THE 1950s
For Whom the Phones Toll
![Image of 4 woman with telephones to their ears, sitting at desks](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/Centennial/1950s/For%20Whom%20the%20Phones%20Toll/Centennial-PhonesToll-Wide.jpg?width=1030&height=540&name=Centennial-PhonesToll-Wide.jpg)
Photo: Cleveland Clinic Archives
The centerpiece of Cleveland Clinic’s central appointment desk was a rotating tabletop with a separate file tray for each department, which made it easy to check physician schedules and schedule visits for callers. The present-day Access Center — where caregivers wear headsets and consult electronic health records while helping callers (alas, the rotating tabletop is long gone) — is open 24/7, fielding 5.2 million calls and scheduling 3 million appointments annually.