needed.
• Utilizes critical thinking skills to successfully demonstrate the ability to prioritize and complete work quickly as the needs of the department change.
• Coordinates all clerical work for the department with senior/clinical coordinator/manager/director as appropriate.
• May coordinate with Senior/Clinical Coordinator/Manager/Director to process department invoices/purchase requests.
• Maintains appropriate levels of all supplies for the department. 
• Independently manages the DAR (Department Appointment Report) in EPIC for the respective department.
• Schedules, confirms, and reschedules patients for visits at Rehabilitation Services and its satellite locations.
• Follows the necessary requirements of the department, which can include completion of questionnaires and coordination with other departments.
• Appropriately schedules new evaluations and follow up appointments, cancellations, rescheduling and wait list.
• Appropriately and efficiently "arrives" patients for process workflow.
• Completes end of day processing per EPIC policy. 
• Follows Rehabilitation Services and/or CDH Policy and Procedure/Guidelines for scheduling new patient evaluations.
• Accurately identifies patient MRN to avoid duplication of records in system.
• Obtains and updates patient demographic, insurance and billing information.
• May independently access the Unscheduled Orders Work Queues on a daily basis (during normal business hours) and maintains departmental expectations (all new orders will receive initial phone call within 24 -48 hours).
• May independently monitor and maintain other assigned Rehabilitation Work Queues based upon registration. 
• Follows Rehabilitation Services Guidelines and policies in regard to subsequent patient scheduling in order to maximize therapist productivity and time. (Effective use of wait list, scheduling of new evaluations, independently adding paperwork time in instances where a therapist is required to see a high number of new evaluations or has a backlog of documentation).
• May collect cash and credit card payments and ensures all payment collection and documentation meets current standards.
• Follows the necessary requirements for daily reconciliation and balancing.
• May independently manage therapist's monthly schedules/templates.
• Schedules meetings and huddles as requested by therapist or Senior staff member.
• Works with Senior to block scheduled PTO time and/or sick time appropriately.
• May independently make "new evaluation confirmation phone calls" to all new evaluations the day before the scheduled appointment and create "shadow charts" administering all associated paperwork for these patients. 
• Completes order entry and evaluating orders.
• Determines when it is appropriate to consult with technician for interpretative purposes.
• Assists patients to obtain orders not in the EPIC system. 
• Understanding of scanning: possesses thorough understanding of the scanning process. This understanding includes the user's ability to recognize registration and clinical documents and perform accurate indexing within the electronic record. 
• Independently manages Rehabilitation Work Queue 3111 to monitor and maintain "visits not authorized" to ensure proper authorization is received in a timely manner.
• May assist in clinic set up/clean up including hot pack/cold pack machine cleaning and temp logs, eye wash log.
• Assists Manager/Senior Staff in monitoring charges via accessible Work Queues in EPIC. Independently makes corrections to pending Work Queue items with or without guidance from supervisor.
• Manages faxing documentation to insurance companies and/or physician offices for authorization and signatures for Plan of Care as appropriate.
• Works with Coding, Patient Accounts and Financial Clearance Center to ensure all patient accounts are registered accurately for timely billing and management of patient accounts.

Required:

• Two years’ experience in front office with computer experience
• High School graduate
• Successful completion of EPIC training for scheduling and registration

Northwestern Medicine is an equal opportunity employer (disability, VETS) and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation or any other protected status.

Background Check

Northwestern Medicine conducts a background check that includes criminal history on newly hired team members and, at times, internal transfers. If you are offered a position with us, you will be required to complete an authorization and disclosure form that gives Northwestern Medicine permission to run the background check.  Results are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and we follow all local, state, and federal laws, including the Illinois Health Care Worker Background Check Act.

Artificial Intelligence Disclosure

Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used in some portions of the candidate review process for this position, however, all employment decisions will be made by a person. 

Benefits

We offer a wide range of benefits that provide employees with tools and resources to improve their physical, emotional, and financial well-being while providing protection for unexpected life events. Please visit our Benefits section to learn more.

Sign-on Bonus Eligibility (if sign-on bonus offered for position): Internal employees and rehires who left Northwestern Medicine within 1 year are not eligible for the sign on bonus. Exception: New graduate internal employees seeking their first licensed clinical position at NM may be eligible depending upon the job family.