Receptionist Handout
In the morning: When you come in the first thing you should do is unlock the front
door. Next, turn off the outside light, sign light and turn on the waiting room lights. Make
sure chairs are down and rug is clean.
1) Turn on the computer and monitor. Double click on the Avimark icon.
2) Hit the play button on answering machine. Write down the names, telephone
numbers and messages and put with appropriate files. Call back clients who need to
make appointments. Turn off answering machine.
3) Find file numbers for all A.M. appointments and pull all files. File #’s are found
through clients last name and/or pets name. Click on small picture of file cabinet on
upper left corner to pull up appropriate screen. If file can’t be found in computer
and they say they’ve been here before, try the file cabinets, if still no file; ask if
different last name, if still no file have client fill out a new form even if they have
been here before. We only keep files up here for 4 years.
4) Also pull all surgery files needed for the day. (From surgery book)
5) Check fax machine for blood results and put in correct files and send to the back so
doctors can call the owners with results. NEVER give any blood results to owners
unless asked to do so by a doctor.
Admitting surgeries:
1) Ask the pets first and last name to get correct file ready.
2) Ask what pet is in for. (Ex. Dentistry, spay, neuter, tumor removal, ect.)
3) Write down date and what pet is being admitted for. Get a phone # where they can
be reached in case we need to get in touch with them while pet is under anesthesia,
and write that down also.
4) Have client read and sign pre-op blood form.
5) Tell client to call after 12 noon to check on animal. If a dental, cat neuter, wart or
small tumor removal tell owner to pick up pet between 5 & 7 tonight. Otherwise
tell owner to pick up pet anytime after 9:30 am the next day. Cat front declaws stay
in hospital for 2 nights. No exceptions. Declaws only done on Mon, Tues and
Thurs. No Fridays.
Answering the phone:
1) Try to answer within 3 rings.
2) “Good morning, Hawthorne Animal Hospital,(your name) speaking.”
3) If other line rings, ask client with whom you’re speaking “can you hold please?”
Wait for owner to say yes,“Thank You”. And then answer other line.
4) Never leave anyone on hold for a long period of time or put them on hold multiple
times. Someone in the back will eventually answer the other line if they hear it ring
more than three times.
Making appointments:
1) Ask what the pet is coming in for. If surgery get out sx book.
2) If making a sx appt. “drop off pet between 8&9 am, no food or water after
midnight the night before.
2) If making a regular appointment , ask what day they want to come in. Morning,
afternoon or evening?
3) If they request a specific Dr. write doctors initial next to appointment and make
sure that doctor is in then.
4) If they are coming in for a recheck, ask which Dr. they saw and try to make appt
for them.
5) If pet is having diarrhea have owner bring a stool sample. If increased drinking or
urination or urine accidents in house have owner bring in a urine sample.
6) If appt is for a new pet or yearly vaccine, have owner bring in a stool sample.\
7) If a new client write down phone # next to appt.
Messages:
1) Whenever someone calls to speak to a doctor you must take a message. Tell client
that the Dr. is in an appt or not in if they are not in. You must take down the owners
name, pets name, telephone # to be called back at and a brief discription of
what they need to be called back about.
2) If the doctor they wish to speak to is not in or will not be in until a later time please
let client know and if they do not want to wait, offer them the option of another
doctor calling them back.
3) If pet is very sick, offer client an appt to see the doctor without having to take a
message.
4) Never answer any medical questions on your own.
5) Send message to the back with appropriate file soon.
Medicine and food pickup:
1) When a person calls or stops in to pick up medicine or food you must get their file
out and make sure that we have seen them within the past 6 months, it’s the law
(there are some exceptions). Make sure they have had the medication before. Never
dispense any med on your own. If you are unsure please ask a doctor.
2) Anything purchased ( med, food, shampoo, ect.) must be written in file with date
and what was dispensed.
3) Never dispense heartworm med if dog has not been heartworm tested in the
previous spring.
4) You can give flea meds, shampoos and vitamins on your own.
Intercom:
1) If you need to speak with or get something (med, food ect.) from the back, use the
intercom. Press down the location button and #1. Downstairs office is #4. Upstairs
office is # 3. The goal is to not keep walking through appts in exam 1 and to not leave
the office vacant.
2) If you see the phone line is busy in the back, do not buzz. They can’t answer you. If
you can’t wait for them to hang up, very quietly go through room 1.
