 It’s a proven fact that ice and snow will shut down most parts of the southern United States. This scenario has played out once again over the last couple of days in Alabama, with one exception… MedCo Services.
MedCo, who offers extended business office services for hospitals and physicians groups, implemented its Winter Inclement Weather policy and continued to support its clients just like any other day. As an Early Out vendor, we are an extension of the hospital. “A patient in South Florida would not understand why snow had closed the business office when there is no snow anywhere near them,” says Vice President of Sales Wallace Harmening. “Operationally, we have to ensure that our company opens no matter what, so we developed our Winter Inclement Weather policy. Team members from each department are on call each week. If the policy is implemented, on call team members work during the day and are housed in two local hotels at night. All meals are provided and dress codes are relaxed somewhat.” On call team members remain with us until the weather situation has passed. During this time, additional team members who are able to commute safely work their regular or abbreviated schedules, depending on road conditions. “We’re so appreciative of the commitment and sacrifices that our MedCo team demonstrates in an effort to Exceed Expectations” says CEO Joe Uptain. “While receiving snow in Alabama is a rare occurrence, our team’s dedication to the cause is the norm.”
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 Wow how time flies! Hard to believe 2018 is over!
It has been yet another wild ride in the healthcare industry, but that is nothing new. Our industry has always ebbed and flowed, changed and changed back and evolved at a break neck pace. This past year was no exception and I am proud to say that our nimbleness, willingness to adapt, and ability to innovate has kept us growing and reaching new heights. Something I've noticed the past twelve to eighteen months is the main items that drive our industry's erratic behavior (shrinking reimbursement, consumer demands, employee stress, etc) are causing a severe lack of planning and thus knee jerk decision making; in turn, perpetuating changes in operational work flows, systems, people and philosophies. Without proper planning, you could be changing a good thing. This reminds me of a quote from the legendary coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. "Have a plan. Follow the plan, and you'll be surprised how successful you can be." Obviously, having a well thought out plan is pertinent in being successful. However, it does not matter how well it was prepared if it is not followed. As of late, many in the healthcare industry abandon their plan or do not hold themselves accountable to follow a plan and inevitably go backwards. If you decide on how to solve a problem or handle a portion of your business and you take the time to implement a thorough plan of attack you must follow your plan. There could be industry changes or peaks and valleys that will require tweaking your plan; however, you still follow the fundamentals of your plan. In our LEAN environment, we are continually tweaking our operations to better suit the industry needs, sign of the times, or take advantage of emerging technology. In 2018 our Early Out service added our "Go Green" functionality to allow patients to receive their billing electronically. Additionally, our software development team added a user friendly text bill delivery and payment option. In our Pre-Services division we implemented text notifications to prompt patients that information is needed prior to their visit and they will be receiving a telephone call from us soon. This tremendously spiked our "answer rate". These are just a few tweaks that we felt necessary to keep up with industry changes and consumer demands. However, we did not change our plan. We’re still the same. In 2019 we plan to continue to tweak, improve and expand the services we provide. We are so excited to be working on things like simultaneous EOMB/Patient Statement delivery, a Cadillac class program for Zero Balance review and contract modeling and many more technological advances that allows us to bring innovation, people-development, and problem-solving to those we serve. Through it all, we will continue to follow the fundamentals of our plan by developing trust and loyalty and enhancing the lives of others. We have been in business for over 24 years and there have certainly been peaks and valleys along the way, but along with that there has been tremendous excitement and perseverance. I can tell you with zero hesitation that I have never been more excited about an upcoming year. We have been blessed to assemble a top notch team that works as one unit towards our goal by following our plan. 2019, our 25th year, will be our greatest year yet and all because we continue to stick to the plan. Happy New Year! Joe Uptain President  Healthcare finance is no longer primarily a B2B transaction. With patients moving into the role of one of the largest payors, now is the time to focus on the patient experience and patient-facing technology. All patients are consumers today: They are accustomed to having information at their fingertips, while considering how they will spend their money. As patients become more proactive in the management of their health and treatment, ease of accessing information will become more critical to the health of the provider. MedCo can help plan your consumer experience with patient-facing technology. Our Medical Marketplace application for smart phones and tablets allows a patient to:
While providing the patient with a great consumer experience, Providers can:
To learn more about how Medical Marketplace can help you with your patient’s consumer experience, please take a moment to view the short video below, then contact us at 1-844-528-4338 or sales@medcoservices.com to schedule a presentation today. 
