When patients call your organization, do they want to talk to a human being or a machine? In most all cases they desire the special attention of a person, not the impersonal touch of technology. The only time that technology may win out is to find quick answers to simple questions when people aren’t readily available.
However, given the choice, having a real person promptly answer phone calls is the attention that most every person desires. This is even more true when their health is at stake and they may be worried or not feeling well.
People Offer Personal Connection
When patients and customers reach out to connect with their healthcare provider or a medical-related organization they seek a personal connection, that is, providing the phone is answered in a timely manner. This allows them to ask clarifying, follow-up questions and receive confirmation that they heard correctly.
More importantly given that the communication relates to their health, the phone call becomes very personal. They want an empathetic ear that only another person can offer, not an insensitive, noncaring atomotron. This becomes even more critical during times of physical isolation and limited in-person interaction. A personal phone call with a real person looms large.
Technology Limits Communication
Technology interactions historically have followed a predetermined path that the programmer believed was the most probable course to provide the most expected answer. This may work well to confirm an appointment or inquire about a payment, but it accomplishes little beyond these basic tasks.
Even with advances in artificial intelligence (AI), practical limitations still abound when it comes to effectively dealing with a person’s very real healthcare concerns. And remember the artificial part of AI. It’s not true intelligence. It only pretends to offer it. Yes, sometimes AI is good enough to fool people into thinking they’re talking with a real person, but usually the gaps and gaffes are shockingly apparent.
Complex Issues Require Human Intervention
Even when a person calls about a routine matter with a simple expected response, often the call escalates into a series of more involved communications. This is because the answer to the first inquiry often produces a follow-up question—or two—from the caller. Repeat this process a couple times and the queries become incredibly specific that go beyond even the most advanced technology’s ability to handle.
When callers need clarification, technology seldom provides the opportunity to do so. That requires the human efforts of a real person.
A Real Person Is the Answer
Just as people prefer a personal connection when they call your healthcare organization, they expect the same personal interaction when they call outside of regular business hours. You can only provide this through a professional healthcare call center.
Don’t push patients and callers away by forcing them to endure ineffective technology. Instead meet their expectations by letting a real person at a quality healthcare call center talk with them.
Learn how healthcare call center services from MedConnectUSA can help your medical organization. Then get a free quote to discover how affordable their healthcare communication services are. Peter Lyle DeHaan is a freelance writer and call center authority.