Bethlehem Counseling Associates (BCA) is seeking a warm, organized, and highly reliable Front Desk Receptionist to assist clients with their scheduling needs.
The Front Desk Receptionist plays an important role in helping clients feel welcomed during the check in process, and leave knowing when their next appointment will be. The receptionist will assist the clinicians by making calls on their behalf, and assisting in daily front office operations.
The ideal candidate is compassionate and personable while also being highly organized, confident on the phone, comfortable working with technology, and motivated to give each client and clinician a "Wow" experience.
Role Responsibilities
- Respond promptly and professionally to clients contacting BCA by phone, email, website inquiry, or other referral sources.
- Speak with clients and clinicians to coordinate scheduling needs and accurately ensure the client gets scheduled.
- Clearly explain BCA's services, scheduling process, insurance procedures, self-pay options, and other basic practice information for inquiring callers.
- Schedule new client appointments and accurately enter all required information into the electronic health record.
- Follow up with prospective clients who have not yet completed the scheduling process.
- Maintain communication with therapists regarding availability, referral needs, and scheduling opportunities.
- Help maximize therapist schedules by identifying openings and appropriately matching clients with available appointment times.
- Identify situations requiring clinical or administrative guidance and appropriately escalate them to the appropriate team member.
- Provide prospective and current clients with a consistently warm, helpful, and professional experience.
- Collaborate with the administrative team to ensure smooth communication from initial inquiry through the client's first appointment.
- Protect client confidentiality and follow HIPAA and practice privacy requirements at all times.
Job Skills
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Strong telephone and customer-service skills, including the ability to make people feel comfortable discussing sensitive concerns.
- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
- Ability to manage multiple inquiries, tasks, and follow-ups without losing track of important details.
- Ability to prioritize effectively in a busy office environment.
- Strong follow-through and ability to bring tasks to completion without requiring reminders.
- Comfortable learning and using electronic health records, scheduling systems, email, and other computer-based programs.
- Accurate data-entry and documentation skills.
- Ability to gather information efficiently while keeping conversations warm and client-centered.
- Good judgment regarding when to independently handle a situation and when to seek assistance.
- Ability to learn basic insurance terminology and explain administrative information in easy-to-understand language.
- Ability to thoughtfully match prospective clients with clinicians based on multiple factors rather than simply assigning the next available appointment.
- Ability to communicate professionally and collaboratively with therapists, administrators, clients, and referral sources.
- Strong time-management skills and ability to respond to inquiries in a timely manner.
Personality Traits
We are looking for someone who is naturally:
- Warm and welcoming - understands that reaching out for therapy can feel vulnerable and makes people feel comfortable from their first interaction with BCA.
- Empathetic - listens carefully and responds with compassion without becoming overwhelmed by emotionally difficult conversations.
- Friendly and personable - genuinely enjoys interacting with people and building rapport.
- Reliability - Consistently arrives to work as scheduled, is punctual and dependable, and can be counted on to maintain regular attendance.
- Proactive - does not simply wait for the next task; follows up, looks for solutions, and takes ownership of getting things completed.
- Persistent - comfortably follows up with prospective clients when appropriate rather than allowing inquiries to simply fall through the cracks.
- Organized - keeps track of multiple clients, therapists, schedules, and follow-up needs.
- Detail-oriented - understands that small administrative errors can create significant problems for clients and clinicians.
- Flexible and adaptable - handles changing schedules, priorities, and client needs without becoming easily frustrated.
- Resourceful - looks for solutions and alternatives when the obvious answer is not available.
- Calm under pressure - remains professional and composed when dealing with frustrated, anxious, or distressed individuals.
- Confident - comfortable guiding conversations, explaining processes, and helping prospective clients make decisions.
- Team-oriented - communicates openly and works cooperatively with administrative staff and clinicians.
- Curious rather than judgmental - seeks to understand different people, perspectives, circumstances, and needs.
- Positive and solutions-focused - approaches challenges with the goal of figuring out what can be done rather than focusing primarily on obstacles.
- Accountable - takes responsibility for their work, communicates openly about mistakes, and follows through on commitments.
What Success Looks Like in This Role
A successful Front Desk Receptionist ensures that clients feel heard, welcomed, and are set up with appointments that meet their needs.
They understand that checking a client in or out is more than an administrative transaction. Every interaction represents someone who has made the decision to reach out for help and wants follow up. The goal is to make that next step as simple as possible for the client's needs and BCA's clinicians.
Success in this position means being able to balance exceptional client service with efficiency, accuracy, responsiveness, and strong follow-through.
