@Brian:
Your description is exactly what I'm suggesting.
I hadn't thought about asking the hospital to add us to their contract w/ a commerical shredder. Our office isn't exactly close to the hosptial (well, just 3 subway stops)but it is a thought.
@Leslie: Faxes don't show up. NO JOKE? Do you have the same problem with specialist's offices? Then the patient calls their office asking if their referral has been sent. No? They call your office complaining. But your staff documented when it was sent. We had one patient that went through this several times, all the while basically calling us incompetent. Then she got to the orthopedist who asked her why there were so many referrals for her and it was her first visit. Yeah, his staff never looked when she called, they just said "no."