Euthanasia and cremation:
1) Find out why the pet is being put to sleep. *If the pet has bit someone within 10
days, we can not do the euth. Have them speak with a doctor.* If you have any
problems or questions with their reason, consult a doctor. Remember to be
compassionate : it is very distressing and difficult for the owners. Do not try to talk
them out of it.
2) Try to get them to pay before the euth is performed. The prices are on the price list. If
they take the body home it’s 50% less. If pet comes in deceased and just needs to be
simply cremated is also 50% less. For an individual creamtion you need to add 50%.
3) The owner will decide if they want to stay with the pet for the injection or not. Ask
them before hand.
4) If they ask what’s involved with euth, inform them that it is an intravenous injection
of an overdose of anesthetic. It is painless and quick.
5) When the pet comes in for the euth a form needs to be filled out and signed. The
proper form of disposal must be checked off by the owner.
6) After the animal is put to sleep, a sympathy letter needs to be typed up. These are
found in Microsoft Word. The patient then needs to be deleted from the computer. If
the client only had that one patient, then the client also needs to be deleted. Cross out
the pets name on the white sheet, write deceased next to it. If it was the only pet take
the entire file out of the folder, staple it together and put it on the fridge in treatment.
Put the empty folder with the rest so it can be reused.
Emergency calls:
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3)
4)
5)
Stay calm.
Find out exact problem.
Get pets and clients last name. Get telephone number.
Find out how long it will take them to get here.
Tell the doctor that there’s an emergency coming down. If there are no doctors in,
you will need to call one of the associate doctors in. Home and pager #’s can be found
on the phone call list.
Reminder cards & phone calls:
1) At the end of every month reminder postcards are printed and mailed to all the clients
who have pets due for vaccines.
2) Some postcards are returned because the clients have moved. You need to pull the file
and try calling them to get new address. If the number is wrong you need to write on
the front sheet that we need to get new number and address the next time they come
in.
3) Also at the end of every month a reminder list is printed with the names of owners
and their pets who are 1 month overdue for vaccines. They are called and notified
their pet is overdue and asked if they would like to make an appointment. Their
response is written on the list.
Payment:
1) We accept visa/mastercard and Amex,( no Discover) check and cash.
2) Payment is to be made when services are rendered. We do not bill.
3) If client has an emergency we need to see the pet whether or not they have money.
We must treat the pet.
4) If client can not afford the entire balance of the bill and they can’t put it on a credit
card, ask if they can leave a hold check for the balance. This should be OK’d by the
doctor first.
5) If a client is finished in exam room and then tells you they forget their checkbook and
have no credit cards on them, tell the client that you’ll be right back and take the bill
into the back and tell the doctor. We will probably have them stop back with a check
or credit card later that day. If they have medications we may want to hold on to them
until they come back, but check with the doctor on that.
Credit card machine:
1)
2)
3)
4)
The screen should read the day and date, if not press clear.
You must run card through with magnetic strip facing down and to the right.
It should read please verify. Type in the last 4 numbers on the card and press enter.
Then enter the amount. Note…there are decimals on the screen to be considered.
Then press enter.
5) Tear off and have client sign. We get white copy, client gets the yellow.
6) If card is unable to be read by the machine, make an imprint with the old fashioned
machine, located in the back of the room under the files. Press sale button on machine
and follow directions. Have clients sign both slips.
7) If card is declined, be discrete when you tell the owner. Ask them for another card or
if they would rather pay with cash or check.
At the end of the evening:
1) Add up the cash row on the daysheet, then the check row, then the credit card row.
Make sure the numbers of checks, cc’s and cash all add up correctly. Then add them
all together.
2) Clear out credit card machine. Press blue, one then blue. Wait until finished. Then
press the # 9 button. Wait, then press enter. When finished printing, tear off and put in
with daysheet.
3) Do the disks.
4) The front office should be swept every night and the garbage emptied.
5) The waiting room lights should be turned off, the outside lights should be on. Turn
the computer off. Turn answering machine on.
6) Make sure blood is out in box.
7) Make sure front door is locked.
8) On Wednesdays and Saturdays the office gets completely dusted.
When dealing with clients you should always be calm and polite. If they have a
problem you can not help them with, ask a doctor for assistance. If for some reason
anyone is impolite or disorderly, they should be referred to a doctor. Never loose your
cool.
Remember, you are the first person a client sees or talks to. You should always project a
professional and congenial impression by your actions and appearance.