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Every unanswered call at your practice is a patient who might seek care elsewhere. When your front desk staff is juggling ringing phones while checking in patients and handling paperwork, your practice is losing opportunities… and patients are losing confidence. A medical call center is the solution, but should you build one yourself or outsource?
In this article, we’ll break down the stats, the costs, and the benefits to help you decide if outsourcing call center services is right for your organization.
For most patients, a medical call center is their first interaction with your practice.
This initial contact sets the tone for their entire experience. When patients call with questions or concerns, or to schedule an appointment, they’re judging you. And they’ll have a lot to say about your practice’s competence, professionalism, and quality of care — all based on this one conversation.
Here’s why that matters: research by Accenture found 64% of patients would switch healthcare providers after just one bad customer service experience. Another study shows that patients who have a bad phone experience are 4x more likely to switch providers. And a third has 95% of consumers ranking customer service as one of the top factors in choosing a healthcare provider.
In other words, communication could be “make or break” for your clinic, which makes that first phone call incredibly important. Patients who encounter long hold times, indifferent reps, or disorganized scheduling systems will often perceive these problems as an indication of similar issues with your clinical care. Translation: If your call center is disappointing, you might not get the chance to make it up to them.
For these reasons and more, healthcare leaders are beginning to see healthcare call centers as strategic assets. Your call staff are brand ambassadors and gatekeepers, directing patients to the right resources… and reinforcing organizational values with every interaction.
The U.S. healthcare outsourcing market is projected to grow more than 20% by 2028 — but why?
For starters, many practices like yours have been forced to find alternative support systems because of widespread staffing shortages. Increasing complexity makes specialized partners more valuable. Digital transformation requires expertise that most providers don’t have internally, and rising patient expectations for responsive service put pressure to improve communication quickly.
These forces drive healthcare leaders to look outside for partnerships, and those who do find a wealth of benefits. Most healthcare call center solutions use advanced technology to improve performance. Voice analytics monitors quality and identifies training needs. Automated appointment reminders reduce no-shows, and virtual waiting rooms give patients their place in line without having to hold.
Outsourcing will also usually give you access to artificial intelligence and automation tools. (Research shows that implementing automation for just a third of calls can save thousands.) These technologies support the human touch, not replace it, so agents can focus on complex conversations while automating routine tasks.
But is a healthcare call center all it’s cracked up to be? Comparing outsourced and in-house performance shows that in-house centers often outperform on basic metrics:
Outsourced Call Center
Internal Call Center
However, these metrics only tell part of the story.
Healthcare call center services from specialized providers offer advantages that the numbers don’t show. Outsourced centers can handle volume fluctuations without hiring or reducing staff. They provide access to teams trained in healthcare communication, and give you enterprise-level technology without the capital investment. Outsourcing also eliminates recruitment, training, and supervision needs.
Financials drive the decision to outsource. For most providers, medical call center outsourcing becomes financially beneficial when call volume exceeds staff capacity. This advantage grows when peak call periods create staffing challenges. Organizations with high turnover rates among phone staff benefit the most, as do those with significant capital investment for technology upgrades.
The cost per customer service call across industries usually settles out at around $3 to $6. Outsourcing reduces these costs through economies of scale, especially for small to mid-sized practices.
However, while financials matter, patient experience may force your hand on outsourcing, as call center performance can directly impact how patients perceive your entire organization.
A good health care call center answers calls quickly, provides personalized service through patient record access, is available 24/7 for urgent needs, communicates in patients’ preferred languages, and routes calls correctly the first time.
Healthcare practices face a complex regulatory environment. Medical call center operations must navigate HIPAA privacy rules, secure handling of protected health information (PHI), telehealth regulations, and state-specific requirements for patient communication. Each of these areas carries significant risk—violations can result in big fines, reputational damage, and legal liability.
Outsourcing partners like Enshored have dedicated compliance teams that track changing regulations and implement appropriate safeguards. They invest in advanced security systems that many healthcare providers can’t afford on their own, including:
These specialized compliance capabilities far exceed what most providers can develop in-house. By offloading these responsibilities to a qualified partner, healthcare organizations reduce their risk exposure while maintaining high standards for patient data protection.
