How to Choose the Right Phone System for Clinics with Hybrid Work Setups

Businesses have been forced to adapt to a hybrid working model due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The trend has also spread to healthcare organizations. As many anticipated, this entailed additional challenges, such as the need for a stable communication infrastructure. For this reason, it’s increasingly important to have a reliable phone system.

Choosing the right phone system for medical clinics with hybrid work setups can be a challenging task. The right phone system can make all the difference in your practice, and it should be secure enough to keep your patients’ information safe.

In some cases, buying a phone system can be a very confusing process. You have many options on the market today. Since these systems aren't created equal, it is critical that when you are looking for a new phone system, you should consider one that’s built for your hybrid work environment.

What Is a Hybrid Work Setup?

A hybrid environment is one that combines in-person and virtual office staff. This means that the clinic has an on-site team of physicians and clinicians as well as a remote staff who work from home or at any other site away from your physical office.

In this type of environment, you need a communication solution that can support multiple employees who are working from multiple locations. It should also be able to scale as your practice grows and changes over time.

The hybrid model of work has allowed workers to be more flexible in how they manage their time and workloads as well as how they handle communication with clients and colleagues.

Consequently, medical offices need to be equipped with a phone system that will help them provide better service to their patients regardless of their location. A phone system for healthcare clinics should have features that allow medical professionals to focus on patient care rather than tedious administrative tasks.

How to Choose the Right Phone System for Clinics With Hybrid Work Setups

A phone system is an essential business tool for any medical practice. It allows staff members to communicate with one another, with patients, and with other medical practices. Therefore, it's important to choose a system that meets the needs of your business.

Choosing the right phone system can be a difficult task, especially if you're new to this type of technology. Here are some tips to help you find the right phone system:

Make Sure It’s Secure Enough for a Healthcare Setting

A good way to do this is by looking at whether HIPAA compliance is included in the package, or if it costs extra. This means it meets the guidelines set by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996, which protects patients' rights to privacy and confidentiality when they're receiving medical care.

Before deciding on a cloud-based phone provider, ask if the company offers a business associate agreement (BAA). The BAA outlines the rights and obligations of each entity regarding privacy, security, and breach notification under HIPAA. Your practice risks not complying with HIPAA guidelines if your VoIP provider won't sign a BAA.

It’s also important to consider partnering with a provider with HITRUST CSF certification, the most widely recognized security standard in the healthcare industry. This means the company has dedicated servers with disk encryption and safety measures to protect the system from threats.

The right phone system for a hybrid setup can help you strike a balance between mobility and security. It should allow you to seamlessly connect users in multiple locations, including wireless hotspots, while still providing the control you need to manage your business from a central location. 

All of these security attributes can be achieved by having cloud-based phone telephony that is managed by healthcare IT experts.

Compare Features

Compare the features of different systems and make sure they meet your specific needs. Ask yourself what type of calls you want to handle and how many employees you need to support. You also need to think about how your office is set up and whether you have multiple locations.

If a doctor or nurse needs to access patient information from home on their smartphone or tablet, then the system needs to be compatible with those devices as well as with desktop computers.

Both patients and staff members should be able to easily use your phone system through intuitive features like caller ID, voicemail messages, and call forwarding in addition to more advanced features like automatic call recording and remote access capabilities.

You also want a phone system that allows you to:

• Make or receive calls from your deskphone, computer, and mobile phone
• Deliver voicemails to your email
• Convert voicemails to text
• Create HIPAA-compliant virtual meetings
• Integrate with your existing tools

Customer Support Should Be Able to Handle Hybrid Setups

Customer support is important for any business, but it's especially crucial for healthcare practices. A medical clinic can't afford to have its phones down or have patients unable to make appointments or reschedule if they don’t make it. 

Many phone system providers don’t offer technical support for their users. Some of them do, but can only provide it during business hours. Moreover, due to limited staff, your request won't be handled immediately. This can cause delays in getting help when you need it most, which could cause more problems than just your phone system being down!

Running a hybrid clinic is a challenge and some issues are expected to arise. A good phone system will provide 24/7 customer support so that when problems arise, they can be resolved quickly and efficiently.

Consider the Cost

If you’re a small medical practice, you want to spend as little money as possible without sacrificing efficiency and dependability. While the upfront cost is important, you also need to consider how much it will cost to maintain and support your system over time.

A cloud-based phone system is a good cost-effective option because it can provide you with a lower upfront cost and monthly payments.

Cloud phone systems are also easy to maintain and upgrade. You can customize them according to your business needs and preferences. This way, you'll be able to save more money in the long run.

You also don't need to worry about paying for installation or maintenance fees. Instead, you pay a monthly fee based on the number of extensions you need and how many people will be using the system. In addition, you won't need to purchase expensive hardware or software since it's all included in your monthly subscription fee.

Some cloud phone systems even offer an unlimited call plan that allows users to make unlimited calls within the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico at no additional cost — making this an affordable option for busy doctors' offices that have multiple telephones spread across several locations.

Get a Cloud Phone System Tailored for Your Hybrid Environment

Hybrid work environments are not new. COVID-19, however, has accelerated this trend to become the norm. This is causing many medical practices to adopt and many are struggling to keep up.

Your clinic may not have the resources to handle the demands. If you want to be able to compete with peers and deliver great patient care, you need to switch to a cloud-based phone system–not just any cloud phone system, but one that’s tailored for clinics like yours. 

Contact one of our cloud experts, and you will receive a free assessment. We use this assessment to determine how to create a solution tailored to meet your unique practice requirements.