“We need to improve patient service levels, but have neither the staffing levels nor budgets to do so.” For the last several years the above statement has summarised almost every conversation I’ve had with members of the healthcare professions who are working in the NHS.
If the organisation has installed the system to save money or improve efficiency then it can go badly wrong. If the system has been implemented to help the caller in the light of resource problems, for example, then the result will be better. The key is always to work from the point of view of the caller
There is no shortage of the will and intention to solve the problems. The time and effort such individuals and groups spend working with telecom companies to define, plan, agree and implement solutions bears ample witness to that.
So what does the telecom industry have to offer? It can offer reliable digital call processing systems, which improve the telephone caller’s experience and expedite the successful throughput of telephone calls into any department or any individual in any organisation.
Intelligent use of digital announcement systems, which can queue and steer calls as well as deliver the announcements to callers, can make all the difference in the world
It must also be admitted that many thousands of these systems in organisations today are poorly implemented. We have all had the experience of trying to speak to a real person and somehow never getting the opportunity to do so before we hang up in frustration. But we’ve also all had the experience of being given clear friendly directions to get to the person we need by just one or two key depressions from short well-scripted menus. The difference is simple. If the organisation has installed the system to save money or improve efficiency then it can go badly wrong. If the system has been implemented to help the caller in the light of resource problems, for example, then the result will be better. The key is always to work from the point of view of the caller.
Now let’s be honest. No one has control over the number of people who try to reach a particular telephone number at any one point in time. No NHS community has the resource to provide ‘one caller, one agent’ staffing levels when peak hour traffic is reached. And I’m not just talking about patients calling in. How many times have you tried, and failed, to get through to your own IT helpdesk first thing on a Monday morning when, after a weekend break, your PC plays up? Call the helpdesk on Tuesday afternoon and you’re straight through to someone who can help you.
In some parts of the country that IT helpdesk will be a facility provided by the local authority and it’s available not only to NHS locations, but also to all the local government offices and agencies, such as leisure services or trading standards. So, when you try to make your call, it is even more difficult to reach the person who can provide you with the information you require.
There is little doubt that despite massive investment in the NHS, funding will always be a major problem and staffing telephone lines will always be a casualty
Intelligent use of digital announcement systems, which can queue and steer calls as well as deliver the announcements to callers, can make all the difference in the world. There is a range of digital call processing and announcement products on the market suitable for organisations of any size and providing solutions from entry-level systems to bespoke applications. Such products can be used alongside, or integrated with, Automatic call distribution (ACD) systems or existing call processing applications using Dual Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF). They can integrate with a telephone switch or with a FeaturNet/Centrex service. Such systems can prove to be extremely cost-effective solutions for voice messaging and call processing when compared over time with traditional IVR type solutions.
At the top of the range there are systems that have the capacity to run sophisticated call management processes, empowering many thousands of callers every hour of the day and night with the ability to access the services or information they require
Digital announcement and call processing systems are not bums on seats to answer calls, but they are less costly and when thoughtfully implemented will empower patients and healthcare professionals to access the people and information they need
If fully-functional call processing is not required then there are digital voice announcers designed to give organisations a simple and effective way of providing selective pre-recorded information to callers, thereby freeing valuable personnel for other tasks. These can range from 1-4 Line Announcers which play up to 10 stored messages, to fully-configurable 64 port units that can time and date stamp thousands of messages so that the unit will automatically play different messages according to the time of the call. This type of product would usually be LAN or TCP/IP connected to allow remote or multi-site system management via graphical user interfaces.
By harnessing today’s telecommunication’s technology, the NHS can create sophisticated response systems that manage large volumes of enquiries and help deal with each individual caller in the most effective and appropriate manner
There is little doubt that despite massive investment in the NHS, funding will always be a major problem and staffing telephone lines will always be a casualty. However, by harnessing today’s telecommunication’s technology, the NHS can create sophisticated response systems that manage large volumes of enquiries and help deal with each individual caller in the most effective and appropriate manner.
Digital announcement and call processing systems are not bums on seats to answer calls, but they are less costly and when thoughtfully implemented will empower patients and healthcare professionals to access the people and information they need.