Healthcare call center services require a unique skill that’s not just technical proficiency: empathy. Patients call when they’re vulnerable, anxious, or even fearful. A rep who responds with genuine compassion creates a therapeutic alliance that goes beyond information exchange.
Further, research shows empathetic communication directly impacts clinical outcomes. Patients who perceive empathy during healthcare interactions have better adherence to treatment plans, higher satisfaction scores, and faster recovery times. For most practices, this means better patient retention and fewer complaints.
Training call center staff to communicate empathetically requires specific techniques. Reps must learn to identify emotional cues in the caller’s voice, acknowledge concerns explicitly, use supportive language, and offer reassurance without false promises.
These skills don’t develop naturally – they require deliberate practice, coaching, and regular reinforcement. Fortunately, outsourcing partners with healthcare expertise specifically train their teams in these empathetic communication techniques.
Their reps understand the emotional weight of healthcare interactions and respond accordingly to patients in pain, confusion, or anxiety about their health conditions.
And while this might not in itself be a reason to work with an outsourcing partner like Enshored, you can rest assured that if you do, we’ve got you covered on empathy.
Medical call center outsourcing requires planning and clear communication. The process can be intensive, but here is a simplified list of steps you can follow to get the most out of your investment and make sure the transition goes smoothly.
Define Your Service-Level Agreements
Set specific, measurable targets with your outsourcing partner. Good SLAs include:
Put these metrics in your contract and review them weekly during implementation, then monthly once your call center is live.
Create Call Scripts and a Knowledge Base
Develop resources for common patient scenarios your call center will handle. Include things like appointment scheduling protocols, insurance verification procedures with payer-specific requirements, FAQs with approved answers, and so on. Update these resources monthly as procedures change or as new services launch.
Train Your Internal Team
Prepare your clinical and administrative staff to work with your call center. Designate an internal liaison for call center communication, and train providers on how to handle call center escalations. Then establish protocols for schedule changes and provider availability, and create feedback mechanisms for staff to report issues or suggest improvements. Finally, schedule regular cross-team meetings to address any operational issues, prevent communication breakdowns, and keep your organization and call center aligned.
Let Patients Know
Don’t forget to prepare your patients for the change to minimize confusion.
Remember, healthcare call center services work best when they’re treated as an extension of your team, not a separate entity. Successful implementations will also require ongoing communication between you and your call center management, so plan to stay in close contact as your team learns the ropes.
If you’re considering making the move to medical call center services outsourcing, ask yourself these questions:
Your answers will reveal whether outsourcing is an opportunity to improve financial performance and patient satisfaction.
The good news is that companies that outsource see abandoned call rates drop, since patients get connected to reps faster.
First-call resolution rates increase when specialized agents handle questions. Appointment scheduling becomes more efficient, filling physicians’ calendars and reducing gaps, and no-shows decline through systematic confirmation processes.
Finally, staff satisfaction increases as the administrative burden shifts away from clinical team members.
These improvements translate to better patient care, more revenue and more efficient operations – benefits that go beyond the phone system itself. With the right medical call center services you can turn patient communication into a competitive edge, not a daily grind.
The data speaks clearly: healthcare organizations that outsource their medical call center operations see real gains in patient satisfaction, operational efficiency, and financial performance. These advantages can create a competitive differentiation in an increasingly consumer-driven healthcare environment.
After all, patient expectations continue to rise. They want immediate access, personalized interactions, and a seamless experience, no matter how they contact your organization. Meeting these expectations on your own means a substantial investment in technology, training, and staffing — resources that most healthcare organizations can’t spare.
Fortunately, outsourcing partners like Enshored specialize in creating exceptional communication experiences. Our healthcare-focused teams combine clinical knowledge with communication expertise, helping build patient trust and loyalty. Contact us today to explore whether outsourcing your call center operations is right for you.
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