As CEO of American Health Connection, I’ve seen how contact center leaders face pressure to deliver exceptional patient experiences while managing operational costs and staffing challenges.

My company has specialized in outsourced healthcare contact center services since 2009. We’ve been at the forefront of changing how healthcare facilities approach patient scheduling and communication. Our company’s mission centers on two objectives: giving patients better access to care while reducing costs for healthcare facilities. 

American Health Connection has developed its AI technology in-house for decades. We are in a unique position where we develop technology and operate the call center. Most companies have one or the other. This approach allows our team to create practical AI tools that improve our efficiency, meet or exceed our clients’ operational needs and deliver cost savings for them.

Why Industry Leaders Should Explore AI Tools

Staffing shortages, high turnover rates, absenteeism and unpredictable call volumes driven by weather events, public health emergencies and seasonal trends create operational complexity. These challenges impact key performance indicators (KPIs) such as abandonment rates, service level agreements (SLA) and agent utilization.

If you look at Google reviews from many healthcare facilities, you’ll see that doctors get excellent reviews, but patient access centers might only get one or two stars. That skews the overall scoring for the facility below what it should be. Even though patients receive excellent care, they’re unhappy with the scheduling experience, which leaves a poor first impression.  

Whether it’s on the patient-facing side (chat bots, voice bots, reminders and call routing) or backend (process optimization, workforce management, quality control and agent assistance), AI can improve the overall patient experience. 

Three examples of AI-Driven Workforce Management

1. AI-based Cloud Solutions Increase First Call Resolution by 43%

Cleveland Clinic significantly upgraded its patient and employee service desk by deploying an AI- and cloud-based contact center solution. This enabled intelligent voice workflows and streamlined interactions. Employee and patient calls now pass through an Interactive Voice Response (IVR)  that integrates with its existing platform. This improved intelligent voice workflows and streamlined interactions. For example:

• Employee and patient calls now pass through Interactive Voice Response (IVR) that leverages AI-powered analytics and integrated reporting — allowing seamless routing, real-time insights and more.
• First Call Resolution went from less than 60% to over 86%.
• Reporting efficiency substantially increased: what previously took a full week to compile now takes just 45 minutes, thanks to AI-enhanced analytics being fed directly into their dashboard.

2. AI Helps Offset Scheduling Challenges During Adverse Weather Events

Weather-related disruptions present significant challenges for healthcare contact centers.

American Health Connection has implemented a distinct AI-based workforce management approach to handling workforce allocation during adverse weather conditions by monitoring for impending weather events. For example, when our clients in the Northeast get snowed in, we have remote agents allocated for those peak times because we know there will be a lot of cancellations.  

This proactive approach has enabled our clients to maintain adequate staffing for both incoming and outgoing calls, keep KPIs within 10% of normal levels during disruptions, and eliminate overtime costs.

3. AI-driven Quality Assurance  Solutions Improve Service Levels by 27%

American Health Connection also developed a comprehensive Quality Assurance (QA) solution. Our QA tool scrubs all the calls. For example, sentiment analysis is one thing, but then, it detects  noise, foreign sounds, silence, and ensures agents follow all provider protocols, and collect the required information to complete the pre-registration process, including insurance verification.

This approach has delivered a 27% increase in the identification of actionable issues compared to traditional random sampling methods. We increased our rate of identification of these calls by 27%, which helps our agents score 98% on audits.

The Future of AI in Healthcare

As AI adoption in healthcare rapidly grows, it’s crucial to avoid getting swept away by the enthusiasm. According to the Gartner Hype Cycle, new technologies often generate high expectations, with people believing they can achieve extraordinary results. Over time, however, these technologies stabilize and evolve into practical, mainstream solutions.

Different segments of AI technology in healthcare occupy varying stages of the Gartner Hype Cycle, with Clinical Healthcare Intelligence reaching the Plateau of Productivity. When integrating AI into your contact center, stay practical and discerning. Look at it through a critical lens. Don’t assume a product delivers just because it’s widely discussed. Break your process into small, manageable steps and evaluate whether the AI solution aligns with your specific goals.

As American Health Connection continues to invest in training, innovation and patient-first strategies, our approach remains grounded in practical application. We develop our systems for ourselves. We’re the users, so we understand what we need to achieve our goals.

If you’d like to learn more about how AI-powered workforce management can transform your healthcare contact center, visit www.americanhealthconnection.com email sales@americanhealthconnetion.com or call (800) 307-7131.