Patient Advocate

The Patient Advocate is valuable member of the Hilo Medical Center Risk Management department.

Qualified candidates will demonstrate outstanding communication skills, while adhering to our Mission, Vision, and Values.

JOB DUTIES:

• Assisting with patient relations
• Carrying out customer service initiatives
• Investigation, documentation, and resolution of patient and/or visitor complaints
• Research of issues and preparation of correspondence, explaining findings
• Analysis and preparation of data; report preparation
• Acting as a communication link between patients, families, and the organization
• Handling of difficult situations and facilitating positive responses
• Working collaboratively with patients, visitors, physicians, and staff
• Participation in meetings; contribution to overall planning of hospital program and activities
• Manages and ensures adherence to the CMS Complaint and Grievance regulations

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Education Requirement:

Bachelor's degree from an accredited four (4) year college or university in Healthcare Administration, Psychology, Sociology, Communications, Public Relations, Nursing, Social Work or related field.

Excess work experience as described under the Specialized Experience below or any other progressively responsible administrative, professional or other analytical work experience which provided knowledge, skills and abilities comparable to those acquired in four (4) years of successful study while completing a college or university curriculum leading to a baccalaureate degree may be substituted on a year-for-year basis.  To be acceptable, the experience must have been of such scope, level and quality as to assure the possession of comparable knowledge, skills and abilities.

Experience Requirement:

Two (2) years of progressively responsible professional experience in a healthcare setting with administrative, analytical, customer service, community organization or patient relations programs.  Demonstrated ability to identify, collect, and analyze data; recommend solutions for a course of action in accordance with rules, regulations and/or other guidelines; communicate effectively, orally and in writing; and plan, organize and carry out assigned activities independently.

Quality of Experience:

Possession of the required number of years of experience will not in itself be accepted as proof of qualification for a position.  The applicant’s overall experience must have been of such scope and level of responsibility as to conclusively demonstrate that he/she has the ability to perform the duties of the position for which he/she is being considered.

As the Big Island’s leading providers of inpatient and outpatient care, the East Hawaii Region of Hawai`i Health Systems Corporation (HHSC), consisting of Hilo Medical Center, Hale Ho′ola Hamakua, Ka′u Hospital, and the Yukio Okutsu State Veterans Home, delivers a full range of services and programs. Our three hospitals include 290 beds and over 1,700 employees. Our medical staff is comprised of 250 physicians, physician assistants and Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, representing 33 specialties. East Hawaii Health is our network of clinics offering primary and specialty care. Hilo Medical Center functions as a Level III Trauma Center, which includes the second busiest emergency room in the state, providing 24-hour care and serving more than 50,000 patients annually. Hale Ho′ola Hamakua and Ka′u Hospital are designated as Critical Access Hospitals. To learn more about the East Hawaii Region, please watch our Video Yearbook or visit www.hilomedicalcenter.org, www.halehoolahamakua.org or www.kauhospital.org.

• 13 paid holidays each year (14 during election years)
• 21 paid vacation days per year
• 21 paid sick days per year
• Medical, dental, vision, and prescription plans
• Employee Assistance Program
• Participation in the State of Hawaii’s retirement system
• Potential eligibility for various student loan repayment & scholarship programs

Offers of employment will be contingent on successfully passing a pre-employment examination, which includes drug screen and other regulatory medical requirements such as, but not limited to, a tuberculosis (TB) screen.  The cost for drug screening and blood draw for QuantiFERON and Titers, shall be borne by the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation.

As part of the recruiting process for this position, external applicants (job applicants NOT employed by HHSC’s East Hawaii Region) are required to complete a pre-employment assessment(s) shortly after application submission. If you are not an employee of the East Hawaii Region of HHSC, you will receive an email containing assessment instructions. We ask that you complete the assessment(s) within two days of receipt of the request. 

Must be available to work shifts, weekends and holidays as necessary based on hospital operations. Services are provided 24/7.

East Hawaii Region (Hilo Medical Center, Hale Ho’ola Hamakua and Ka’u Hospital) is a drug free workplace and an Equal Opportunity Employer.