Head of Patient Flow and Site Management

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; York and North Yorkshire; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an experienced Head of Patient Flow and Site Management to lead strategic and operational initiatives for patient pathways. This role involves overseeing patient flow, ensuring safe transitions from admission to discharge, and driving improvements across services. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in healthcare leadership, with a focus on enhancing patient experience and operational efficiency.

Benefits

NHS Pension Scheme

27 days holiday rising to 33

Relocation package up to £18k

Employee Assistance Programme

Learning and development opportunities

Discount schemes

Qualifications

• Experience in a healthcare leadership role.
• Strong understanding of patient flow and discharge processes.
• Proven ability to drive improvements and manage change.

Responsibilities

• Provide Trust-wide leadership for patient flow and site management.
• Develop and implement policies for bed management.
• Oversee the Discharge Command Centre ensuring safe patient transitions.
• Identify barriers to timely discharge and resolve them.
• Communicate effectively with all stakeholders.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic Planning

Communication

Project Management

Job description

We are seeking an experienced and dynamic leader to join our team as Head of Patient Flow and Site Management. This pivotal role will provide strategic direction and operational leadership for patient flow, site management, and bed capacity across our hospitals.

You will lead the Trust's Patient Flow and Site Management team, ensuring safe, effective, and efficient patient pathways from admission to discharge. You will drive improvements in flow, reduce delays, and support delivery of national and local performance standards.

This post carries responsibility for overseeing patient flow, discharge processes, and hospital site coordination. You will work closely with clinical and operational teams to ensure that patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

The role also involves shaping and delivering strategic approaches to flow and escalation, in line with national policy and local priorities. A key aspect of this role is addressing and overcoming common challenges to hospital discharge, including delays due to complex care needs, coordination across services, and availability of community support.

You will be expected to implement practical solutions that reduce length of stay, improve discharge planning, and enhance patient experience. You will also be expected to drive a clear and ambitious vision for improvement-identifying opportunities to streamline processes, strengthen collaboration, and embed a culture of continuous learning and innovation.

Responsibilities:

• Provide Trust-wide leadership for patient flow, site management, and escalation processes
• Develop and implement effective policies for bed management and complex discharge pathways
• Oversee the Trust's Discharge Command Centre (DCC), ensuring safe and timely patient transitions
• Identify and resolve barriers to discharge, including social care delays, patient readiness, and inter-agency coordination
• Ensure systems are in place for escalation, site safety, and flow assurance across all hospital sites
• Work collaboratively with care groups to maintain high standards of patient-centred care
• Drive measurable improvements across safety, effectiveness, workforce, and financial outcomes
• Shape and deliver a strategic vision for patient flow and discharge excellence
• Communicate effectively across all levels of the organisation and negotiate solutions with internal and external partners to support timely discharge and flow

Benefits:

• Access to the NHS Pension Scheme, providing generous benefits upon retirement, as well as a lump sum and pension for dependants
• 27 days holiday rising to 33 days (depending on NHS Trust service)
• A generous relocation package of up to 30% of salary (capped at £18k) to support with relocation expenses for hard to fill positions where relocation would be an expectation to undertake the role fully
• A variety of different types of paid and unpaid leave covering emergency and planned leave
• Confidential advice and support on personal, work, family and relationship issues, 24/7, from our Employee Assistance Programme
• NHS Car Lease scheme and Cycle to Work scheme
• An extensive range of learning and development opportunities
• Discounts on restaurants, getaways, shopping, motoring, cinema and finance from a range of providers