As the Patient Relations Supervisor at Ketchum Health, Rachel Merlos and her Patient Relations team are in many ways the "face" of Ketchum Health. They are the people the patient sees at the beginning of their appointment and at the end, and their role in the patient’s experience at Ketchum is a vital complement to the care those patients receive.
It’s not just her warmth and professionalism that Rachel provides, however. Every appointment at Ketchum Health runs through her department, so Rachel manages a team responsible for verifying insurance coverage, scheduling patients with the SCCO students and making sure that the care provided is properly billed. Rachel becomes a part of Ketchum Health students’ education as well — teaching them the ins and outs of all the logistical details that come with patient relations.
Rachel has experienced a lot of patients who allowed their frustration at navigating the vicissitudes of health care coverage get the better of them, but she has a simple rule that nearly always works for defusing tense situations: Try. “I’ll talk to the doctor, the chief of that department, the dean. And when people see you actually try, even if you’re not ultimately successful, they can see that you care, and it means a lot to them.”