DIRECTOR OF CARE SUPPORT

Job Summary/Overall Objectives

The System-wide Director of Care Support is responsible for coordinating patient placement for all Independence Health System campuses. This includes coordination and communication with key personnel and departments, including physicians, nursing personnel, environmental services, internal and external transport, and the Care Support Transfer Center. This position provides clinical guidance on patient placement in accordance with established admission criteria and is responsible for optimizing patient throughput within the system. This position directs the prehospital care transport in support of emergency and non-emergency patient care and transport for Independence Health System. Directs operations, strategic alignment and programmatic expansion of the transfer center, bed management services, and other patient logistics projects that fall within the transfer center scope at Independence Health System Care Support Center, Westmoreland Nursing Supervisors, Westmoreland Patient Transport, System inpatient Staffing Support Team, contingent staffing vendors, and EMS relations.

Essential Job Responsibilities

• The position is responsible for leading the department and accountable for care support.
• This position has direct supervisory responsibilities such as hiring, coaching/mentoring, skills development, recognition and rewards, staff productivity, performance management and succession planning.
• Contract management for all contingent staffing agencies within Independence Health System (nursing).
• Contract management for EMS providers as required.
• Equitably and consistently apply and practice policies and procedures for all staff.
• Develop and manage department budget at or below budget expectations and consistent with adjusted volume variations.
• Identify and implement revenue enhancement opportunities.
• Establish and maintain a safe working environment; assure staff comply with safety, environmental, and infection control guidelines.
• Assure completion of staff competencies including mandatory education and programs relative to job specific criteria.
• Promptly investigate and resolve Significant Occurrence Reports and incident reports as necessary.
• Align strategic compass with department goals; write compelling SMART goals in support of the organization's mission, vision, and values.
• Equitably and consistently apply and practice policies and procedures for all staff.
• Practice and encourage staff readiness in compliance with agency regulations and guidelines.
• Improve HCAP scores according to fiscal year targets; demonstrate year over year improvement in service to internal and external customers.
• Respond to client service recovery issues within required time frame and to the satisfaction of the customer.
• Hold regular department meetings, assuring off shifts and satellite offices receive accurate information.
• Build and strengthen relations through the fostering of two-way communication; diffuse sources of conflict.
• Provide opportunities for staff to actively provide input into decision making process; seek input before decision is made.
• Encourage commitment of quality work throughout areas of responsibility.
• Act on most urgent tasks; prioritize and delegate workable systems.
• Use critical thinking skills to proactively resolve issues that are de-railers to productivity and engagement.
• Lead at least one process improvement initiative for department per year
• Establish performance measures to equitably evaluate staff using objective and job-based criteria; coach toward compliance and addresses variances.
• Hold staff accountable for consistently modeling the behavioral standards.
• Identify, evaluate, and select internal and external talent, assuring an acceptable fit with Independence Health desired culture; effectively match right person to right job.
• Provide opportunities for the education, training, and development of staff to help reach highest potential.
• Offer stretch assignments; create actionable development plans; encourage learning from setbacks and for future development.
• Actively support and participate in succession planning initiatives; identify high potentials and prepare them for possible future leadership opportunities within Independence Health.
• Identify and implement revenue enhancement opportunities.
• Seek opportunities to reduce operating costs while balancing quality resources.
• Submit timely variance reports that display knowledge of expenses and demonstrates continual plans to reduce variances; operate each year more effectively than one before.
• Coordinate the selection of vendors through established internal procurement procedures in an effort to drive down supplier costs while maintaining quality standards.
• Achieves thoroughness and accuracy when accomplishing an essential or specialty function of the job.
• Will practice in the position by demonstrating the competencies as defined by the American Organization of Nurse Leaders (AONL) Nurse Manager Competencies.
• Ensure the clinical practice is in accordance with the PA Nurse Practice Act, hospital policies, procedures and protocols and other professional standards of care; ensure the care is delivered in a continuous flow that produces desired patient outcomes.
• Hold staff accountable for complying with all aspects of the nursing process including, but not limited to, age specific needs and pain management.
• Ensure the care delivered is through an interdisciplinary effort that fosters a continuum of patient care that results in desired patient outcomes.
• Maintain an open communication with the medical staff and serve as a liaison to answer questions and resolve problems/issues.
• Provide support for the staff to enter into collaborative discussions to optimize patient outcomes, including direct care responsibilities, round with physicians, and respond to call bells/alarms as needed.
• Triaging patient admission, transfers and discharges to expedite bed availability.
• Review and finalize the department's staff scheduling process.
• Conduct patient care rounds on a regular basis.
• Execute bi-weekly payroll.
• Establish staffing patterns according to the department/unit scope of service and budgetary guidelines.
• Establish clear work objectives and standards to prioritize and focus staff efforts.
• Establish safety policies and procedures for the operation of equipment and service delivery practice in compliance with regulatory and organization guidelines.
• Collaborate with other disciplines and physicians in the delivery of services and the use of resources for quality patient care.
• Monitor competency of staff in clinical practice and expected organizational outcomes.
• Implement strategies to see a statistically significant increase in patient satisfaction.
• Meet or exceed standards of care to national benchmark status. Adhere to productivity benchmarks for own department.
• Coordinate the educational process to ensure that patients/families and staff receive education specific to their clinical areas and the patients/families served.
• Ensure that patients/families are assigned as to their age specific needs, abilities, learning preference and readiness to learn.
• Ensure that appropriate educational activities are planned and implemented for patients/families and intervenes as necessary to improve educational performance.
• Collaborate with the education department to plan, implement and assess staff educational needs and competency-based requirements.
• Facilitate the preceptor-orientee relationship and arranges for the orientation process.
• Promote compliance with practices that support infection control policies and a safe environment of care as identified by the organization, State, Joint Commission, OSHA and other regulatory agencies.
• Demonstrate a knowledge of the policies and regulations and assures staff compliance.
• Respond to written variances in the safety inspection rounds and incident reports. Support identified safety initiatives. Promote medication safety through a non-punitive reporting system and performance improvement activities.
• Oversee the proper consistent utilization of patient and employee safety devices.
• Analyze and respond to trends in infection control report.
• Identify areas of knowledge and computer literacy gaps and request education programs that target learning needs.
• Demonstrate ability to integrate query and auditing reports into staff nurse evaluations and clinical problem solving. Ensure follow through for auditing processes are completed
• System coordination and communication with key personnel and departments, including physicians, nursing personnel, environmental services, internal and external transport, and the Care Support Transfer Center to optimize patient flow.
• Provide system clinical guidance on patient placement in accordance with established admission criteria and is responsible for optimizing patient throughput within the system.
• Directs bed placement for all admitted and transferred patients within the health system and from external facilities into the health system. Ensures that all system internal and external admissions are expedited.
• Identifies system transportation barriers to timely discharge and works to resolve.
• Attends daily system bed meetings.
• Collaborates with perioperative service lines system wide to monitor procedure schedules and optimizes patient flow from PACU/outpatient areas.
• Communicates with physicians’ group/case management across the system during high census periods to facilitate discharges.
• Oversees capacity management bed placement for Independence Health System. Collaborates with environmental services, patient transportation, and nursing supervisor groups across health system to improve patient throughput.
• Rounds on clinical units to assess patient flow issues.
• Has regular staff meetings and communicates frequently.
• Represents the transfer center at key meetings within the organization.
• Develops policies and procedures related to patient flow.
• Coordinates with EMS organizations to support emergency and non-emergency patient care and transport for Independence Health System
• Responsible for EMS communications, contracts, evaluating and billing of EMS contractors.
• Collaborates with EMS services, acts as liaison between Independence Health System and EMS services.
• Maintains performance improvement activities and actively participates in service and quality initiatives between EMS personal and Independence Health system.
• Plans, manages, and evaluates pre-hospital marketing goals.
• Maintains relationship with external staffing agencies to establish staffing contracts and negotiating contingent staffing bill rates as needed.
• Serves as Independence Health system liaison between staffing agencies and nursing services to fill staffing needs as appropriate.
• Optimizes the utilization of the electronic scheduling software system (API).
• Works with the Care Support Center staff and supervisor to coordinate EMS transports from Heath System efficiently.
• Communicates with EMS agency personnel to identify and improve processes to transport discharged patients efficiently.
• Serves as Independence point for community EMS projects.
• Other duties as assigned.

