Page 67 - ractice Exam Questions and rationales

following calls first?

A. A patient calling to schedule a follow-up visit for uncontrolled pain after hip surgery.

B. A patient calling to cancel today’s appointment for a needle biopsy of a breast mass.

C. A lawyer with a subpoena asking for patient information.

D. A neurologist seeing a patient on consult.

Your response:
A neurologist seeing a patient on consult.
Correct response:
A neurologist seeing a patient on consult.
Rationale: The medical assistant's main priority is to handle the most urgent call promptly. A
neurologist calling to report on a referred patient would take priority over anyone scheduling or
cancelling an appointment. The other calls can be put on hold or they can opt to have their
names and phone numbers taken for calls to be returned and handled when time permits. A
lawyer with a subpoena can also wait for a return call until all other priorities have been
handled.