Do I need to change my pager to use TeleMed?

No, TeleMed can page you on any text capable device including pagers, mobile phones and PDA's.

How do you know I received the page?

TeleMed will call your priority patients, physicians and hospital units within a few minutes to verify they have heard from you. What happens if I don't respond? We will re-page, call your home, mobile phone, another physician or staff member until someone responds.

Do you follow up on all calls?

We follow up on calls dependent upon their priority. This varies from practice to practice and specialty to specialty.

Can you call me at home?

Under certain circumstances we will call your home as opposed to paging.

Do you have live operators?

24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Can you fax my messages to the office?

We can fax you a copy of the messages sent every morning.

Can you email messages?

We can email messages as they are taken or all at once in the morning for your records.

What happens when someone is covering for me?

The covering doctor is notified of any calls.

How do you answer our phone?

On the first ring with a customized greeting.

Can my patients leave voice mail?

Yes. Voice mail is available to screen non-urgent callers, giving them the opportunity to leave a message for the office.

Do you have multi-lingual operators? Yes.

Appointment Scheduling

How will my phones roll over to TeleMed when we are busy?

Your telephone company can provide a feature that will forward your phones to our call center after a number of rings or only when your lines are busy. If your office utilizes an automated greeting, it can be programmed to transfer to TeleMed after a certain number is pressed.

Can I continue to use my practice management system?

TeleMed is compatible with most practice management systems. With some systems, our services are fully automatic. A partial list of these systems include: CompuLink, EyeCom, Lytec, Medical Manager, MediSoft, OfficeMate, and TOS.

How will my system be updated with appointments that are set by TeleMed after hours?

Each morning, your new appointments will be automatically downloaded to your computer and updated on your scheduler.

What if I don't have a practice management system for scheduling appointments?

If your office has Internet capability, you can use TeleMed's web scheduler. Appointments can be made by your staff or ours by accessing your schedule on line at a secure website.

How can TeleMed process my consults?

TeleMed's voice recognition service asks the caller questions, then processes the given information into text. The text is then sent to your e-mail, fax machine, PDA, etc. No missed information, wrong spelling, or the tedious task of listening to voice mail messages from patients requesting consults.

BackupDr

What is BackupDr technology?

BackupDr is TeleMed's automatic backup (copying) of your data to our remote data storage system protecting your valuable electronic records in case of equipment failure.

I lost my hard drive. How do I get my data back?

With BackupDr, it's easy. After you have installed your new hard drive and recovered your operating system, you go to our website and download our client software. Next you install our client software and login. BackupDr does the rest. Shortly, your data will be fully restored for you.

How do I install the BackupDr software?

You go to our website and download the client software. Just follow the onscreen instructions. Next close all programs on your computer and launch the client install program you just downloaded. Follow the step-by-step instructions. After the install is complete, just login.

Is my data safe?

Before your data ever leaves your computer it is encrypted utilizing the same technology banks and governments use to communicate across the Internet.

Who can see my data?

Only you or those you allow to see it. It is stored on our servers encrypted.

What is encryption?

Encryption is a technology used to communicate securely over the Internet. All of your data is converted to zeros and ones. A mathematical formula is then used to scramble these binary numbers. Your password is the master key to this formula.

Appointment Reminders

Do the calls sound like a real person?

Our system uses friendly, professional voice talent.

Can I continue to use my practice management system?

We are compatible with most practice management systems.

What if an answering machine is reached?

Our system can detect the difference between an answering machine and a live human voice. We leave a message specially designed for answering machines when we encounter one.

How will my patients respond to automated reminders?

Patients are as frustrated as you are when they miss appointments because they simply forget. They are very appreciative when they consistently receive a friendly reminder call.

How many times will TeleMed call, when it gets a busy signal or no answer?

If the call does not reach a terminating point, which is either a person, answering machine, or disconnected number the call will be re-attempted many times, until one hour before the scheduled appointment.

Can I specify when my calls start?

You control how and when your patients are contacted.

Can reminders be left in other languages, such as Spanish?

TeleMed provides both English and Spanish notifications.

What if I don't want a specific patient called?

You can add selected patients to the "do-not-call" list.

What about HIPAA?

The HIPAA Privacy Rule permits health care providers to communicate with patients regarding their health care. This includes communicating with patients at their homes, whether through the mail or by phone or in some other manner. In addition, the Rule does not prohibit covered entities from leaving messages for patients on their answering machines. However, to reasonably safeguard the individual's privacy, covered entities should take care to limit the amount of information disclosed on the answering machine. For example, a covered entity might want to consider leaving only its name and number and other information necessary to confirm an appointment. 
A covered entity also may leave a message with a family member or other person who answers the phone when the patient is not home. The Privacy Rule permits covered entities to disclose limited information to family members, friends, or other persons regarding an individual's care, even when the individual is not present. However, covered entities should use professional judgment to assure that such disclosures are in the best interest of the individual and limit the information disclosed.

How easy is it to install?

Installation is quick and simple. Just follow a simple pre-installation checklist and press one button. Our installation wizard automatically locates and links to your scheduling system. An easy to follow setup guide is provided.

How soon can I begin making calls?

After you register, your practice-specific information will be professionally recorded. As soon as your account is activated (usually within 2 weeks) we will notify you by email. Calls to your patients will then begin.

What do I need to change to use the service?

You continue to schedule patients in your scheduling system as usual. Our system uses proprietary linking technology to automatically select patients that need to be reminded, and transmit the information to our telecommunication center.

How many phone lines do I need to install?

None. All the calls are made from our call center.

How does this make my practice more efficient?

Reminding your patients of their upcoming appointments is one part of the efficiency equation. The other is communicating the call results to your office. We provide daily communication via fax or e-mail that allows your staff to optimize the schedule. Our comprehensive reminder not only tells you who is coming and who is not, but also the date and time of their appointment request, all with no human resource cost.

Do I need to create a special report each day for my calls?

Our system is seamless and fully automatic. After the initial fast and easy setup, you do nothing different from today's routine.

Is your system automatic?

The system seamlessly extracts appointment information, and transmits these calls for processing at the time you specify without changing your office routine.

How are calls transferred?

Calls are transferred via secure 128-bit encryption technology insuring that the PHI (Protected Health Information) is handled confidentially, and in accordance with HIPAA regulations. To transfer, you will need Internet access from a windows based computer that can access your scheduling software.

Do I need to purchase additional hardware or software?

To utilize the benefits of our appointment reminder system, you need only a personal computer (PC) with Internet access running on one of the following operating systems: 

• Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition
• Windows NT 4.0 with current updates
• Windows 2000
• Windows XP

Do I need an extra phone line?

No additional phone lines are necessary. All patient calls are handled at our telecommunication center.