Competency and Experience [Knowledge, Skills and Abilities]

Required Qualifications/Experience

• Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing required,
• Master’s degree in related field (i.e. Nursing, Health Administration, Business, Public Health or Management) required and five (5) years of current clinical experience and progressive leadership and competency required.
• Strong leadership ability, good organizational skills, independent and critical thinking skills, sound judgment, and knowledge of legal aspects and liability of functional area.
• Strong ability to communicate complex and/or controversial topics and concepts to a wide and diverse audience.

Preferred Qualifications/Experience

• Master’s Degree in Nursing strongly preferred.
• Two (2) years’ experience in contract negotiations.
• One (1) year experience in prehospital services.
• Prior experience with capacity management and patient throughout at a system level.
• National Certification within two (2) yeas of hire or eligibility, whichever is shorter.

License, Certification & Clearances

• Current licensure to practice as a Registered Nurse in the State of Pennsylvania required.

• Current Basic Life Support (BLS) approved curriculum of the American Heart Association (CPR and AED) program required.
• Act 33 with renewal
• Act 34 with renewal
• Act 73 FBI Clearance Act 34-PA Criminal Record Check from the PA State Police system.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work

• Incumbent will be scheduled based on operational need (rotate shifts, standby, on-call, etc.).
• Travel may be expected locally between System locations.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Independence Health and its affiliated companies are Equal Opportunity Employers. It is their policy to prohibit discrimination of any type and to afford equal employment opportunities to employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, marital status, disability, veteran status, or genetic information, or any other classification protected by law. Independence Health and its affiliated companies will comply with all applicable laws and regulations.

Disclaimer

This job description is not designed to contain a comprehensive listing of all activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Moreover, duties, responsibilities and activities may change or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.

Work Environment

Physical Demands

When lift requirement is in excess of 50#, lift assistance (2 person) and/or transfer device is required.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.