Division/Department/Section: Telephone Operators Section:

Support Services

Reference Number: LLH/ADM/SOP/001 Issue date: Revision date: Next revision date: Version Number: Page 1 of 9

Subject: Protocols

Name Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by:

Designation

Signature

Date

Contents Preface Physical People Processes Performance Indicators

1. Preface The telephone operators answer and transfer phone calls that come into the hospital. They also make outgoing calls and connect the in house staff to the outer world. The operators also take care of the back end work of the website. For example, a live chat window that will be introduced with the new web site, will be taken care of by the operators. Most of the work of the operators will revolve around giving appointments on phone and through the web site. Apart from

that, they will also handle the telecommunications of the hospital.

2. Physical

o The operators must take care of the telephone exchange system installed in their room. The machine has to be dust free and in very good working condition. The in charge of operators is responsible and accountable for getting the machine services and maintained through the facility manager. Each service and repair of the machine needs to be documented in a file called Maintenance Telephone Operators and a photo copy of the service/repair bill needs to be attached along with the down time of the machine.

o The wires of the machine need to be kept in a neat manner. Wire should not be tangled.

o The computer system[s] has to be kept in a good working condition. Both the hardware and software have to be in good condition.

o The computer system files have to be defragmented on the 1st and 15th of very month and documented in a sheet in the Maintenance Telephone Operators file. At the same time the recycle bin of the system has be emptied and documented in the same sheet.

The computer system[s] [including the key board, UPS, etc.] must be inspected by the IT department person once every

quarter and the details of the inspection documented in the Maintenance Telephone Operators file.

o The work station has to be clean with minimum clutter and papers. Personal bags other items must be kept away from the working space.

o The sheets of information must be placed neatly on a notice board. No extra sheets than required must be pasted on the notice board. The information sheets include [but are not limited to]i. ii. iii. iv. v. The yesterdays patient discharge list Current names of extension numbers of admitted patients Various extension numbers of the doctors and other staff List of staff on leave that day Any instruction from any of the doctor regarding their appointment timings [must be put on the board either written by a red marker or highlighted with a red highlighter] Other relevant info

vi.

o The headphones must be good quality and the mic must be kept at an appropriate distance from the mouth so that the caller gets to hear clearly. Normally a good practice is to keep it about 2 inches away from the lips.

o The chairs should be comfortable to sit on. Long hours of seating make it imperative that the chairs and the posture of

sitting are both taken care of. The operators must point out to each other if they are not sitting in the right posture.

o The door of the operators room must be closed at all times. Minimum or no noise should come from outside.

o The operators must always come in proper, neat uniforms. Even though they do not see the customers face to face, they should have well groomed outlook. It instils confidence in them.

3. People

o The operators should always be cheerful. Not only in their voice on the phone, they need to be cheerful in real life too.

o They must talk with a smiling voice. The person at the other should not feel unwelcomed at any point of time. Each call is important. Remember, that for the operator it may be just another call, but for the customer it may be the only call.

o The operators must represent the linguistic and cultural background of the hospitals customers. So as far as possible people from same backgrounds as the customers should be trained as operators.

o Each conversation with the customer has to be clear, specific and conclusive.

o Sufficient number of people should be present at any time. The peak hours for the operators are the morning hours where about 60% of calls are received. In a day, at present about 1100 calls are being received and about 250 outgoing calls are being made.

4. Processes

o While attending a call, a pen in hand and a diary in front, on the table must always be present. o For giving an appointment, the operator must follow the following processi. ii. Ask the caller- May I know for when do you want the appointment? Let him give his choice. Thereafter, give him the options available on that day. Try to give the slots when less walk in patients are expected. For example, the afternoon or late evening slots. Ask him if he already has a Lifeline card. If yes, ask the card number and write it down. In case he does not have the card number at that moment and wants you to hold, ask him, not to worry and confirm the appointment anyway. However, request the customer to call back and give his card number. Tell him that it will make the process of his visit faster if he gives the card number. Make sure that you tell the customer that you may not be the one who gets to speak to him in the next call; therefore he must tell his name and appointment time to the new operator.

iii.

iv. v. vi.

