Answering Services Specializing Sports Medicine

Less prolific (but no less important) are medical call centers that specialize in sports-related injuries. You hear about all types of injuries athletes suffer and the types of treatment the receive on a regular basis - in fact, no televised sporting event goes by without the announcer spouting off about every tiny little detail of every single injury incurred by one of the players and what the doctors and therapists are doing to repair the damage and speed the athlete’s recovery.

In professional sports, the teams are armed with their own doctors, therapists, masseuses and sometimes even acupuncturists. During a game, the paramedics are standing by to whisk the injured to the closest emergency room to treat any injury as fast as possible. In amateur sports, the kids aren’t so lucky. Also, the fact that most kids want to appear tougher than they actually are, exacerbates the situation. This is when a sports-related call center comes in very useful for the parents of their little linebacker or goaltender.

In case the family does not have full medical coverage, a medical answering service can be a lifesaver. Sometimes the injury incurred by the child is painful, but relatively innocuous and can be treated at home. This can save the parents hundreds or even thousands of dollars in a needless hospital emergency room visit. For instance, a minor concussion can be diagnosed by a professional nurse at a medical call center and the child could be monitored at home by his or her parents.

Sometimes a child will incur a more serious injury, but not want to appear weak to his or her parents. Perhaps a bad cut from a razor-sharp hockey skate or a dislocated knee from a bad collision during an intense soccer game. In cases such as these, it is a good idea to have the child speak with the medical call center operator, since the child may be reluctant to tell their parents the severity of their injury because they don’t want to A) worry their parents and/or B) go to the hospital. Talking to a complete stranger about one’s problems is usually easier because you don’t care about them, they don’t know you, you’ll never have to meet them and you feel free to say whatever comes immediately to mind.

If the injury is indeed serious, the nurse will advise the kid to tell his or her parents to either get them to the emergency room or just ice it.

The operators of medical call centers are trained to keep the caller calm, be reassuring and not be reactionary. If they don’t know the answer to a query, they will pass the call along to a colleague at the same answering service who can answer your questions accurately.

Finding a Medical Answering Service

With the rising cost of healthcare, many individuals are not seeking direct, one-on-one emergency room service, they are looking to the Internet and live physician answering service companies for feedback on their symptoms.

Check with your health insurance provider for services. Chances are very good that they have live, friendly and helpful individuals who can answer your medical questions.

Alternatively, the Internet is an excellent and very expedient way to locate a physician or a healthcare professional who can answer your questions. Often times, email or chat contact may be preferred depending on the nature of the query, but one has to remember that the people on call are professionals - not physicians - but Registered Nurses and operators who have only your best interests in mind. The person you speak to will have undergone rigorous training in not only medical terminology, but also how to keep calm and how to handle urgent calls from both patients and medical staff. They are also trained to react with speed and precision, dispatching urgent messages quickly and accurately. They are trained to evaluate a wide range of conditions are will either alive fears or recommend that you call your physician. However, if your call is a genuine emergency, they will advise you to call 911.

For non-emergency problems, most physician answering services offer an individual the options of either leaving a detailed voice message or send an email with their symptoms. Responses tend to take no longer than 24 hours, depending on the problem.

For legitimately serious cases, it is generally best to either leave a message for a specific doctor or express to the medical answering service operator that you would like a physician who specializes in your condition to contact you directly at their earliest possible convenience. Any serious conditions should be addressed directly by a physician.