Best Phone Systems for Medical Offices

Whether you’re using it to schedule a routine check-up or share sensitive information with a patient, clear and reliable communications are a critical component of running a medical office. A modern cloud-based business phone system offers the calling features, reliability and, in many cases, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance required to communicate effectively with patients, staff and vendors in the medical industry.

The best business phone systems for medical offices of all types provide crystal clear high-definition audio, easy-to-use administrator tools and mobile apps to ensure medical staff can be reached easily when needed. To help medical office owners and administrators find the best business phone system, we’ve analyzed dozens of the industry’s service providers. We’ve based our reviews on each service’s available features, pricing, ease of use, integrations and customer service to arrive at a final score and identify the best use case.

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Pricing for cloud-based phone systems is typically based on the number of business user accounts or physical phone locations in a medical office setting. The average starting price for a single-user account is about $15.25 per month. If you’re shopping for a plan with all of the best features, you can expect to spend about $28.75 per monthly user. Discounts are typically offered on a sliding scale with better rates for companies purchasing more than 20 accounts. Many providers also offer discounts as high as 30 percent for annual subscribers.

One exception to the industry standard pricing model is Zoom’s pay-as-you-go metered plan. It starts at $10 per month for unlimited internal calling with additional fees for outbound landline and mobile calls that are billed by the minute.

Business phone add-ons are fairly limited, with most providers encouraging customers to upgrade to a higher-tier plan instead of offering desirable features on a stand-alone basis. Instead, add-on options are typically made available to extend existing features like additional SMS/multimedia messaging service (MMS) communications, international phone numbers and toll-free phone numbers. However, added monthly expenses like the toll-free minute overages, SMS overages and long-distance charges can add up quickly without the right service plan in place.

As a cloud-based system, there’s no hardware to install or need for professional implementation in most business settings. However, most providers offer custom price quotes to cover implementation in an enterprise setting.

Phone hardware is another consideration. While you can use your VoIP phone system through any computer or mobile device, many people prefer working with a traditional office desk phone. VoIP phones, often called IP desk phones, offer the same look, feel and functionality of a traditional office phone with the added features available in a modern phone system. These handsets range from about $100 for a basic model to over $600 for a high-end model with a large color touch screen and camera. Most new phones will arrive preconfigured with all of your user and account settings ready to go. If you prefer keeping your existing phone hardware, you may be able to purchase an IP adapter that will work with your new phone system.

Outpatient surgery centers need worry-free communications platforms that can integrate with scheduling tools to keep patients and staff aligned. Community health centers need affordable, HIPAA-compliant communications tools to ensure funding is spent on improving the lives of patients. Nursing homes need advanced routing and interactive voice response menus with flexible features that are easy to manage.

Most cloud-based business phone systems offer dozens of standard calling features, including basic phone menus, extension dialing, toll-free minutes, music on hold, unlimited domestic calling, mobile applications, video and chat communications. However, not every communications feature will be compliant with HIPAA standards, so it’s important to communicate your business needs when signing up for a new phone system to ensure you’re using everything compliantly.

HIPAA Compliance

From voicemail to video consultations, HIPAA is a federal standard for security and privacy to safeguard patient data and information across all forms of communication. Protected information can range from a patient’s name and social security number to their health condition and treatments. HIPAA-compliant phone services provide secure communications that may limit some functionality to protect patient data, including disabling visual voicemail and voicemail to email or text.

While all of the phone systems we’ve selected for medical offices are HIPAA-compliant, it’s important to inform the service provider of your need for medical rules compliance and inquire about a business associate agreement (BAA). Most service providers have a BAA in place for medical offices and no shortage of experience dealing with sensitive patient information on a regular basis. Companies using non-HIPAA-compliant VoIP can be subject to fines ranging from $100 to more than $1 million for a level four violation involving willful neglect without correction.

Software Integrations

One of the best features of a modern cloud-based phone system is its ability to sync and share data with other critical business software, such as a HIPAA-compliant customer relationship management (CRM) system that can be used to make and track appointments and all communications in a medical setting. With the right integrations in place, front-office medical assistants can schedule new and follow-up appointments for patients and visitors quickly and accurately, remind patients of upcoming appointments and manage billing and insurance information to streamline the entire process.

Analytics

You can’t manage what you can’t measure, which is why analytics play such a big role in improving customer outcomes in any business setting. Basic call analytics are included with most entry-level service plans to help business owners and office managers easily identify areas for improvement and reduce customer wait hold times. For larger medical practices with high call volume, advanced analytics that often come with top-tier service plans include tools like heat mapping to help make complex staffing decisions simple with objective data that’s easy for anyone to understand at a glance.

SMS

SMS, more commonly known as text messaging, is an essential feature for medical offices. With HIPAA-compliant SMS, you can send appointment check-in messages along with pre- and post-visit alerts through a secure text messaging channel to keep patients and staff aware of any potential changes. SMS also makes it easy to collect valuable feedback through digital health surveys or develop better doctor-patient relationships with convenient mobile prescription notices, medical reminders and any other important follow-up messages.

