Phone Skills for We Need to Hire

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  CTE Lesson Plan

• CTE Course Info and Benchmark Notes

  
  

  Program Title: n/a

  Course Title: Orientation to Health Science Professions

  Course Number: 8400110

  Career Cluster: Health Science

  CIP Number: 03179999OR

  Course Type: Orientation/Exploratory

  CTE Standard(s) or Benchmarks

  03.04 Identify technology used for communication in healthcare professions and proper etiquette for its' use.

  02.03 Identify the characteristics of healthcare professionals.

• Unit Outline

  
  

  This lesson on phone skills and etiquette is designed to be used with the case study, “We Need to Hire.” See CPALMS resource ID# 207939.

• Career Connection

  
  

  This lesson encourages students to discuss communication skills and legal/ethical use of communication technology. Students practice professional phone skills to further their competency in this area.

• Learning Objectives

  
  

  Students will be able to:

  • Describe how to demonstrate professionalism in a medical environment.
  • Practice proper phone etiquette when answering calls, making calls, and leaving messages.
  • Describe a healthcare professional’s role in protecting patient privacy and adhering to H.I.P.A.A. guidelines.

• Prior Knowledge

  
  

  Students should be familiar with/able to:

  • Distinguish between language used during a professional phone conversation versus a casual conversation with a friend or family member.
  • Define “privacy” and understand that most patient information is confidential.

• Guiding Questions

  
  
  • How can medical professionals, such as a medical receptionist, demonstrate professionalism?
  • How does H.I.P.A.A. protect patient privacy?
  • How should a professional phone call be made?
  • How can a phone call be answered in a professional manner?
  • What information can be left in a message?

• Procedure

  
  
  1. To introduce the lesson, ask students to brainstorm how to be ‘professional’ in a business environment. The teacher will compile a list of student ideas on the board.
     • Student answers may include good communication skills, being friendly and welcoming, using manners (ex. please and thank you), being patient and calm, dressing professionally, using professional language (not slang or profanity), waiting their turn to speak (i.e., don’t interrupt), don’t eat/drink in front of customers or while on the phone, etc.
  2. Then, provide students with the “We Need to Hire” case study (see CPALMS resource #207939). This creates the setting for this lesson.
  3. After reading the case study, provide time for discussion and conversation about the case study. Ask students the guiding questions, such as, “How can the different roles/careers in the case study show professionalism?” Briefly discuss aspects of professionalism in a medical setting. Note: Student answers may include privacy and/or discretion, which will be reviewed later in this lesson.
  4. Tell the students that Dr. Morales and her team decided that hiring a new receptionist would be the best option. This person would coordinate sign-in and registration of patients when they arrive, collect updated medical history and insurance paperwork, schedule appointments, and help with answering the phone and appointment reminders. Since the medical receptionist is the first staff member most patients meet, it is important for the medical receptionist to represent the business positively and professionally.
  5. Elaborate on patient privacy by introducing H.I.P.A.A. - a law that protects the patient’s personal information, including how to physically protect information (ex. locked cabinets, password-protected computers) and who the information can be shared with (only people that the patient has given permission for information to be given to).
  6. Tell the students that the rest of this lesson will focus on professional phone skills, including manners/etiquette and what you should and should not say.
  7. Have student groups brainstorm how to answer the phone professionally.
     • Student answers may include saying hello/goodbye, identifying themselves and/or the business, using professional language, etc.
  8. Pass out the CTE Phone Skills and Etiquette Student Handout (see attachments).
  9. Review the steps of how to make and receive a professional phone call as well as H.I.P.A.A. guidelines.
  10. Then, have students role-play these skills with a partner using the ten scenarios on page two of the CTE Phone Skills and Etiquette Student Handout.
  11. After allowing 10-15 minutes for students to role-play the scenarios, bring the class together for discussion. Suggested discussion questions:
      • Which scenarios involved possible H.I.P.A.A. violations? (Ben Walsh & Mariah Jackson scenarios)
      • How should those scenarios be handled? (Ben Walsh - leave a number for him to return the call; Mariah Jackson - contact the patient for consent to release x-ray records.)
      • Are there different rules for adults vs. children? ( Parents have legal control over children’s records so their information can be released to their parents in most situations.)
      • What should you do if a patient calls and you don’t know how to help them? (Be honest and ask if you can look into it and call them back.)
  12. To bring the lesson to a close, students will complete an Exit Ticket regarding phone etiquette and H.I.P.A.A. (see attachments).

• Teacher Notes

  
  
  • Teachers may choose to structure the discussions for the class as a whole.
  • Students will work in pairs to role-play the phone scenarios. Student groups should be created in advance.

• Optional

  
  

  Formative Assessment Ideas:

  • Informally assess student progress towards the learning goals as the teacher guides student discussion and observes students during role-playing.
  • Student answers on the exit ticket can also be used to demonstrate mastery.

  Extension Ideas:

  • • Future lessons and/or discussion could focus on etiquette and H.I.P.A.A. privacy as they apply to written communication, such as letters and emails.