When a bank-transfer name differs from the patient name

A patient says their sister sent the money. The receiving account shows a name the receptionist does not recognise. Keep the payment enquiry open while the authorised staff member checks the credit and which bill it belongs to.

The payer and patient can be different people. The transfer name alone should neither create a new patient record nor decide which existing invoice receives the payment. This is a recommended desk routine for a hospital handling staff-confirmed transfers.

Start with the receiving evidence

Ask the authorised bank reviewer to check the hospital's receiving account through the approved process. Give them the reported amount, approximate time and transaction reference where available. Reception does not need the banking password to make this request.

A screenshot from the sender may help locate an enquiry. Record it as sender information until the hospital establishes receipt. If two credits have the same amount, do not choose the nearest one merely to move the queue along. Leave the ambiguity with a named reviewer.

Then identify the intended bill

Once a credit is confirmed, ask the authorised payer or account contact which invoice it settles. Follow the hospital's identity and disclosure procedure when discussing a patient's balance with someone else. A family relationship mentioned at the desk is not a substitute for that check.

Consider a fictional 15,000-naira credit sent by a relative. The patient has one bill for 10,000 naira and another for 8,000. Knowing that 15,000 arrived does not explain how to split it. Obtain the instruction and use the allocation sheet if more than one invoice is involved.

Leave a usable trail

Record the confirmed payment once, with its bank evidence and the invoice allocation references. Keep an unresolved credit on the unmatched transfer log. The next shift needs to see who is checking it and what information remains missing.

The FAO-hosted bookkeeping manual covers supporting transaction records. Its setting is a Liberia forestry project; the payer-checking routine here is RizCare's recommendation, not a banking rule from that manual.

If another device appears to be missing the payment, ask the colleague who recorded it to check its status before entering it again. In RizCare, staff confirm transfers; the software does not move the money or verify the bank credit for them.