Intake Specialist

What are they intaking? At the hospital I mean.

They're taking in patients and someone has to be familiar enough with the systems to know how to get people in the system the right way so they can get the right treatment AND get billed correctly. Billing is such an important step in the medical industry that a lot of attention is given to Medical Transcriptionists and Medical Coders. They make sure all the records are correct and all the codes for billing are in the right place, but a lot of that starts with an intake specialist. Sometimes codes and other billing matters can be messed up from the beginning if the patient is not handled correctly right off the bat. What else does this entail?

The intake specialist in a hospital is charged with getting everything right from the start. It's not enough to just have someone fill out some forms--because the info on those forms is entered into a computer system. This is where the intake specialist who knows what they're doing comes in handy.

All of that info is processed into the computer and there is no way in the world that a Doctor or Nurse will know what is going on if the info from the forms is entered incorrectly. Proper data entry saves the staff time and keep people from waiting a long time to see someone.

Also, with the proper info entered the first time it is much easier for Doctors and Nurses to get the codes right on the charts themselves.

So, what does this job require? Well, you've got to be smart and detail-oriented. If you like typing or you're an especially fast typer then this is right up your alley. If you like organizing things or you fancy yourself a control freak or neat freak then you'll be great in this kind of job.

The best part is that it's easy to move up the ladder. First you work as an intake specialist and you work the cubicle for a little while. After that you move into a supervisory position over the other intake specialists you work with. This will take you right up the corporate ladder of the hospital or clinic you work in. You might be able to move into management of a larger department or even of health care staff. After that you might be able to get into an executive position at the hospital and you'll know all the inner workings of the place because you worked from the ground up.

After a little consideration it's easy to see that the intake specialist is the kind of person who doesn't have to stay in the cubicle forever. It's actually a great way to start climbing the corporate ladder. Now, if you need some part-time hours this is a good place to look too. Maybe you work part-time on security and part-time on intake. It's a great place top stay connected with medicine no matter what the work is.

Enjoy the intake. You're the first line of customer service for patients and this job takes just as much caring as any other medical job.