Clinical Health System Navigator

VITAS Healthcare; Sacramento (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

VITAS Healthcare Corporation is seeking a dedicated professional to serve as a hospice care coordination expert. You will manage referrals, discharge processes, and hospital readmissions while supporting patients and families through admission and pre-admission evaluations.

Role requires clinical knowledge for hospice transitions, strong communication, and ability to work flexible hours as needed. The position emphasizes collaboration with VITAS teams and healthcare partners.

Qualifications

• Minimum three years of experience in direct customer service or healthcare industry
• Excellent presentation, negotiation and relationship-building skills
• Clinical knowledge base to support effective care transitions to VITAS for hospice eligible patients
• Previous participation in a team environment that involved individual accountability and teamwork; driven and results oriented
• Able to demonstrate examples on critical thinking and create solutions
• Past military service a plus
• Experience with volunteer organization a plus
• Evidence of exceeding goals or expectations with a project or previous job
• Strong customer service, sense of urgency and problem-solving skills
• Time management and organizational skills
• Ability to collaborate with a team to support market, to build relationships, and educate to generate access to hospice care by building long term business partnerships
• Strong interpersonal skills within all levels of an organization
• Excellent oral and written communication skill
• Ability to work outside of normal business hours (8-5), evenings and weekends as needed.
• Proficiency in Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, iOS devices
• Integrity and patient/ customer focus: ethical, moral conduct, customer services
• Reliable transportation

Responsibilities

• Be the subject matter expert on Medicare Hospice Benefit, VITAS service offerings, disease specific clinical criteria and evidence-based medicine.
• Responsible for care coordination and communication to members of the assigned health system, VITAS team, and other community / post-acute entities regarding patient status including referral process, discharge process, and hospital readmissions/ hospice revocations.
• Ensures performance metrics are met in hospital for our referrals to maintain good standing in collaboration with the sales department.
• Participates in the information gathering and documentation of findings in the Pre-Admit Evaluation while supporting patients, families and admission nurse through the admission process. Facilitate hospice presentations and start Pre-Admission Evaluations when needed.
• Escalates clinical concerns to the Director of Admissions immediately
• Be able to acknowledge, clarify, answer, confirm, and transition the conversation to help best direct the patient/family
• Supports account, patients & families who readmit to the hospital/ER (VITAS revocations) by care coordinating with VITAS team.
• Utilize direction and judgement in determining an approach to create, develop and sustain a consultative relationship in assigned accounts and other potential referral sources, by making effective customer contacts and exhibiting excellent customer service skills.
• Resolves customer feedback by investigating opportunities for development, developing solutions, preparing reports, and collaborates on resolutions with program management.
• Leverages educational tools on provided devices as customer visual aids and learning tools to grow knowledge. Has a knowledge of Sales visual aids.
• Completes Admissions and Sales training.
• Able to apply training and leverage tools and resources when executing strategies with customers with a strong sense of urgency.
• Maintains professional and technical knowledge by reviewing professional publications, establishing personal networks and remaining current with changes in healthcare field in order to understand customer industry.
• Open to and proactively applies coaching feedback from direct manager with the intentions on improvement of various skillsets.
• Works cohesively and leverages opportunities with facility case managers, discharge planners and floor staff in conjunction with VITAS team members: VITAS Admissions Team, VITAS Sales Team, VITAS Medical Director & Team Physicians, Team Managers and overlapping team disciplines, Patient Care Administrators, Sr. Leadership. Attends team meeting at least two times per quarter.
• Timely completion of administrative duties: expense reports, payroll entry, other administrative actions by required times.
• Effective in professional verbal, written, and electronic communication.
• Perform related duties as required. This position description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to perform any other job-related duties assigned by their supervisor or management.

Skills

Relationship-building

Presentation skills

Negotiation

Customer service

Problem-solving

Time management

Organizational skills

Communication skills

Team collaboration

iOS proficiency

Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint

Education

Registered nurse (RN)

Licensed vocational nurse (LVN)

Medical social worker

Chaplain

Counselor

Tools

Outlook

Word

Excel

PowerPoint

iOS devices

Job description

All duties and responsibilities are to be performed in accordance with VITAS Healthcare’s policies, procedures, guidelines, contractual commitments and governmental regulations.

• Be the subject matter expert on Medicare Hospice Benefit, VITAS service offerings, disease specific clinical criteria and evidence-based medicine.
• Responsible for care coordination and communication to members of the assigned health system, VITAS team, and other community / post-acute entities regarding patient status including referral process, discharge process, and hospital readmissions/ hospice revocations.
• Ensures performance metrics are met in hospital for our referrals to maintain good standing in collaboration with the sales department.
• Participates in the information gathering and documentation of findings in the Pre-Admit Evaluation while supporting patients, families and admission nurse through the admission process. Facilitate hospice presentations and start Pre-Admission Evaluations when needed.
• Escalates clinical concerns to the Director of Admissions immediately
• Be able to acknowledge, clarify, answer, confirm, and transition the conversation to help best direct the patient/family
• Supports account, patients & families who readmit to the hospital/ER (VITAS revocations) by care coordinating with VITAS team.
• Utilize direction and judgement in determining an approach to create, develop and sustain a consultative relationship in assigned accounts and other potential referral sources, by making effective customer contacts and exhibiting excellent customer service skills.
• Resolves customer feedback by investigating opportunities for development, developing solutions, preparing reports, and collaborates on resolutions with program management.
• Leverages educational tools on provided devices as customer visual aids and learning tools to grow knowledge. Has a knowledge of Sales visual aids.
• Completes Admissions and Sales training.
• Able to apply training and leverage tools and resources when executing strategies with customers with a strong sense of urgency.
• Maintains professional and technical knowledge by reviewing professional publications, establishing personal networks and remaining current with changes in healthcare field in order to understand customer industry.
• Open to and proactively applies coaching feedback from direct manager with the intentions on improvement of various skillsets.
• Works cohesively and leverages opportunities with facility case managers, discharge planners and floor staff in conjunction with VITAS team members: VITAS Admissions Team, VITAS Sales Team, VITAS Medical Director & Team Physicians, Team Managers and overlapping team disciplines, Patient Care Administrators, Sr. Leadership. Attends team meeting at least two times per quarter.
• Timely completion of administrative duties: expense reports, payroll entry, other administrative actions by required times.
• Effective in professional verbal, written, and electronic communication.
• Perform related duties as required. This position description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to perform any other job-related duties assigned by their supervisor or management.

Qualifications

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

Experience/Requirements

• Minimum three years of experience in direct customer service or healthcare industry
• Excellent presentation, negotiation and relationship-building skills
• Clinical knowledge base to support effective care transitions to VITAS for hospice eligible patients
• Previous participation in a team environment that involved individual accountability and teamwork; driven and results oriented
• Able to demonstrate examples on critical thinking and create solutions
• Past military service a plus
• Experience with volunteer organization a plus
• Evidence of exceeding goals or expectations with a project or previous job
• Strong customer service, sense of urgency and problem-solving skills
• Time management and organizational skills
• Ability to collaborate with a team to support market, to build relationships, and educate to generate access to hospice care by building long term business partnerships
• Strong interpersonal skills within all levels of an organization
• Excellent oral and written communication skill
• Ability to work outside of normal business hours (8-5), evenings and weekends as needed.
• Proficiency in Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, iOS devices
• Integrity and patient/ customer focus: ethical, moral conduct, customer services
• Reliable transportation

Education

Role requires the employee to be a registered nurse, licensed vocational nurse, medical social worker, chaplain, or counselor.

Physical Requirements

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.