Director of Admissions

Nexus Health Systems Ltd; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance

Paid Time Off

Paid Holidays

401(k) Retirement Plan

Life and Disability Insurance

Professional Development Opportunities

Leadership Growth and Advancement Opp

Nexus Health Systems Benefits

Job summary

Nexus Health Systems seeks a Director of Admissions to lead a multi-site admissions function, aligning clinical review, payer authorization, and patient transition into Nexus programs. The role demands strong leadership, strategic oversight, and a focus on timely access to care in a complex healthcare network.

You will manage a team of reviewers and coordinators, partner with payers and referral partners, and continually improve admissions workflows to enhance patient experiences and outcomes.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration, Social Work, Psychology, Counseling, Nursing, or related field required.
• Doctoral degree preferred but not required.
• Seven to ten years of progressively responsible experience in healthcare admissions, utilization review, behavioral health, or healthcare administration.
• Minimum of three years of supervisory or management experience.
• Direct experience with payer relations, prior authorizations, and clinical referral review required.
• Experience leading admissions, clinical review, utilization management, or related healthcare teams strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with autism, intellectual and developmental disabilities, behavioral health conditions, and medically complex patient populations preferred.
• Active clinical license, such as LCSW, LPC, LMFT, RN, Psychologist, or BCBA, preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead, manage, and mentor the Admissions team, including Clinical Reviewers and Admissions Coordinators.
• Establish clear performance standards, productivity expectations, and service goals for the department.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide ongoing coaching, feedback, and professional development.
• Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, responsiveness, and compassionate service.
• Ensure team members have the training, resources, and support needed to perform their responsibilities effectively.
• Serve as an escalation point for complex referrals, authorization challenges, and admissions-related concerns.
• Oversee the admissions process from initial referral through clinical review, payer authorization, acceptance, and transition into a Nexus program.
• Ensure referrals, clinical records, and evaluations are reviewed thoroughly, accurately, and within established timeframes.
• Oversee the preparation, submission, and follow-up of prior authorization requests to insurance carriers and other funding sources.
• Monitor admissions workflows to improve efficiency, response times, accuracy, and continuity throughout the referral process.
• Identify barriers that may delay admission and work with stakeholders to resolve them.
• Ensure admissions activities comply with organizational policies, payer requirements, and regulatory standards.
• Develop, maintain, and improve standardized admissions processes, procedures, and documentation requirements.
• Partner with clinical and operational leaders to evaluate referrals and support transitions into Nexus programs.
• Maintain effective relationships with referral partners, payers, patients, families, and other stakeholders.
• Ensure communications from the Admissions team are thorough, timely, and professional.
• Collaborate with internal departments to communicate referral status, authorization progress, and barriers.
• Support a patient- and family-centered admissions experience with clear communication and compassion.
• Strengthen referral-partner relationships by providing dependable admissions service.
• Oversee accurate collection, tracking, and reporting of admissions data.
• Monitor referral volume, admissions activity, payer approval rates, response times, and trends.
• Use data to identify trends and opportunities to improve admissions performance.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of workflows and implement improvements based on results.
• Provide regular updates to executive leadership on admissions performance and opportunities.
• Synthesize admissions data into a narrative showing successes and needs.

Skills

Leadership

Team management

Payer relations

Clinical review

Data analysis

Communication

Strategic planning

Education

Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration, Social Work, Psychology, Counseling, Nursing, or related field

Doctoral degree (PhD, PsyD, or DSW) preferred

Tools

EMR systems

CRM platforms

Reporting tools

Data systems

Job description

If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact this employer to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.

Director of Admissions

Full Time Management Houston, TX, US

Director of Admissions

Nexus Health Systems

About Nexus Health Systems

For more than three decades, Nexus Health Systems has provided specialized medical, behavioral, psychiatric, and rehabilitative care for individuals whose needs are often too complex for traditional healthcare settings.

Through a network of specialty hospitals and medical-model residential treatment centers across Texas, Nexus serves children, adolescents, young adults, and adults with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders, brain and spinal cord injuries, behavioral and psychiatric conditions, rare genetic disorders, and complex medical needs.

Our interdisciplinary teams work together to address the whole person, helping patients and families move through a coordinated continuum of care and make meaningful progress toward greater independence and an improved quality of life.

Position Summary

The Director of Admissions provides leadership and oversight for the admissions process across Nexus Health Systems, ensuring prospective patients, families, referral partners, and payers experience a professional, efficient, and compassionate entry into care.

The Director leads the Admissions team, including Clinical Reviewers and Admissions Coordinators, and is responsible for referral management, clinical record review, prior authorization processes, admissions workflow, stakeholder communication, and performance reporting.

Working closely with clinical and operational leaders, referral partners, payers, and executive leadership, the Director ensures admissions practices support timely access to appropriate care while remaining aligned with organizational policies, compliance requirements, and strategic priorities.

The ideal candidate is an experienced healthcare admissions leader who can effectively balance clinical, operational, and strategic responsibilities. This individual will bring strong team leadership, payer and authorization expertise, analytical ability, and a commitment to creating an exceptional admissions experience for every patient and family.

