We assign trained healthcare staff to log in to your practice’s inbox (with appropriate permissions and HIPAA agreements) on a continual basis. They follow protocols you set regarding how to handle different types of messages.

(Though we have a dedicated service for this, some refills may appear in the general inbox). We handle them per refill protocol – checking last visit dates, relevant labs, etc., then approving or forwarding with recommendation to the provider. See Refill Request Management for more details.

We ensure urgent matters are highlighted. If an important message comes (e.g., patient reports chest pain), we would call the office/provider immediately – though rare in inbox, we watch for red flags. Conversely, less urgent items are bundled for periodic review rather than interrupting the physician constantly.

We sort messages by type – prescription refills, patient questions, abnormal lab results, referral reports, etc. Many inbox messages do not actually require physician attention (for example, normal lab results, routine questions about clinic hours, minor billing questions). For those that don’t, we handle them or assign to the appropriate non-physician team member. For those that do need the provider, we ensure they’re presented clearly with any preliminary work done.

For results, we can draft result letters or portal messages to patients (using physician-supplied guidance: e.g., “if normal, send this standard message; if mildly abnormal, do X; if critical, flag immediately”). We ensure patients are notified of results promptly (closing the loop so nothing is lost) and arrange follow-up for abnormal findings per protocol. We only forward to physicians those results that truly need their direct input or decision beyond protocol.

Many inbox items are administrative – an insurance form, a referral status update, a hospital discharge summary. Our team can process or triage these accordingly. Perhaps a referral note needs to be queued for physician review; a discharge summary might prompt a TCM outreach (which we would initiate); an insurance form could be filled with known info and just need a signature. We take those steps.

For messages from patients (via portal or phone notes), we address what we can directly. For example, if a patient writes, “I have a cold, what can I take?” – our protocol might allow the nurse to respond with OTC recommendations and warning signs, with a note to the chart. If a message is more complex or the patient reports concerning symptoms, we can arrange a sooner appointment or escalate to the provider. By removing doctors from being the gatekeeper for every portal message, efficiency goes up and burnout goes down. One AMA report suggests that leveraging non-physician team members in inbox management significantly helps ease physician workload– we serve exactly that role.

By having Brilliant Care manage your inbox, physicians can reclaim hours of their day. Research in primary care shows doctors spend an enormous amount of time on EHR work after hours (“pajama time”), much of it on inbox management – which correlates with burnout. Our service directly addresses this by taking on that after-hours load. One statistic: every 10 additional messages per day was associated with a 40% increased odds of physician burnout. Imagine cutting down those message numbers significantly – that’s the relief we aim to provide.