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Customer Service Standards

1. PURPOSE

OntarioMD is committed to providing our internal and external clients with consistently high levels of customer service. In the pursuit of our commitment, OntarioMD will strive to ensure that our products, services, and facilities are accessible.

Employees shall uphold OntarioMD’s values and behave in a way that reflects those values.

2. POLICY SPECIFIC INFORMATION AND RESPONSIBILITIES

All OntarioMD employees will receive training on accessible customer service and how to appropriately interact with internal and external clients. Employees will:

  • Greet clients in a courteous and professional manner, and listen effectively in order to provide them with quality service every time;

  • Keep clients informed of normal process time and provide updates when unexpected delays in services occur;

  • Provide knowledgeable service to clients;

  • Treat clients fairly, with respect and dignity;

  • Treat clients with patience and understanding;

  • Respect client privacy and handle confidential information as outlined by OntarioMD’s policies and practices;

  • Be considerate, cooperative and helpful to all staff members to assure quality service;

  • Take responsibility and be accountable for the accuracy and quality of work; and

  • Act with integrity at all times.

OntarioMD will make every reasonable effort to ensure that its policies, practices, and procedures are consistent with the principles of dignity, independence, integration, and equal opportunity. OntarioMD will:

  • Post our Customer Service Standards Policy on OntarioMD’s website and ensure that the format is accessible for the client.

  • Ensure that our products and services are accessible and meet a consistently high standard of quality.

  • Ensure that clients can access appropriate feedback mechanisms and can contact the company regarding concerns. Client feedback will be carefully considered, and OntarioMD will work to address comments, suggestions, and concerns. OntarioMD will appropriately acknowledge the receipt of feedback.

  • Only collect and use client information in a lawful manner that protects the privacy of our clients and complies applicable privacy legislation.

  • Ensure that our facilities, products, and services are accessible to persons with a disability and comply with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. We will meet or exceed all applicable legislation regarding the provision of customer service.

  • Ensure all staff members provide professional, polite, and helpful service, while ensuring that all interactions are conducted with integrity, discretion, and respect.

  • Provide all staff with appropriate customer service training to ensure the consistent delivery of exceptional service, which will be provided during onboarding job training and Lunch and Learns.

3. PROCEDURE

OntarioMD’s core business hours are Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST, excluding statutory holidays.

Local calls should be directed to (416) 623-1248 or toll-free 1 (866) 744-8668 and follow the detailed instructions of the recorded greeting. Clients can select one of the options for leaving a voice mail message and will be retrieved and acted upon, no later than the next business day.

Head Office

External clients should be instructed to arrive to 150 Bloor Street West, 9th floor OMA reception area to sign in with the OMA receptionist. Clients will be asked to identify who they have a meeting with, and the OMA receptionist will contact the staff member via phone or email to notify them of their guest.

Telephone Etiquette

  • Employees should observe and practice the following guidelines when receiving phone calls:

  • Whenever possible, answer the phone within two rings and identify themselves.

  • Listen to the caller’s request and assist the caller accordingly.

  • Ensure that there is a designated person in the department available to pick up calls as required;

  • If cannot assist the caller, direct the call to the appropriate person. Before transferring the call, the employee will obtain the person who will be helping the caller’s permission to transfer the call or provide the caller with the name and extension number of the person who will be helping the caller.

  • Obtain the caller’s permission before placing the call “on hold” by asking and waiting for a response before initiating the hold function;

  • End the conversation in a courteous and professional way by thanking the caller and waiting for the caller to hang up first;

  • Notify the clients that the person they are trying to reach is unavailable by saying, “He/She is unavailable. Would you like to leave a message?” at which point, the employee will take the message or re-direct the client to the persons voicemail.

  • Always ask permission of the other person before talking to them on speakerphone, and always identify other people in the room.

Voice Mail

Employees should observe and practice the following guidelines for setting up their voice mail:

  • Respond to voicemails within 1 business day during normal business hours

  • Update voice mail greetings as required, advising callers of any out of office status longer than half a day.

When recording a personal greeting, staff should always include the following information:

  • Full Name

  • Department

  • Who to contact for immediate assistance if it is an urgent matter

Employees should update their personal greeting with the following information when away for greater than half a day:

  • Full Name

  • Department

  • Period of time employee will be away for

  • When they will be returning

  • Who to contact for immediate assistance if required (co-worker/supervisor/manager)

These standardized messages are suggested examples for staff to use when preparing their voicemail greetings.

E-mail

Employees should observe and practice the following guidelines when responding to emails:

  • Use OntarioMD's standardized email signature with appropriate contact details.

    • First and last name, title, department, telephone number, extension, cell phone if applicable.

  • Respond to e-mails within 1 business day during normal business hours.

  • Update e-mail notification message with any out of office status for an extended period of time (half day or more).

  • Indicate clients of expected return date and indicate a contact person for immediate assistance (see standardized messages for examples):

    • within 1 business day for stakeholder inquiries

    • within 7 business days for product service engagement kick-off upon request from physician practices.

Email signatures will be monitored and enforced by management to ensure consistency and OntarioMD branding is maintained. 

Fax or Mail

OntarioMD will respond to mail or faxes within 1 business day to confirm receival of fax or mail, confirming retrieval and acknowledging next steps if applicable.

Technical Incident Escalation

The OntarioMD Service Desk is the central point of contact for support for the Health Report Manager (HRM) provincial solution. For information outlining the scope of the HRM service, roles and responsibilities and support services available, see Service Level Objectives for HRM Contributors or Service Level Objectives for HRM Recipients. 

Please note, response and resolution times may vary depending on the impact and urgency of the incident. Service Desk business hours are Monday to Friday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST, excluding statutory holidays. 

Social Media

Online inquiries received during business hours will be responded to no later than 1 business day. Inquiries received during holidays or weekends will be responded to on the next business day. If inquiries are of urgent nature, they will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and responded to sooner if needed.