Practice Assistant II - Urology Surgery

Reporting directly to the Surgeon and Administrative Manager. The Administrative Assistant II provides one-to-one clinical patient care and various administrative support to the Urological Surgeon and their practice. This role requires all duties and responsibilities to be performed at the highest proficiency related to physician(s) day-to-day clinical practice operations.
The ideal candidate works well independently and as part of a team. This position requires independent thinking, dedication, multi-tasking, attention to detail, extensive phone communication, strong patient empathy. Working with minimal supervision and guidance, possesses knowledge of office routine and workflow, machines, information-sharing systems, as well as an understanding of the organization, programs and procedures related to work in the Department of Urology.
This candidate will work collaboratively among all main campus and satellite clinics Urology may have a presence and/or ambulatory clinic including Brigham and Women's Hospital, Brigham, and Women's Faulkner Hospital, BWH/MGH Health Center Foxboro Care Center, BWH Pembroke Health Center, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Brigham and Women's Hospital is dedicated to:
* Serving the needs of our local and global community
* Providing the highest quality health care to patients and their families
* Expanding the boundaries of medicine through research
* Educating the next generation of health care professional
Every employee plays an important role in providing a positive impact on the organization and the people we serve. Your work will be distinguished by demonstrating respect and dignity in all interactions with patients, families and colleagues, excellence in customer service and job performance.
All employees are expected to embrace this commitment and demonstrate behavioral competencies in the following areas:
People: Focus on serving the community through collaboration and respect
Self-Management: Accountability, professionalism and commitment to growth and development
Organization: A commitment to quality, service, and exceptional performance
Meeting these expectations is key to the success of your department and the organization.
This job description includes:
* General expectations for the position
* Addendum A - BWH Behavioral Competencies
* Addendum B - Job Specific Tasks and Responsibilities
* Addendum C - Physical/Working Conditions

PRINCIPAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Surgeon's Practice Responsibilities:
* Manages all aspects of patient care including but not limited too; scheduling of clinic appointments, specialized testing, booking surgical cases in the operating room, managing prescription requests, messaging through the patient portal, documenting in the organization's EPIC electronic medical record.
* May be responsible for scanning outside documents for inclusion in patient's EPIC record.
* May be required to distribute patient notes to appropriate physicians and agencies as necessary. * Serves as liaison with patients, colleagues, and other hospital departments and administrators through various communication modalities.
* Ensures that patient concerns are addressed and followed up by the appropriate personnel within the department in a time-sensitive manner.
* Composes routine correspondence to patients and physicians, extracting basic to more complex information from patient records.
* Serves as the practice primary repository of information and first point of contact for patients, clinical and other hospital administrative personnel.
* Answers all incoming patient calls, triage the message, and facilitates the need of the patient; directs all medically related questions to the appropriate clinical staff, scheduling appointments, etc.
* Manages patient prescription requests and routes request to appropriate personnel.
* May be responsible for communicating procedure preparation instructions to patients both verbally and electronically or by mail.
* Ensures that patient concerns are addressed and followed up by the appropriate personnel within the department in a time-sensitive manner.
* Responsible for daily communication to the surgeon's practice through EPIC, Outlook, Patient Gateway (patient portal), various clinical and administrative Departments of BWH, as well as other medical facilities.
* Monitors and maintains EPIC In-basket messages, prescription/imaging requests and other functionalities as necessary.
* Prepares for weekly clinics by organizing clinic medical record needs in line with physician preferences.
* Schedules patient's diagnostic and follow-up laboratory and radiology testing and follow up appointments as assigned through EPIC In-basket.
* May be responsible for scheduling referrals assigned by the Patient Access Center.
* Responsible for monitoring provider's schedules and rescheduling patient appointments accordingly for smooth clinics.
* Responsible for surgeon's radiology queue, resulting in scheduling images from radiology queue as needed.
* May be responsible for mailing out copies of patient visit notes, pathology reports, radiology results, etc. to all referring and coordinating physicians according to HIPPA and Department guidelines for physician(s) per request.
* Responsible for prioritizing tasks as needed depending on workload.
* Works as a team member with all staff in the department to ensure smooth daily operation of the department, including participation in staff or faculty meetings, taking minutes, preparing agendas.
* Works as a team to cover other practices during absences, vacations, etc.
* Responsible for scheduling all physicians' surgeries at the main campus, Faulkner Hospital, or other ambulatory surgical sites, as well as ensuring that all pertinent testing and pre/post-operative appointments are scheduled accordingly.
* May collect, compile and forward co-payment/payment/reimbursement documentation to appropriate internal parties.
* May serve as point of person for the patients, vendors, insurance companies around any billing concerns.
* Responsible for the management of placing the surgeons' cases in the Department Centralized Billing Calendar to obtain prior authorization for all procedures as necessary.

Additional General Duties as Assigned:
* Manages the provider Outlook calendar with regards to day-to-day schedules.
* Responsible for coordinating the surgeons' meetings, conferences, etc.
* May be responsible for booking travel arrangements to conferences, meetings, annual conferences.
* May be asked to assist with training and orienting new staff as needed.
* Provide cross coverage as needed by Department policy
* May assist with special projects as directed.
* May be responsible for facilitating and completing additional paperwork requirements for patients such as work letters, leave requests, FMLA, etc.
* Follow HIPAA guidelines for the management of patient privacy and confidentiality.
* Other duties, as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:
* Bachelor's degree preferred; equivalent work experience will be considered.
* Prior administrative experience in a health care setting a plus
* Knowledge of Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
* Ability to prioritize work, meet deadlines, and function efficiently in a fast-paced environment under pressure.
* Ability to use discretion in confidential matters.
* Ability to read, write and articulate in English is required.

SKILLS/ABILITIES/COMPETENCIES REQUIRED
* Technical skills required: Technical skills required: Knowledge of practice operations and standards. Understanding of procedures including filing, copying, scanning, printing, and faxing.
* Phone skills: Ability to use phone system (answer and screen calls, put on hold), handle more complex calls and give more detailed information.
* Verbal skills: Ability to interpret information as appropriate, answer more complex questions in the most professional manner and communicate in a professional, courteous, clear, and concise manner.
* Organization Skills: Ability to manage work processes in a neat and orderly way and to sort and alphabetize. Ability to manage multiple tasks effectively, follow established protocols, and work within systems.
* Writing Skills: Ability to correspond and communicate with others clearly and effectively in writing (via e-mail, memo, or interoffice note) and to take complete and accurate messages. May respond directly on behalf of manager/provider without direction or instruction.
* System Skills: Ability to type and enter data effectively and at a more advanced level. Intermediate level computer skills including the ability to use word processing, spreadsheet, database, and presentation applications.
* Knowledge of clinical and administrative practice operations and standards.
* Performing office duties such as filing, filtering faxes, copying, scanning, and printing, along with other ad hoc duties as necessary.
* Intermediate comprehension of billing and fiscal information.
* Knowledgeable and compliant with all hospital, State and Federal requirements (where applicable to job performance), including policy and procedures with The Joint Commission and HIPAA.
Competencies required: See Addendum A

WORKING CONDITIONS:
* Ability to work under deadline pressure and prioritize work from several sources.
* Normal office conditions, but fast-paced environment with frequent deadlines.

FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY:
* None

HOSPITAL WIDE RESPONSIBILITIES: Works within legal, regulatory, accreditation and ethical practice standards relevant to the position and as established by BWH/Partners; follows safe practices required for the position; complies with appropriate BWH and Partners policies and procedures; fulfills any training required by BWH and/or Partners, as appropriate;