The front office and back office refers to employee classifications in an office setting. Front office employees are customer-facing personnel who work with the public, while back office workers handle administrative tasks that rarely require customer interaction.
The terms “front office” and “back office” have particular relevance in the healthcare industry, as they refer to the employees in those positions and the tasks they perform. Health Information Management (HIM) platforms and other healthcare IT systems typically divide the patient care workflow between front office and back office functions.
What Are Front Office Roles in Healthcare?
In most medical practices, the front office staff includes employees who regularly interact with patients.
When patients enter a medical facility, they will be greeted at the reception desk by an employee who handles the front office tasks of scheduling and patient check-in. The same person may handle insurance verification and pre-authorization, or this may be processed by another front or back office employee dedicated to insurance claims. In either case, this critical front office role verifies that a patient is covered for the medical services they are about to receive.
Collecting co-pays and other upfront costs is another essential front office task in a medical organization. Balances due from previous visits may also be collected by front office staff when a patient is in the office, even though accounts receivable (AR) is typically a back office function.
Medical assistants, nurses, and physicians are also considered part of the front office since they primarily interact with patients.
What Are Back Office Roles in Healthcare?
In general, back office positions in healthcare handle administrative tasks. More specifically, much of their job revolves around insurance claims, payments, and other billing issues.
Back office medical billing specialists work with insurance claims and therefore need to be familiar with revenue cycle management practices. If a claim is denied, back office staff will resubmit a corrected claim.
Once all insurance claims have been settled and payments have been received from the insurance company, back office staff perform patient AR and collections functions. In cases where a patient owes more than expected, a collections specialist may arrange a payment plan.
How TempDev Can Help With Front Office/Back Office Roles
TempDev’s team of NextGen consultants, developers, and trainers can help you implement, switch, or even upgrade your current EHR system. From dashboards, templates, and reports to revenue cycle consulting, automation, and workflow redesign, TempDev offers the tools you need to make the most of your NextGen EHR system.
Our team is here to help you design, organize, and implement the whole system, with top tips and guidance based on industry best practices.
Contact us here or call us at 888.TEMP.DEV to get the help you need to integrate your healthcare systems with front office and back office roles.
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