Video communications

Most cloud-based business phone system providers include video communication tools ideal for e-visits, medical consultations and therapy sessions. Video limitations with entry-level plans typically include a 45-minute cap on each virtual meeting and the total number of participants, which won’t be a factor in most patient-focused meetings. In behavior and mental health settings, an upper-tier plan may be required to support sessions longer than one hour without interruption or group meetings that involve a large patient base.

Identify the best business phone system for your medical office without worrying you made the wrong decision by sticking to these five steps.

1. Explore the market.

Even if you’re an expert when it comes to running a medical practice, it’s probably been a while since you’ve caught up on the latest business communications features and tools.

We recommend getting up to speed by reading a few online reviews, like what you can find on our best picks page, to get a better understanding of the standard and advanced communications tools and features being offered.

2. Define your needs.

Prices can double between an entry-level and a top-tier plan and it all multiplies quickly as you add more users to your account. Becoming an informed shopper in this category requires a detailed understanding of your communications needs. This includes the number of people who need a user account or phone number and the use of SMS/MMS, toll-free numbers, video conferencing, AI-assisted tools, team chat and customer support.

3. Participate in live demos.

Your phone system can be a significant recurring expense, which is why most service providers are happy to spend time walking you through a live demonstration to sell you on their product and turn you into a long-term customer. While your demo is effectively a sales pitch, it’s still an excellent way to see the product in action with an emphasis on the way you’ll want to use it.

4. Compare prices.

After you’ve narrowed your list down to a few good contenders, focus on the total cost to break the tie and make your final decision. Take special note of any potential fees for overages including international calling minutes to specific countries where rates can vary greatly between providers. If everything else seems even, consider the cost of phone hardware to help land on the provider for your needs.

5. Hold off for a long-term commitment.

The majority of business phone service providers offer decent discounts for annual subscribers, forcing monthly customers to pay a premium. If possible, we recommend signing up for a monthly plan to make sure your phone system meets all of your expectations before committing to a long-term contract. In many cases, early termination fees will apply if you’re not satisfied with the service and decide to leave before the end of your term.

Compared to a traditional landline or on-premise private branch exchange, a modern cloud-based or VoIP phone can typically offer all of the same functionality with better features at a lower cost, especially without any hardware to install or maintain. The latest business phone systems are straightforward to implement and manage in-house without the assistance of a dedicated information technology (IT) staff in all but the largest, enterprise-level office settings. Account administrators can quickly and easily make changes to calling menus, phone numbers, extensions, holiday hours, greetings and any other call handling adjustments from the home dashboard.

In addition to exceptional calling features, today’s business phone systems serve as all-in-one communications platforms to support team messaging, video conferencing and SMS/MMS messaging. They also integrate with other popular business tools like your CRM and calendar, creating greater efficiencies when working with patient data.

Flexibility

It doesn’t take a dedicated IT staff or a long call to a phone service provider to make changes to your system. From the administrator’s dashboard, you can update your voicemail, call flow, interactive voice response phone menu, extension and even user accounts quickly and easily. Most platforms offer access to these tools through a computer or mobile device, making it easy to make changes to your phone system and integrations at a moment’s notice. With some service providers like Nextiva, you can mix and match service plans among employees to provide the right features and appropriate expense to the correct individuals within your medical office.

Mobile access

You can access your phone system and use the vast majority of its features using any internet-connected device with the appropriate security features for working with patient data. With extended access, patients can call an office phone line and get transferred to a doctor’s mobile phone, where the doctor can flip the call to a video meeting to provide better service. With more devices to communicate with patients, you can set up multi-device ringing to ensure calls are never missed because someone has to step away from their desk phone for a moment.

Cost

Without on-premise phone hardware to purchase, install and maintain, VoIP phone systems can offer significant hardware and labor savings. As a cloud-based system, they’re also able to deliver unified communications or all-in-one voice, video and messaging services in the same platform. In most instances, basic video and messaging capabilities are included at no additional fee. While long-distance calling rates can vary by provider, country and service tier or plan, most providers include unlimited calling in the U.S. and Canada with all plans.

Service

Cloud-based phone service providers build their networks across dozens of geographically diverse data centers, allowing them to provide uptimes that exceed 99.99 percent. While your service experience could be negatively affected if your internet connection is especially poor, medical offices operating outside of the country’s most rural areas can expect high-definition voice and video service without interruption. In some cases, it’s possible to secure a 100-percent uptime service-level agreement (SLA) with a phone provider to guarantee continuous service without any scheduled downtime. If you do experience downtime, your SLA may allow you to recover some of your phone service expenses.

Efficiency

With the ability to combine customer data with secure voice, video and messaging, modern business phone systems are highly efficient and time-saving platforms. When a patient calls, your integrated CRM can immediately provide you with their relevant information and allow you to schedule a series of appointments to cover everything from pre-checks through post-procedure follow-ups from the same platform.