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Healthcare System Received Efficiency Injection to Better Serve Community

Executive Summary

A not-for-profit healthcare system needed help to improve efficiency around vaccine appointment scheduling to ensure the health and well-being of the surrounding local community during the COVID-19 crisis.

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The Challenge: This healthcare system was quickly inundated with vaccine appointment requests and needed help to to ensure every patient received a timely appointment

The COVID-19 pandemic created new, unforeseen challenges for healthcare systems across the globe. For this not-for-profit organization, an influx of vaccine appointment requests quickly became unmanageable, resulting in delays and dropped calls — and an overall reduction in patient satisfaction and service. These challenges hurt the healthcare system’s otherwise award-winning reputation as a center for cutting-edge research and medicine. In fact, they were ranked 47 out of 50 among similar systems for efficiency.

The Solution: A trusted partner to build and implement call centers to handle vaccine requests

The healthcare system tapped the Judge Consulting team to quickly stand up new call centers to handle the overwhelming number of vaccine appointment requests. In conjunction with IntelePeer, a customer communication automation platform, Judge enhanced the organization’s contact center technology and sourced live customer service agents — both English and bilingual speakers — to schedule appointments. Implementation included call scripts, phones, laptops, software, and training throughout the project. Once appointments were filled for a given day, the call centers went to an automated system that explained the daily allowance and requested that the patient call the next day to schedule their vaccine.

The Result: Implementation in less than two weeks and a 95% call center service level

The Judge Consulting team successfully implemented the new call centers and supporting infrastructure to support patients. The call centers achieved a 95% service level, with fewer than 5% abandoned calls. The healthcare system rose to the top 10% among similar healthcare systems for efficiency around vaccine appointment scheduling. The healthcare system also retained Judge Consulting at the conclusion of the project to continue work on its internal scheduling processes.