Intake Coordinator
About the role
Bethlehem Counseling Associates (BCA) is seeking a warm, organized, and highly responsive Intake Coordinator to serve as one of the first points of contact for individuals seeking mental health services. The Intake Coordinator plays an important role in creating a positive first impression of our practice. This position helps prospective clients navigate the process of beginning therapy, identifies appropriate clinicians based on client needs and preferences, and works to make the transition from initial inquiry to scheduled appointment as smooth and efficient as possible. The ideal candidate is compassionate and personable while also being highly organized, confident on the phone, comfortable working with technology, and motivated to bring each intake through to completion. A successful Intake Coordinator ensures that prospective clients feel heard, welcomed, and confidently guided through the process of starting services at BCA. They understand that an intake is more than an administrative transaction. Every inquiry represents someone who has made the decision to reach out for help. The goal is to make that next step as simple as possible while finding the best available match between 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.
Responsibilities
- Respond promptly and professionally to prospective clients contacting BCA by phone, email, website inquiry, or other referral sources.
- Speak with prospective clients to understand their primary concerns, scheduling needs, insurance, preferred location, and therapist preferences.
- Match clients with appropriate therapists based on clinical specialty, availability, insurance participation, scheduling needs, and other relevant factors.
- Clearly explain BCA's services, scheduling process, insurance procedures, self-pay options, and other basic practice information.
- 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 new clients to available appointment times.
- Maintain accurate documentation of intake contacts, referral sources, scheduling outcomes, and follow-up efforts.
- 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.
Requirements
All applicants will need to provide an FBI background clearance and a PA Child Abuse Clearance.
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,