What are the responsibilities and job description for the Patient Relations Representative position at Houston Methodist West Hospital?
At Houston Methodist, the Patient Relations Representative position is responsible for serving as a liaison between patient/family members, all hospital departments and administration. This position acts professionally to identify and resolve problems as expressed by patients ensuring the receive care in a humane manner for all the services and care to which he/she is entitled. The Patient Relations Representative position maintains the required complaint and grievance documentation and logs them timely and appropriately and interacts with leadership to obtain necessary information to comply with the grievance policy and state requirements. The position is visible in the hospital by providing daily rounds, responding to leadership requests specific to patient requests if called upon, assisting in resolution of complaints or concerns timely and effective, maintains excellent communication skills and participates on hospital/System committees as requested, as well Methodist Experience initiatives.
EDUCATION
EXPERIENCE Customer service experience preferred
FLSA STATUS
Non-exempt
QUALIFICATIONS
EDUCATION
EXPERIENCE
SKILLS AND ABILITIES
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
PEOPLE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
SERVICE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
QUALITY/SAFETY ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
FINANCE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
GROWTH/INNOVATION ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
QUALIFICATIONSNon-exempt
QUALIFICATIONS
EDUCATION
- High School diploma or equivalent education (examples include: GED, verification of homeschool equivalency, partial or full completion of post-secondary education, etc.)
EXPERIENCE
- Customer service experience preferred
SKILLS AND ABILITIES
- Demonstrates the skills and competencies necessary to safely perform the assigned job, determined through on-going skills, competency assessments, and performance evaluations
- Sufficient proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing the English language necessary to perform the essential functions of this job, especially with regard to activities impacting patient or employee safety or security
- Ability to effectively communicate with patients, physicians, family members and co-workers in a manner consistent with a customer service focus and application of positive language principles
- Must be able to work with people of various age groups and cultural backgrounds
- Ability to accurately document information and maintain records
- Excellent ability to build and sustain interpersonal relationships
- Knowledge of and interprets the institution's philosophy, policies, procedures and services to patients, their families and visitors Basic level of computer competency – Microsoft Office Suite, and knowledge of health care information systems
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
PEOPLE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Acts in the patients' behalf in response to increase patient satisfaction scores by reporting their appreciation, comments, concerns, and/or problems.
- Works tactfully to identify and resolve problems as expressed by patients and ensures that each patient receives all the services and care to which patient is entitled.
- Communicates directly with department heads, their designee and/or administrative staff regarding specific problems and trends in service.
- Contributes towards improvement of department scores for employee engagement, i.e. peer-to-peer accountability.
SERVICE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Assists in developing and maintaining an effective system of documentation for complaints and/or grievances.
- Conducts patient care rounds in the emergency room for purposes of improving the Methodist Experience.
- Intervenes in complaints or conflict with the interests of patients, families, physicians and other interprofessional health care team members to increase patient satisfaction scores.
QUALITY/SAFETY ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Maintains confidentiality of all patient, hospital or physician information. Responds to all grievances according to the HM grievance policy and appropriate regulatory guidelines.
- Documents obstacles to delivery of services, grievances, complaints and compliments in appropriate database. When appropriate, initiates a corrective action and sends to management for investigation and resolution.
FINANCE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Identifies cost savings or revenue opportunities.
- Utilizes resources with cost effectiveness and value creation in mind. Self-motivated to independently manage time effectively and prioritize daily tasks, assisting coworkers as needed.
GROWTH/INNOVATION ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Participates on hospital efforts/committees to improve patient satisfaction and the overall Methodist Experience. Seeks opportunities to identify self-development needs and takes appropriate action. Ensures own career discussions occur with appropriate management. Completes and updates the My Development Plan on an on-going basis.
SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
-
WORK ATTIRE
- Uniform: No
- Scrubs: No
- Business professional: Yes
- Other (department approved): No
- Note that employees may be required to be on-call during emergencies (ie. Disaster, Severe Weather Events, etc) regardless of selection below.
- On Call* Yes
- May require travel within the Houston Metropolitan area No
- May require travel outside Houston Metropolitan area No
ON-CALL*
TRAVEL**
**Travel specifications may vary by department**
EDUCATION
- High School diploma or equivalent education (examples include: GED, verification of homeschool equivalency, partial or full completion of post-secondary education, etc.)
EXPERIENCE Customer service experience preferred
Company Profile:
Houston Methodist West Hospital is committed to leading medicine in West Houston, Katy and surrounding communities by delivering the Houston Methodist standard of exceptional safety, quality, service and innovation. The growing campus offers access to the most innovative medical and surgical care available, including cardiology and cardiovascular surgery; neurology and neurosurgery; comprehensive cancer care; orthopedics and sports medicine; gastroenterology; bariatrics; childbirth center with level III NICU; emergency care; and advanced imaging.
Houston Methodist is an Equal Opportunity Employer.