07/04/2026
AI Receptionist - Helen
Thank you for those who have taken the time to provide constructive feedback in relation to our newly appointed AI phone receptionist, Helen.
Firstly, some background information. Every action taken by Seascape Medical Centre is done with the community and our staff at the forefront of our priorities and considerations. In recent times, the lack of recruitment opportunities have increased the workload of our loyal long-term receptionists, who complete a significant amount of behind-the-scenes admin work to keep our organisation going. While they all do a great job at multi-tasking and are able to attend to a large quantity of phone calls while conducting their duties, they cannot realistically attend to every phone call.
As an organisation, we have to look after staff well-being and avoid burnout, while finding the best options for our community.
Last week we activated an AI receptionist with the sole purpose of filtering simple phone call requests such as quick bookings or cancellations, which Helen was able to complete immediately. This gave our receptionists more time to focus on face-to-face patient communication and administrative tasks to ensure all relevant paperwork is sent off and/or filed correctly. Nevertheless, based on recent feedback, it seems as though the benefit to our staff may have come at the cost of patient service/experience.
Although, during any phone call with Helen you can request to speak to reception, and be immediately transferred to our friendly staff. We are now in the process of directing calls straight to an option to speak to Reception or Helen. We believe this would allow patients who require prompt action on their booking, and don't mind AI, to speak to Helen. While others get transferred straight to Reception. We hope this solves the issue, but we will continue to monitor the situation with the goal of protecting our staff and community and if we don't find that balance, we will remove the program as a whole.
