italk’s mission:
Our clinic aspires to provide the best quality of care to our diverse population.
Here, you can help make a difference - a permanent, positive change to someone’s quality of life by starting the relationship.
New Client Protocol:
Timeline/Script:
Client/Caregiver initiates by calling or emailing regarding interest in evaluation or sessions
Reception answers
“Hello, thank you for calling italk Speech & Language Center, this is ____ speaking, how can I help you?”Caller expresses interest in services - Reception follows up with questions about concerns:
”Can you please let me know what specific concerns you are looking for our speech therapists to evaluate, and in what preferred language?”Reception outlines the timeline for them:
”Thank you for reaching out. We would love to help you receive services for your concerns. First, we need a referral, such as a prescription from you/your child’s primary physician for speech therapy services. We can then proceed to schedule and administer the evaluation, which would approximately be an hour long, to provide speech therapy services. To better help you, can I get some more information? If you are planning to go through with insurance, we would need to first receive the front and back of your insurance card so that we can call the insurance to check for eligibility and benefits. You can send all information to this phone number, 201-419-6114 or email to reception@italkspeech.com.”Ask the following questions to put into the italk Waitlist Sheet:
”What is the name and date of birth of the person hoping to receive services? And the insurance? Can I also have the best phone number and email to reach? And what is your availability for the evaluations?”Reception highlights:
”Please understand that there is a longer waitlist for the afternoon times. We’ll try our best with the clinicians to schedule you in as soon as possible, but we are not able to clearly predict when that can be. If you can provide a morning time, our clinicians would be more open for scheduling."Caller understands and either provides more availabilities or agrees to wait.
Reception asks for any other questions and follows up to conclude:
”Again, thank you for calling, and we will reach out as soon as our clinicians can. Have a great rest of your day.”
New Client Checklist:
The New Client Checklist is created and shared with the clinician who will be doing the eval through the appropriate Google Chat space.
If the new client is being sent to the student clinician, the checklist is sent to the iTalk Student chat to be shared with both the student and the supervisor.
SimplePractice:
When scheduling is confirmed, the client’s profile is created with the following uploaded/set up and shared with the appropriate clinician(s):
Name, birthdate, address
Phone, email
Insurance card front/back
Prescription
Client Portal set up
The following is sent to the caregiver:
Intake form (pediatric or adult)
Demographics form
Notice of Privacy Practices
Release of Information Consent
Patient Responsibility - Insurance Disclaimer
italk Photo/Video Consent
Credit Card information
Attendance and Cancellation Policy
If the head clinician is expected to be the student clinician, the profile must be shared with the supervisors, KyungHae and Eunice.
Prior to the evaluation, the client must have the following completed, otherwise needs to be completed in the waitingroom area prior to coming in:
Intake form (pediatric or adult)
Demographics form
Notice of Privacy Practices
Patient Responsibility - Insurance Disclaimer
Credit Card information
Attendance and Cancellation Policy
The SLPs will note if the intake form has not been filled out at most a day prior to the evaluation, and will request the Reception Team to reach out.
Debrief:
Reception Team will schedule the debrief to be within a week from the evaluation date after speaking with the client.
The SLP will send a Zoom link email of the Debrief Meeting and will request through Google Chat for Reception Team to join if speech therapy sessions are warranted, after introducing the receptionist and their purpose for joining the call. Once in the meeting go over:
Insurance information: copay, deductible, what that means going forward
Answer any questions about insurance
Talk about Clinic policies regarding Clinician absence
Talk about Clinic policies regarding Client absence or no show, and how a first warning will be given because we understand things happen, but afterwards will be a charge of $50
Answer any questions about clinic policies
If a pre-auth is required, the SLP will explain that the report is being submitted and that once it is approved, the Reception Team will reach out to schedule sessions based on the clinician’s availabilities. The SLP will send the Initial Pre-Authorization report within two weeks of the evaluation date.
If a pre-auth is not required, the SLP will schedule the sessions with Reception Team - if the session schedule does not align, then the Reception Team will let the parents know that they will reach out once another clinician can confirm availability for the times requested.