Oncology Patient Coordinator (44458)

ONCOLOGY PATIENT COORDINATOR

Medical Oncology & Radiation Oncology Divisions

Department: Medical Oncology / Radiation Oncology

Reports To: Practice Administrator/Manager

FLSA Status: Non-Exempt

JOB SUMMARY

The Oncology Patient Coordinator serves as a key point of contact for patients and supports the efficient day-to-day operation of the Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology clinics. This position is responsible for patient registration and check-in, appointment scheduling, referral coordination, insurance verification, payment collection, telephone communication, and maintaining accurate patient information within the electronic health record and related systems, across both divisions.

The Patient Coordinator works closely with physicians, advanced practice providers, clinical staff, Billing, Authorization, and management in both the Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology divisions to ensure patients receive timely, professional, and compassionate service throughout their care experience. Because this position supports oncology patients — who may be receiving concurrent or sequential treatment across both divisions — the Patient Coordinator must demonstrate empathy, attention to detail, urgency, professionalism, and sensitivity when interacting with patients and their families.

MAJOR JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

PATIENT REGISTRATION & CHECK-IN

- Greet patients and provide courteous, professional, and compassionate front-office support.

- Confirm the patient's full name and date of birth and verify current demographic information.

- Verify current insurance coverage and ensure insurance information is attached to the appropriate appointment.

- Complete the appropriate Phreesia workflow based on the patient's appointment type.

- Ensure patient information is accurately reflected between Phreesia and NextGen.

- Review patient payment status and collect required payments and outstanding balances in accordance with established procedures.

- Coordinate payment arrangements or contact Billing when additional assistance is required.

- Notify the appropriate clinical staff when the patient has completed the check-in process and is ready to be seen.

APPOINTMENT SCHEDULING & SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT

- Review the daily clinic schedule and work upcoming schedules at least one business day in advance.

- Identify missing insurance information, payment issues, open schedule gaps, new-patient scheduling needs, and other items requiring follow-up.

- Schedule new and established patients according to provider and departmental scheduling guidelines, including coordination between Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology appointments when a patient is receiving care from both divisions.

- Add insurance information to each appointment and include the appropriate diagnosis and follow-up reason when required.

- Proactively work available schedule gaps and fill openings when possible.

- Document the reason for appointment changes and the patient's scheduling preferences.

- When rescheduling a patient, cancel the original appointment and create a new appointment in accordance with established scheduling procedures.

- Manage no-shows and same-day cancellations according to departmental procedures, including required alerts, documentation, and applicable fees.

- Document situations in which a patient checks in but is not seen so that Billing is aware the visit did not occur.

- Review the following day's schedule before leaving and resolve or communicate outstanding scheduling issues.

REFERRAL COORDINATION

- Review new patient referrals as they are received, including referrals between the Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology divisions.

- Contact newly referred patients by the next business day and no later than 24 hours after receipt of the referral.

- Work to schedule new referrals promptly and within established departmental scheduling expectations.

- Coordinate with the Authorization team to verify patient insurance and authorization requirements.

- Maintain and update the referral tracker accurately and timely.

- Document all referral-related patient communication and follow-up activity.

- When a referred patient does not schedule, document the specific reason rather than using general descriptions such as “declined” or “did not schedule.”

- Clearly document any outstanding follow-up required for referrals that have not been scheduled.

PATIENT PHONE CALLS & MESSAGES

- Answer incoming patient calls and respond to messages in a timely and professional manner.

- Open the patient's chart and verify the patient's full name and date of birth before discussing or documenting patient-specific information.

- Document all patient calls and messages in the electronic health record.

- Obtain complete information regarding the reason for the patient's call or request.

- Use appropriate questioning to ensure messages contain the necessary who, what, when, where, why, and how information.

- Review voicemail messages carefully and contact the patient for clarification when information is incomplete or unclear.

- Route patient calls and messages to the appropriate clinical or administrative team member, including the correct division (Medical Oncology or Radiation Oncology) when applicable.

- Avoid blind transfers by communicating the caller's identity and reason for the call to the receiving staff member.

- Recognize urgent provider or patient communications and promptly escalate them to the appropriate provider, clinical staff member, or management.

SFAX & DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

- Monitor and clear assigned Sfax items throughout the workday.

- Review incoming documents and ensure they are appropriately handled, documented, and routed to the appropriate staff member and division.

- Ensure patient-care documents are addressed promptly and are not left unattended in the Sfax queue.

- Escalate urgent, incomplete, or unclear documents to the appropriate staff member or management.

- Maintain accurate and timely documentation in the patient's electronic health record as required.

COMMUNICATION & PROFESSIONALISM

- Maintain professional, respectful, and compassionate communication with patients, family members, providers, coworkers, and other departments.

- Maintain access to Teams, email, and other approved communication systems throughout the workday.

- Acknowledge and respond promptly to communications from providers, management, and coworkers.

- Complete assigned responsibilities in a timely manner and avoid unnecessarily delaying tasks until the end of the workday.

- Maintain focus on assigned responsibilities and minimize personal cell phone use, particularly in patient-facing areas.

- Bring workflow, scheduling, patient-care, or process concerns to management promptly.

- Maintain patient confidentiality and comply with HIPAA and organizational privacy and security requirements.

ADMINISTRATIVE & END-OF-DAY RESPONSIBILITIES

- Review the following day's schedule and verify that NextGen and Phreesia information is consistent.

- Verify insurance and payment status for upcoming patients.

- Confirm the referral tracker is current and required patient outreach and follow-up have been documented.

- Clear remaining assigned Sfax items.

- Confirm patient calls and messages have been documented and appropriately routed.

- Communicate unresolved patient-care or operational issues to the appropriate individual before leaving for the day.

- Maintain accurate Paycom timekeeping records and complete required timecard approvals.

- Perform additional duties and responsibilities as assigned by management.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

- Excellent customer service and interpersonal skills.

- Strong verbal and written communication skills.

- Ability to communicate professionally and compassionately with patients experiencing serious or complex medical conditions.

- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.

- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced medical practice environment.

- Ability to accurately enter and document patient information.

- Ability to recognize urgent issues and appropriately escalate concerns.

- Ability to work effectively and collaboratively with physicians, advanced practice providers, clinical staff, Billing, Authorization, management, and other departments across both the Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology divisions.

- Ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise discretion when handling sensitive patient information.

- Dependable, accountable, and able to complete assigned responsibilities with appropriate urgency and follow-through.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

The position requires prolonged periods of sitting and working at a computer, frequent telephone and in-person communication, and the ability to perform routine office functions. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

DISCLAIMER

This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by individuals assigned to this position, which supports both the Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology divisions. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, qualifications, or working conditions. Duties and responsibilities may be modified based on organizational and departmental needs.

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS

- High school diploma or equivalent required.

- Previous medical office, healthcare front desk, patient access, scheduling, or patient coordination experience preferred.

- Previous oncology, specialty practice, or other complex outpatient healthcare experience strongly preferred; exposure to both medical oncology and radiation oncology workflows is a plus.

- Experience working with electronic health record and patient registration systems preferred.

- Experience with NextGen and Phreesia is preferred.

- Basic knowledge of medical terminology, health insurance, patient registration, referrals, and healthcare scheduling preferred.