 100% of All Calls Reviewed Daily
With hospitals facing increased expectations to deliver high quality service to their patients at every turn, there has never been a better time to take advantage of call center voice analytics. Do your vendor partners have the patient’s satisfaction in mind? MedCo utilizes voice analytics to ensure the patient’s experience while providing its clients with peace of mind. Taking the Patient Experience to the Next Level For over 20 years MedCo has understood the importance of providing a quality patient experience. Our contact representatives go through in-depth training for 4 weeks before ever speaking to a patient on the client’s behalf. A Quality Assurance program was developed to monitor and evaluate representatives monthly, and to evaluate quality levels and performance. In 2017, MedCo became one of a few healthcare-related call centers to utilize voice analytics to ensure a positive patient experiences. How Does Voice Analytics Work? Most call centers sample less than 1% of its total calls. Utilization of voice analytics has enabled MedCo to increase its sampling to 100% of all calls. During the implementation process of launching voice analytics, MedCo defined the listening parameters to determine what elements should be monitored. Our system listens for conditions such as: o Pre-defined key words o Raised or tense voices o Profanity o Long pauses o Poor connection quality o Parties talking over each other If any of the conditions above are present on any call, the call is flagged and sent to a supervisor for review. Upon review, the supervisor can take appropriate action or use it as a coaching opportunity with the representative on the call. In some cases, the representative is recognized for their excellent handling of the situation and may be used as a coaching example for the entire call center. The result: higher quality calls and higher patient satisfaction. Want to learn more? Let MedCo help ensure your patient’s satisfaction! Call 1-844-528-4338 or email sales@medcoservices.com today for additional information.  MedCo is excited to announce that Greg Wilder has joined our Sales team! “Greg’s extensive experience in business development and healthcare operations is a great addition to our already talented group” said Wallace Harmening, MedCo Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Greg has over 25 years of sales, management, business development, and executive leadership experience in the Healthcare Industry. The majority of his career has been focused on providing solutions and services with an emphasis on revenue cycle management applications. He has held various leadership roles in both large fortune 500 corporations and small start-up ventures, and has extensive experience in developing strong client and strategic partner relationships. Through these relationships Greg has had the opportunity to work closely with all types of Healthcare Providers, including major hospitals and healthcare systems across the country. This has led to an in-depth understanding of the unique needs of an ever-changing market and the people involved. He is a member of several organizations including HFMA and AAHAM and attends multiple healthcare conferences each year. Greg also serves on the board for YES (Youth Encouragement Services) a non-profit organization striving to enrich the lives of children in inner city Nashville. Mr. Wilder has his BA from Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN and currently resides in Brentwood, TN with his wife Dana.  Wow! 2017 has come and gone like a flash. I remember as a child being told, "Time flies as you get older," and it is so true.
The MedCo team has had a great year. We set collection records that surpassed any previous numbers over the last 24 years. We promoted from within and helped enrich our team members' lives. We upgraded 80% of our infrastructure in a way that will allow us to be completely redundant operationally, as well as advancing towards the leading edge of technology. We have also implemented a plan to bring healthcare billing to the standard platform that consumers are used to for all goods and services However, 2017 did not come without those same types of challenges to which we have become accustomed. Once again healthcare has proven itself to be a field that requires adapting, being nimble, and being willing to think outside the box in order to be successful. Patient average balances are climbing to a level that requires even more attention and options than ever before. We feel we have positioned MedCo as a leader in assisting our client partners with this aspect of their business, in both 2018 and beyond. In the "Continued Improvement" environment we strive to maintain, we never take too long to marvel at our accomplishments. We celebrate them quickly, reward our team handsomely, and then stare directly at the next mountain to climb. 2018 will be no different, and we look forward to the challenges that await us. Happy New Year! Joe Uptain, CEO  Brandy Simpson recently joined the MedCo team as a Director of Client Operations. Brandy’s areas of responsibility will include the Insurance and Client Services departments. Brandy’s in-depth experience in hospital revenue cycle and client services makes her a strong addition to our team, and poises MedCo for growth in both departments. In her short tenure, Brandy has already identified areas where we can provide additional value to our client partners to help ensure their success.
Brandy has worked in the healthcare field for over 13 years. During this time, she has completed her BS in Healthcare Finance at Athens State University and her Masters in Healthcare Management at UAB. She most recently served as Director of Accounts Receivables at Huntsville Health Systems, one of the nation’s largest public health systems. Please help us welcome Brandy to the team. We look forward to her leadership in these areas that are so important to both our company and client partners. |
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