Challenge: Registration errors led to avoidable downstream work
Layoffs and increasing patient volume are putting pressure on Memorial Health’s outpatient access team. Like many health systems, the organization had to ask smaller teams to do more with less. In the rush to keep up, more records entered the system with gaps and inaccuracies that then led to billing delays, eligibility denials, and calls from frustrated patients. Finally, the registration accuracy rate dropped to 60%. Staff morale suffered as overstretched teams spent more time fixing avoidable errors rather than moving work forward.
Alayna Tuetken, director of Patient Access Services at Memorial Health, says, “Everyone thought someone would clean it up later. But that someone no longer existed.”
The financial impacts were hard to ignore. “Reworking a single claim can cost up to $400,” Tuetken says. “That’s money we can’t afford to waste.”
Marcena Urish, director of Patient Financial Services, says the problem didn’t just affect the balance sheet. Errors and delays reached patients in the form of confusing and incorrect invoices, causing an increase in calls.
“When a patient receives a bill for $2,000 instead of $200 because of a registration error, they call, get upset, and start to lose trust. Fixing that from the beginning protects both the patient and the organization.”
– Marcena Urish, director of patient financial services, Memorial Health
Solution: Make accuracy everyone’s responsibility
Memorial Health already had Experian Health Registry Quality Assurance was in place, but teams were not fully utilizing its capabilities. QA Registration Automatically flags issues in log data before and at the point of service, generating personalized alerts in real time so staff can intervene and take corrective action. This means registration issues can be identified and resolved within hours of a patient’s registration, not days or weeks later during billing.
At Memorial Health, these alerts were being ignored. Customer service teams were not fully aware of the disruption that occurred when errors trickled into billing and claims.
“Our colleagues care deeply about patients, but they didn’t always realize how much their previous work affects the patient experience. Once they understood that connection, everything changed.”
– Alayna Tuetken, director of patient access services at Memorial Health
To fix the problem, and after realizing that QA Registration Its full potential was not being realized, management focused on building ownership from the start, rather than relying on downstream revenue cycle teams to fix mistakes after they happened. The first step was to train more than 300 staff members on how to use QA Registration. They also received training on how the quality of the initial data affects the rest of the revenue cycle and what that means for the patient experience.
The second step was to address the known causes of avoidable errors. Memorial Health implemented the Incorrect Plan Code to prevent denials resulting from incorrect insurance plan selection. They also used Power Reporting to gain additional at-a-glance information about data trends and performance issues. Managers could review activity at the user, department, and facility level, helping them adjust workflows and assign staff more effectively as patient volumes changed.
Finally, leadership reinforced the sense of shared responsibility by making team performance measurable and visible. They used monthly dashboards and individual scorecards to introduce friendly competition and recognize the best.
Result: Cleaner data in a few months
Six months after reinforcing the use of QA RegistrationMemorial Health experienced measurable improvements:
| Registry quality control results |
| – Final pass accuracy increased from 60% to 97% |
| – Eligibility denials fell below 1% |
| – Calls related to insurance plans increased by 23.9%. |
For the patients, things worked better. Fewer recording errors meant fewer billing inaccuracies to query and resolve. Billing became more predictable, with fewer surprises after the visit.
Staff morale also increased as requests stopped picking up. Registration was no longer “just an admission,” but an opportunity to properly schedule the patient’s visit from the beginning.
What’s next?
Memorial Health plans to build on this progress by continuing to invest in staff training to strengthen the link between accurate record-keeping and the patient experience. The organization will launch the QA Registration program to two additional critical access hospitals, expanding its reach in the region.
Learn more about how QA Registration improves claims performance, increases staff confidence and increases patient confidence.