Q&A: Processing scheduled and unscheduled patients

Q. What strategies can patient access departments employ to ensure patients are registered and processed in a timely manner?

A. In order to have time to process unscheduled patients comprehensively, move scheduled patients through either a “fast track” or “express arrival” desk. Often a single desk can handle a high volume of scheduled patients—if a comprehensive pre-service processing occurs. This arrangement frees the balance of the registration staff to handle the walk-in patients. Both types of desks should be staffed based on a time study of patient volumes by arrival times for a typical two-week period.

For more information, see The Complete Patient Access Handbook.

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