Patient Services Representatives: Your Community Health Resource
By Nathaniel De La Cruz
Who are Patient Services Representatives (PSRs)? We are the people who greet Howard Brown Health patients and clients at the door, who assist with check-in, insurance, and scheduling, and lay the foundation of care for those who come into any space at Howard Brown. We’re here to use your correct name and pronouns, to support our wonderful and varied community, make sure that you are not financially burdened, and help handle medical concerns.
Patient Services Representatives are a resource for patients. Our role includes scheduling and registration, checking in and out of a clinic, and connecting patients to the right medical professionals and services, payments, insurance information. Patient Services Representatives are a wealth of information and invested in making sure patients receive good care while at Howard Brown. We may not be physicians or nurses, but we’re here to guide patients and help them access the services they need.
As advocates for patients, Patient Services Representatives strive to be fully present. We’re here to help you understand the process of insurance and how to get things started. We help reduce the surprises, and make sure that a patient’s insurance information is up to date. We are also here to reduce stress for those who are uninsured or underinsured. We can help you access the sliding scale, which lessens the worry when it comes to financial stress. All Patient Services Representatives follow the service model of AIDET. AIDET stands for Acknowledge, Introduction, Duration, Explanation, and Thank you.
It’s a model for helping people and setting expectations, for example, “Hello! I’m Nathaniel, I’ll see you in about 15 minutes because there are a few people ahead of you right now. Thank you for waiting.”
It’s important for Patient Services Representatives to make sure patients are seen and taken care of prior to seeing a provider. Healthcare can be daunting, and Patient Services Representatives are here to help you navigate it.
Patient Services Representatives have seen over 28,000 people in 2019, and we will continue to assist with health insurance, scheduling, and foster good health into 2020 and beyond. The next time you see your next Patient Services Representative, remember to say “hello” and fill out your survey. Here’s to good health in 2020.