Medical Receptionists Salary

Medical Receptionists: Salary & Everything You Need To Know

Whether you’re looking for a job as a medical receptionist or looking to hire one, it’s good to understand the details of the role. While most people know the basic tasks, being a medical receptionist is more than just taking phone calls to and from the practice or managing patient appointments.

Practice managers and decision-makers should fully understand their options for recruiting medical receptionists and decide whether the position should be hired to work in-person or as a virtual team member. Both types of workers share the same objective – to provide patients with a positive experience at the front desk – but they have differences that affect the entire employment experience.

First things first, let’s compare their differences.

In-person or virtual medical receptionists?

The most glaring difference between in-person and virtual talent is their salary. On average, an in-person medical receptionist’s salary in the US could range between $34,685 and $41,415 annually [1], amounting to an estimated $3,000 monthly. On the other hand, a virtual medical receptionist will earn less while gaining the benefits of working from home — making them a more cost-efficient option for healthcare practices compared to their in-person counterpart.

The advantage of choosing an in-person medical receptionist is that they can be easier to manage because, from the word itself, they work on the practice’s physical location. Decision-makers can easily rub elbows with them, doctors can initiate a conversation should they see fit, and they can physically be seen working. However, that doesn’t mean managing virtual medical receptionists is challenging.

Undeniably, managing virtual medical receptionists comes with a learning curve due to in-office work being the norm rather than the exception. However, managing remote team members, a relatively new concept, is just as easy as with in-person staff and can even be more straightforward.

Even though the latter functions remotely, both in-person and virtual medical receptionists share the same role. They both clock in and out when the practice needs them to and perform their tasks as necessary, but because virtual medical receptionists are remote workers, they are self-starters who work with their equipment and in their own space. This minimizes the need for practice managers or decision-makers to maintain these assets.

Being a self-starter means virtual medical receptionists are more likely to deliver more than expected because they are accustomed to working independently. Furthermore, they are fast learners who can function with minimal supervision, allowing practice managers and decision-makers more time to work on other tasks.

When hiring in-person virtual receptionists, the onus of managing them is on the practice manager or decision-makers with a lot on their plate. Going virtual helps alleviate the weight of managing medical receptionists. Aside from being independent, virtual medical receptionists have a dedicated industry manager who will guide and coach them as they work with the practice.

Another area that practice managers and decision-makers need to consider when choosing between an in-person or virtual medical receptionist is payroll, whether they prefer to handle it actively or passively. By choosing a medical receptionist who works in person, the practice has to bear the payroll and everything that encompasses it. On the other hand, the outsourcing company that manages virtual medical receptionists handles the payroll, lessening the tasks that practice managers and decision-makers would otherwise need to do.

Medical receptionist job description

Googling “Medical Receptionist Job Description” is easy, but as previously mentioned, being an in-person or virtual medical receptionist is more than just handling phone calls or managing patient appointments. They also help with and expedite insurance verification, which is a tedious and time-consuming process in itself.

In addition, medical receptionists also manage prescription refills on behalf of primary care providers so that patients can replenish their medication when needed. Doing so entails giving patients quick reminders to let them know their prescription is about to run out or is due for a refill.

Furthermore, medical receptionists can also handle clerical tasks for which the practice may need help. These tasks include collecting patient data, keeping records, inventorying the available practice equipment, managing paperwork, and much more.

Qualities of a good medical receptionist

Medical professionals who want to explore various career opportunities often ask, “how to become a medical receptionist?” or “what does it take to be a good medical receptionist?”. More than a couple of qualifications are needed for practices to find a medical receptionist that will help them obtain more productivity and growth. The basics include making and receiving phone calls, multi-tasking, knowledge of various tools, good typing speed, and relevant work experience.

Aside from being trainable and having a good resume, medical receptionists need good customer service skills because they play a significant part in the care experience. They are the first to see incoming patients and the last to greet them before they head out the door.

Because providers can relay unfortunate findings to patients regarding their health, medical receptionists also need to know how to be empathetic to be more sensitive towards what they say and how they engage with patients after their treatment.

Medical emergencies are relatively common in the healthcare industry, and medical receptionists are often the point of contact for patients seeking immediate medical attention. This means they must be quick on their toes to act as quickly as possible.

Where to post and find medical receptionist jobs

Whether practice decision-makers choose an in-person or virtual medical receptionist, there are multiple places where they can find candidates who each bring something different to the table but are all qualified:

Online Job Sites

The internet is a common place where job applicants look for the next company they want to work in. In most cases, online job sites such as LinkedIn are where medical practices can find job hunters trying to fill in medical receptionist roles. The proceeding steps are up for the recruiter to decide whether the job interview will occur virtually or on location, what screening efforts will be in place, and more.

LinkedIn doesn’t limit its candidates based on whether or not they prefer working remotely. Still, there are also other websites to scout exclusively for virtual medical receptionists, such as Fiverr and Upwork. Both freelancing sites let medical practices put up job listings where remote workers can send in their applications.

The caveat to relying on online job sites to fill empty job roles is that it can be risky. Sure, there’s more freedom regarding what medical practices can do, but they also need to rely on what they know regarding recruitment and human resources. When it comes to the healthcare industry, there should be little to no room for risks, whether it’s on what practices do for patients or how it works behind the scenes.

Virtual Assistant Companies

With the recent increase in demand for virtual assistants who can fill various job designations, virtual assistant companies like My Mountain Mover enter the scene to give medical practices access to virtual talent without subjecting themselves to unwanted risks.

Unlike online job sites, virtual assistant companies take care of searching for the best possible talent, generating contracts, providing training, and payroll. Medical practices no longer need to make recruitment efforts themselves because virtual assistant companies do most of the legwork. All that’s left to do is to meet pre-screened and vetted candidates to ensure an ideal match.

My Mountain Mover receives thousands of applications, but thanks to our thorough vetting process, our candidate pool is narrowed down to only the top 2% of virtual assistants who embody our company’s quality and care. Want to learn more? Book a 10-minute intro call with us today!

References

[1] “Medical Receptionist Salary in the United States” salary.com