Senior Practice Associate — Otolaryngology Operations

61st Street Service Corporation; New York (NY); On-site; USD 39,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare benefits

Paid time off

Job summary

The Practice Associate III at 61st Street Service Corporation provides the patient welcome experience for the Department of Otolaryngology, handling registration, scheduling, and related admin duties to ensure efficient care delivery. You will support peers with expertise in Epic, billing, and pre-op activities.

The role requires strong communication, organization, and teamwork, with extensive experience in medical office settings and familiarity with Epic workflows.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalency is required.
• A minimum of 5 years’ relevant experience, including in a medical office environment.
• Advanced knowledge of/proficiency with medical terminology.
• Advanced proficiency with and/or understanding of medical billing and up-to-date insurance eligibility.
• Proficiency with or understanding of surgical and procedural scheduling.
• Strong service orientation, including interpersonal and communication skills, emotional intelligence, and ability to deliver consistent exceptional service while demonstrating tact, respect and sensitivity.
• Advanced organizational and problem-solving skills, including the ability to prioritize, multitask, and manage complex cases. Ability to work independently with consistent follow-through.
• Excellent relationship management skills including, but not limited to, emotional intelligence, interpersonal skills, empathy, and ability to handle situations with respect, tact, and sensitivity.
• Excellent team collaboration and mentorship skills including, but not limited to, emotional intelligence, interpersonal and communication skills, empathy, and ability to lead others through new and changing situations.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word and Excel) or similar software is required, and an ability and willingness to learn new systems and programs.
• Experience in Otolaryngology/Audiology preferred.
• Experience in Epic preferred.
• Bilingual English/Spanish a plus, but not required.

Responsibilities

• Greet patients and visitors & answer telephone calls.
• Conduct pre-registration, check-in, check-out, appointments, and other related tasks as requested.
• Obtain all required registration and intake information from patients; verify and/or update any new insurance or other information in Epic; obtain prior authorizations and referrals for visits and tests and verify eligibility for services; accurately indicate arrivals, no-shows, reschedules, and physician cancellations in Epic; collect all time-of-service and past due payments.
• Initiate registration of new patients in Epic as needed.
• Manage and review physician’s schedule to ensure all authorizations and pre-certifications for office visits and procedures are obtained.
• May collect all time-of-service and past due payments prior to the start of the appointment. Settle cash drawer in the EHR on a daily basis.
• Coordinate and schedule appointments, procedures, and other specialty services/clinical testing as requested by the physician in a timely and accurate manner.
• Prepare requisitions as needed.
• Organize surgical and/or procedure requests and schedule in Epic for audiology and/or high complexity cases.
• Obtain all required authorizations, coordinate/schedule diagnostic testing as ordered by physicians, obtain all necessary documentation and all related tasks to successfully complete pre-op/pre-procedure activities.
• Schedule post-operative and other follow-up appointments and other related tests as requested by the physician in a timely and accurate manner.
• Respond to financial information inquiries such explanation of charges, out of network benefits, out of pocket expenses, and related activities.
• Obtain prior authorizations and referrals for follow-up care as needed by insurance plan.
• Ensure that patients have appropriate instructions related to the surgery or procedure, including pre-and post-operative directions.
• Assist with coordination of care to other specialties and appointments.
• Verify patient insurance eligibility and benefits as needed.
• Communicate insurance participation, financial responsibility (if applicable), and time of service policy to patient population.
• Respond to financial information inquiries related to charges and benefits.
• Conduct all pre-determination, authorization, and pre-certification. Manage these processes and documentation closely to ensure no scheduling delays.
• Review the daily and weekly schedule frequently to ensure accuracy of the visit provider, appointment duration, patient insurance participation status with the visit provider, visit reason, and visit type.
• Perform administrative duties as it pertains to practice or specialty and provide administrative support to providers and managers.
• Assist with onboarding and training of new staff and help colleagues address training gaps.
• Serve as a first point of escalation for complex cases or front desk issues.
• Serve as team point person or task monitor as directed by Supervisor.
• Manage all assigned Epic work queues. Assist others with backlog or increased volume activity.
• Follow end-of-day closing procedures.
• Provide cross coverage as directed by Supervisor/Manager.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Skills

Service orientation

Interpersonal skills

Team collaboration

MS Office

Bilingual English/Spanish

Epic proficiency

Medical terminology

Medical billing understanding

Education

High school diploma or equivalency

Tools

Epic

Job description

The Practice Associate III at 61st Street Service Corporation provides the patient welcome experience for the Department of Otolaryngology, handling registration, scheduling, and related admin duties to ensure efficient care delivery. You will support peers with expertise in Epic, billing, and pre-op activities.

The role requires strong communication, organization, and teamwork, with extensive experience in medical office settings and familiarity with Epic workflows.