Executive Director - Hospice

Oversees the day-to-day operations of the hospice agency. Supervises all aspects of patient care, provides oversight of all hospice staff, including contracted staff, and ensures compliance with regulatory requirements. Oversees the financial performance and quality assurance performance improvement activities for agency. The Executive Director or alternate will be available on-site during business hours and additionally, if needed.

• Responsible for compliance with all hospice regulations, laws, policies and procedures, including regulations related to the Medicare and Medicaid hospice benefit, as well as any requirements related to private or managed care insurance.
• Ensures that the hospice agency employs only qualified hospice personnel. Recruits and hires adequate and qualified personnel to care for patients and their families during all service hours to ensure quality care and customer satisfaction.
• Present on-site during business hours or immediately available by telephone when off-site conducting agency business and available after hours, as needed. When not available on-site nor by telephone, the alternate administrator assumes the Executive Director oversight role.
• Directs the day-to-day operations of the agency and acts as the driver for the patient care management process.
• Oversees all patient care activities to assure compliance with current standards of accepted nursing and medical practice and regulatory standards on a constant basis.
• Ensures that patient care services are provided according to the plan of care, as ordered by the physician.
• If a licensed healthcare professional, may provide clinical oversight and supervision according to licensure type, scope of practice, and state regulatory guidelines.
• Participates as a member of the hospice agency Governing Body and facilitates Governing Body meetings that support review and discussion of the hospice agency pillar activities and operations.
• Acts as liaison between staff, patients, families, the hospice management team and the hospice Governing Body.
• Provides oversight of hospice billing processes to ensure billing practices meet regulatory requirements and reflect patient care provided.
• Ensures adequate staffing through recruitment and retention activities.
• Ensures timely completion of hospice agency staff evaluations.
• Identifies education needs and ensures adequate staff education.
• Reviews monthly financials and cost management reports relative to all aspects of the operation to ensure that quality patient care is delivered in the most cost-effective manner.
• Oversees the hospice agency quality assurance performance improvement program, to include use of objective data to improve performance in the areas of improved patient/family care and activities related to patient health and safety. Specific performance improvement activities include, but are not limited to, root cause analysis and development of action plans and focused performance improvement projects.
• Ensures that staff personnel files are maintained according to state and federal guidelines, as well as accreditation standards, if applicable.
• Completes required courses through LHC Group learning management system and attends in-services, when applicable.
• Functions as a preceptor to new hires as needed, and according to discipline-specific licensure guidelines, if applicable.
• Oversees and/or directly investigates all patient complaints, and alleged or real violations involving mistreatment, neglect, or verbal, mental, sexual, and physical abuse of a patient.
• Oversees and/or directly investigates all patient-related sentinel events.
• Serves as the infection control contact for the agencies, is responsible for the direction, provision, and quality of infection control services, and effectively enforces infection control practices among agencies to include infection control and isolation protocols according to the CDC, OSHA, and LHC policy.
• Acts as Emergency Coordinator during emergencies ensuring appropriate plan execution.

• Must be a licensed physician; licensed registered nurse; licensed social worker; or a Bachelor's degree college graduate with at least three (3) years of documented success in discipline/field of study and a minimum of one (1) year of full time experience in a hospice, home health, or other health care delivery system setting.
• Three (3) years of health care leadership preferred.
• Current CPR certification required for Executive Directors who may provide services to patients in the field.
• Current Driver's License and vehicle insurance, and access to a dependable vehicle, or public transportation.

• CO: Must have training and experience in business or health service administration and at least two years supervisory or administrative experience in hospice care or related health care service.
• GA: Must be a licensed nurse practitioner, physician’s assistant, registered nurse, clinical social worker, physical therapist, or psychologist with at least one year of supervisory or management experience
  in a hospice setting or an individual with education, training, and experience in health services administration and at least two years of supervisory or management experience in a hospice setting.
• LA: A licensed social worker must have a Master’s degree. A college graduate with a Bachelor’s degree must have three years of documented management experience in health care service delivery. May not serve more than two (2) licensed agencies.
• MS: College graduate with a Bachelor’s degree must have two years of health care management experience.
• NJ: Must have a Master's degree in administration or a health related field and at least 2 years supervisory or administrative experience in hospice care or a healthcare setting OR a Bachelor's degree in administration or a health related field and 4 years of supervisory or administrative experience in hospice care or in a healthcare setting.
• SC: Must have a minimum of 3 years of experience in a health-related field within the past 5 years.
• TN: One-year supervisory or administrative experience in home health, hospice, or related health programs .Must not serve more than one (1) licensed organization unless the organization provides other categories of services under the same ownership and at the same location.
• TX: Must have at least one year of management or supervisory experience in a health-related setting and evidence of 8 clock hours of educational training in the administration of an agency within the 12 months preceding designation of position per Texas Administrative Code.
• VA: One year, within the last 5 years of supervisory or administration management experience in hospice
  care, or related health care delivery system.
• AL, AR, AZ, CA, FL, ID, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, NC, OK, OH, OR, PA, WA, WI, WV: No additional state specific requirements

If the Executive Director is also serving as the clinical supervisor, then the following state specific additional requirements must also be met:

• FL: Must have supervisory or hospice experience and completion of a hospice training program from the employing hospice.
• LA: Must have at least three (3) years experience as a Registered Nurse with one of these years consisting of full-time experience in providing direct patient care in a hospice, home health, or oncology setting. Must no be employed by more than one (1) hospice provider.
• MS: Must have at least three (3) years experience as a Registered Nurse with one of those years consisting of full-time experience in direct patient care in a hospice, home health, or oncology setting; or the management of patient care staff in an acute care setting, hospice, or home health. Must be a full-time employee of only the hospice agency.
• NJ: Must have a master’s degree in nursing and two (2) years combined public/community health nursing and progressive management experience in public health nursing OR a bachelor’s degree in nursing and three (3) years combined public/community health nursing and progressive management experience in public health nursing.
• TX: Must have at least one (1) year experience as a Registered Nurse within the last 36 months.
• VA: Education and experience with terminally ill required.