For more than a decade, this top-ranked academic medical center has partnered with Carenet to centralize radiology scheduling across 25 imaging locations — managing approximately 2,000 inbound calls per day. When COVID-19 forced the postponement of thousands of screenings, Carenet launched a proactive outreach campaign that reached 3,284 patients and secured 2,082 completed appointments within six months, all without disrupting inbound call performance.
01
Centralized call management
Carenet handled approximately 2,000 scheduling calls per day, freeing front desk staff to focus on in-person patients and complex scheduling needs.
02
Proactive patient outreach
A targeted outbound campaign reached 3,284 patients scheduled for mammograms and other screenings — rescheduling 2,082 completed appointments within six months.
03
10+ year partnership
A flexible staffing model maintained 100% inbound quality goals throughout the outbound campaign — and the program is now expanding to additional imaging centers.
The radiology department’s independent diagnostic testing facilities faced increasing pressure on front desk staff. Teams were responsible for answering high volumes of inbound calls while simultaneously managing in-person check-ins and complex scheduling needs. Maintaining service standards — including answering calls within 30 seconds — became increasingly difficult.
Director of Clinical Operations, Radiology
When COVID-19 forced the postponement of non-urgent screenings, the department also needed to swiftly identify and contact thousands of affected patients. Once clinics reopened, those patients had to be rescheduled efficiently without compromising inbound call performance or quality metrics.
Carenet deployed a two-track engagement model — first centralizing all inbound call management, then layering a proactive patient outreach campaign on top — without degrading the inbound performance the department depended on.
One Center. Ten Months. Then 25 Locations.
Carenet piloted a centralized scheduling program at one independent imaging center — handling all incoming calls, not just appointments. Support included scheduling, directions, hours of operation, department transfers, and general patient questions. After a 10-month pilot, the model expanded across the full network.
Director of Clinical Operations, Radiology
Director of Clinical Operations, Radiology
02
Proactive Patient Outreach to 3,284 Patients — Without Disrupting Inbound Performance
To address postponed screenings, Carenet launched a targeted patient outreach campaign reaching 3,284 patients scheduled for mammograms and other screening studies.
The flexible staffing model allowed the department to meet patient access goals while maintaining high-quality service standards.
After a 10-month pilot, front desk staff gained meaningful capacity to focus on in-person patients and complex scheduling issues. Patient satisfaction and feedback related to front desk experiences improved.
Daily Inbound Calls
~2,000
Inbound scheduling calls managed by Carenet per day
Patients Reached
3,284
Patients contacted in proactive outreach campaign
Completed Screenings
2,082
Completed screening appointments secured within six months
Inbound Quality Goals
100%
Inbound quality goals preserved throughout outbound campaign
Locations Served
25
Radiology locations served
Partnership Duration
10+
Years of partnership at time of case study
Following this success, the medical center is expanding the inbound call model to additional imaging centers and launching a new proactive outreach program for patients with MRI and CT referrals that remain unscheduled after seven days — reducing leakage and improving continuity of care.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) from health system leaders evaluating centralized scheduling and patient outreach solutions.
Centralized scheduling in healthcare consolidates appointment booking, inbound call handling, and patient communication into a single managed operation — rather than distributing those functions across individual front desk teams at each location. For health systems with multiple diagnostic imaging or radiology sites, centralized scheduling reduces service level inconsistency, frees clinical staff for in-person care, and scales more efficiently as call volume grows.
Health systems typically begin with a pilot at a single location — outsourcing all inbound call handling, not just appointment scheduling. Scope includes scheduling, directions, department transfers, and general patient questions. After pilot success, the model expands to additional sites. Flexible staffing allows the outsourcing partner to absorb volume spikes without degrading service levels or call answer performance.
Proactive patient outreach campaigns directly reduce radiology no-shows by re-engaging patients who have missed or cancelled appointments. Effective programs contact patients by phone, confirm rescheduling, and close the loop on referrals that have gone unscheduled past a defined threshold — such as MRI or CT orders unscheduled after seven days. The key is executing outreach without disrupting inbound call performance, which requires flexible staffing and clear service level agreements.
Radiology Scheduling at Scale
How one health system centralized 2,000 calls/day and rescheduled 3,284 patients — without breaking inbound performance
See how Carenet centralized inbound call management across 25 radiology locations, ran a 3,284-patient outreach campaign, and held 100% quality goals — simultaneously. Download the full case study to get the operational detail.
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