Always repeat the customers name, appointment day and time before ending the call. Always tell them to come 10-15 minutes early to complete the paperwork. Always tell them which floor to come to and the name of the doctor clearly in case they are coming for the first time. Always remind them that they can take further appointments form the reception desk itself after they have seen the doctor on their visit. Tell them this way they can get their desired time slot if they do it this way. This ensures that the patient is not lost in future and the rush of calls to the operator room is reduced.

vii.

o Always tell them Please hold on I will transfer your call in a clear and soft voice [for incoming calls]. Never transfer without telling the caller what you are going to do. o If for some reason the caller has been on hold, always say thank you for holding the line Mr./Ms. _____ and then resume the call. o For making an announcement, the operator must always start the announcement with may I have your attention please. Each announcement has to be repeated twice. Each announcement has to be made loudly and clearly so that the message is heard and understood. o For outgoing calls follow the following procedurei. ii. iii. Always ask the name of the in house person who wants you to connect the outgoing call. Take down the details [number and name of the receiver] on a sheet. Then politely ask him to hold on/hang up while you connect the call.

iv. v.

Once the call is connected, tell the receiving person who you are and where are you calling from. Then have him know who wants to talk to him. For example, Sir, Mr. ABC wants to have a word with you, shall I connect the call? Always ask for permission of the receiver for connecting the call.

o The distance must be sufficient between the operators. If they sit too close to each other then the caller may hear background noises. o When the operators talk, they must not speak too loudly. The caller should only hear the voice of the operator that he is speaking to and not the background noises. o Never eat while to talking on the phone. The person at the other end will always know when the person on the other is munching something. o Drink sufficient water while on duty. But do not drink while talking on the phone. o The appointment calls must always go to the people assigned for appointments only. Always have sufficient people for this. One person is not enough at the moment. The following is the process for a dial in calli. ii. The person dials the hospital number and gets a pre recorded message The message is short and simple. It welcomes him to the Lifeline Hospital. The voice asks the caller to Dial 1 for appointments Dial the extension number Dial 2 for operator assistance

The staff must be encouraged to give away their direct extension numbers if they have them. This will reduce the rush of calls to the operator room. o The phone has to be disconnected with the finger first. Even though the caller will hang up first, the operator should always disconnect the phone with the fore finger and put the receiver down on the cradle. o Create a list of existing [previous] customer appointments given today and send it to MRD. The MRD can then start to locate their files and keep the files ready on the day when the patient is expected. o Never hang up on a caller. As a rule of thumb, the caller hangs up first. This ensures that he has had an opportunity to ask all questions that he ever to ask. This is true even for the internal caller. Always keep asking- Anything else I can help you with sir? Keep asking this till he indicates clearly that there is nothing else he wants to ask you. o The supervisor/manager should listen to the call recordings of the callers once every week. This can be done at a fixed time and day in mid week. Based on the recording, the staff should be trained. The training can be individual or in groups of 2-3 people. The training session minutes need to be documented with the supervisor.

5. Performance Indicators [KPI]

To be checked by: Supervisor/Manager

To be reported to: Administrator

Frequency 10th of every month

Indicator

Measure

Training hour per person per month People missing appointments in their first visit to the hospital People taking the further appointment during their visit to the hospital as a percentage of total OPD per month

2 hours minimum Not more than 20% 50% of total phone appointment patients taking further appointments through reception desk during their visit

Auditor Observations: Audited Manager [Name and

Signature]

Auditor

[Name and Signature]

Date:

Date:

Next Audit Date

The implementation team with roles: Member Role

In charge of front office and operators Management Consultant Admin In Charge IT Manager Facility Manager

Implementation and conformity Review, Support and guidance Support and guidance Linking computers Providing an appropriate room Voice, Accent & Etiquette Training

Trainer