ENT and Allergy Associates L.L.P., the specialty physicians group headquartered in Tarrytown, has launched a proprietary Rapid Response Center to handle patient calls to its clinics in New York and New Jersey.
Staffed with 29 full-time patient service representatives, the center currently fields calls received at 17 of the practice”™s 41 offices and will handle all of ENTA”™s clinical sites in the near future. The 1,800-square-foot center was built in 2013 as part of a 9,390 square-foot expansion at ENTA headquarters at 560 White Plains Road in Tarrytown.
The new department responds to and directs patient calls and inquiries in areas such as appointment requests, billing issues and insurance coverage. As the physician group practice”™s primary telephone interface, the center allows ENTA clinical staff to fully concentrate on serving the needs of patients at those sites, ENTA officers said.
The response center is part of an overall patient service initiative ENTA began two years ago, which also includes comprehensive customer service training for staff members at each clinical site and in the Tarrytown office.
John Monreal, manager of the Rapid Response Center, said calls to ENTA offices and its appointment hotline, 1-855-ENTA-DOC, will be answered in an average of 25 seconds or less.
“No one likes to be kept waiting on hold, especially if they”™re not feeling well,” ENTA CEO Robert Glazer said in a press release. “We believe that the level of convenience and efficiency that we are able to offer patients is second to none in the medical field today and we will continue to do everything in our power to lead the way in patient satisfaction.”
Dr. Wayne Eisman, president of ENTA, said response center employees also notify callers of the practice”™s online patient portal, which allows patients to enter their medical history before an office visit.