Leadership and Supervision

• Lead, manage, and mentor the Admissions team, including Clinical Reviewers and Admissions Coordinators.
• Establish clear performance standards, productivity expectations, and service goals for the department.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide ongoing coaching, feedback, and professional development.
• Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, responsiveness, and compassionate service.
• Ensure team members have the training, resources, and support needed to perform their responsibilities effectively.
• Serve as an escalation point for complex referrals, authorization challenges, and admissions-related concerns.

Admissions Process Oversight

• Oversee the admissions process from initial referral through clinical review, payer authorization, acceptance, and transition into a Nexus program.
• Ensure referrals, clinical records, and evaluations are reviewed thoroughly, accurately, and within established timeframes.
• Oversee the preparation, submission, and follow-up of prior authorization requests to insurance carriers and other funding sources.
• Monitor admissions workflows to improve efficiency, response times, accuracy, and continuity throughout the referral process.
• Identify barriers that may delay admission and work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders to resolve them.
• Ensure admissions activities comply with organizational policies, clinical admission criteria, payer requirements, and applicable regulatory standards.
• Develop, maintain, and improve standardized admissions processes, procedures, and documentation requirements.

Collaboration and Stakeholder Relations

• Partner with clinical and operational leaders to evaluate referrals, determine program appropriateness, and support smooth transitions into Nexus programs.
• Maintain effective working relationships with referral partners, payers, patients, families, and other external stakeholders.
• Ensure communications from the Admissions team are thorough, timely, professional, and consistent with organizational expectations.
• Collaborate with internal departments to communicate referral status, authorization progress, anticipated admissions, and potential barriers.
• Support a patient- and family-centered admissions experience by promoting clear communication, responsiveness, and compassion throughout the process.
• Strengthen referral-partner relationships by providing a dependable and service-oriented admissions experience.

Data and Reporting

• Oversee the accurate collection, tracking, maintenance, and reporting of admissions data.
• Monitor referral volume, admissions activity, payer approval rates, response times, conversion trends, and other key performance indicators.
• Use data to identify trends, operational barriers, and opportunities to improve admissions performance.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of existing workflows and recommend process improvements based on measurable results.
• Provide regular updates to executive leadership regarding admissions performance, emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities.
• Synthesize admissions data into a clear narrative that demonstrates what is working, where improvement is needed, and where Nexus can innovate.
• Maintain the accuracy and integrity of admissions information across applicable data, clinical record, and reporting systems.

Strategic Leadership

• Contribute to organizational growth initiatives, including market outreach and relationship development with referral partners.
• Collaborate with organizational leaders to identify opportunities to strengthen referral pathways and improve access to Nexus programs.
• Support the development and implementation of admissions strategies that align with organizational priorities and program needs.
• Ensure admissions policies and practices remain aligned with the mission, compliance standards, and strategic goals of Nexus Health Systems.
• Identify opportunities to improve the patient, family, payer, and referral-partner experience.
• Serve as a knowledgeable resource to leadership regarding admissions operations, referral trends, payer activity, and process-improvement opportunities.

Qualifications

Education

• Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration, Social Work, Psychology, Counseling, Nursing, or a related field required.
• Doctoral degree, including a PhD, PsyD, or DSW, preferred but not required.

Experience

• Seven to ten years of progressively responsible experience in healthcare admissions, utilization review, behavioral health, or healthcare administration.
• Minimum of three years of supervisory or management experience.
• Direct experience with payer relations, prior authorizations, and clinical referral review required.
• Experience leading admissions, clinical review, utilization management, or related healthcare teams strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with autism, intellectual and developmental disabilities, behavioral health conditions, and medically complex patient populations preferred.
• Experience within hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, behavioral health programs, residential treatment settings, or other specialized healthcare environments preferred.
• Demonstrated experience improving workflows, developing teams, monitoring performance, or implementing process improvements.
• Multi-program or health-system experience is a plus.

Licensure and Certification

• Active clinical license, such as LCSW, LPC, LMFT, RN, Psychologist, or BCBA, preferred.
• Administrative, healthcare leadership, utilization management, or related certification or training is a plus.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Proven leadership, team-management, coaching, and performance-development skills.
• Strong knowledge of healthcare admissions workflows, prior authorization processes, payer requirements, and clinical referral review.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, organizational, and relationship-building abilities.
• Ability to communicate effectively with patients, families, referral partners, payers, clinical teams, operational leaders, and executives.
• Proficiency with data systems, electronic medical records, CRM platforms, clinical record systems, and reporting tools.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret performance data, identify trends, and develop actionable recommendations.
• Ability to translate complex information and admissions data into clear updates for executive leadership.
• Strong judgment, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to balance clinical, operational, service, compliance, and strategic priorities.
• Ability to manage multiple competing priorities and meet deadlines in a fast-paced healthcare environment.
• Commitment to providing a professional, responsive, and compassionate experience for patients and families.
• Ability to travel between Nexus Health Systems locations as needed.

Nexus Health Systems offers a competitive compensation and benefits package, including:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• Paid Time Off
• Paid Holidays
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Professional Development Opportunities
• Leadership Growth and Advancement Opportunities

Join Our Team

At Nexus Health Systems, admissions is more than an administrative process—it is the first step in connecting patients and families with specialized care that can make a meaningful difference in their lives.

The Director of Admissions will have the opportunity to lead a critical system-wide function, develop a talented team, strengthen relationships with referral partners and payers, and improve access to care for individuals with complex needs.