Patient Advocate and Experience Partner

UnityPoint Health Information

The Patient Experience Lead provides direction for planning, developing, organizing and supporting the implementation of programs and process designed to build patient and customer relationships and to improve performance to ensure the achievement of organizational goals and objectives specific to the assigned service area of UnityPoint Health. This role supports operations for customer service and patient engagement trainings, interpretation of data and research, patient satisfaction improvement initiatives, promotions and communications, reward and recognition, and works collaboratively with executives, managers, physician leaders and others to assure effective implementation of tactics and strategies around patient/member experience and engagement. The Patient Experience Partner is a fluent user of the online evaluation and improvement tools available through the third party administrator of system patient experience surveys.

The Patient Experience Partner provides leadership, coordinating guidance and mentoring to others involved in patient experience and loyalty work. In addition, the Patient Experience Partner presents information to Quality Boards and other Senior Leadership Councils and Committees as needed. The Patient Advocate Specialist is responsible for coordinating a centralized complaint management system that efficiently and effectively eliminates or decrease barriers, which impedes patient satisfaction. This position coordinates the information flow between the organization customers.

Communication and Planning

• Coordinates and helps develop and lead patient experience projects of varying complexity

• Coaches physicians, clinicians and team members to support development of the patient experience foundational behaviors and UPH values

• Trains leaders to coach-at-the elbow for development and validation of foundational behaviors and UPH values

• Initiates research and development of best practice in patient experience

• Works with necessary departments, individuals and/or vendors to collect, interpret and disseminate patient experience and patient engagement data

• Supports the coordination of ongoing internal and external transparency initiatives

• Understands statistics and is able to articulate relationships between data and results to a variety of audiences including Senior Leadership Boards and Councils

• Develops in-depth knowledge/understanding of department, makes specific and actionable recommendations for improvement and provides guidance and coaching based on the knowledge of the department needs.

Customer Service

• Talk with patients, families and loved ones regarding their care experience through the regional Patient Advocate hotline.

• Serve as the point person for inpatient/outpatient/clinic service recovery.

• Assist with customer service training to team members as needed

• Stays abreast of trends and developments in the field by reading appropriate literature and attending seminars, training programs and related conferences

Project Management

• Provides support to departmental personnel, physicians, leadership, and other key stakeholders in patient experience improvement and management of complex data sets to discern trends and
patterns primarily in patient experience of providers and/or service lines. This may include working with data sets at all phases of the process including collection, report generation, analysis and
interpretation

• Provides support for presentation design, and strategic implementation

• Assists with implementation of tactics around short and long range patient satisfaction and engagement improvement strategies and objectives consistent with the goals of the health system

• Facilitates teams for project work and supports other team’s work performed in relation to the patient experience

Clerical/Administrative

• Document patient and/or family grievances into database and assigns department manager ownership while managing investigation and resolution process through completion in accordance
with CMS guidelines/compliance and with internal organization policies and procedures.

• Assist leaders with initial and final grievance letters to patients and family members submitting formal grievances.

• Utilize Excel/One Note to maintain and update the grievance spreadsheet to track all open and closed grievances.

• Initiate research and development of best practices in patient advocacy and experience.

Education:
Bachelor’s degree in related field or direct and applicable work experience preferred.

Experience:
Knowledge of customer service theories and practices, and knowledge of healthcare services and patient relations required.

Healthcare experience strongly preferred.
Experience with The Studer Group, Baptist Leadership Group, Ritz Carlton, the Beryl Institute or other customer service thought leader strongly encouraged.

Proficiency with on line patient experience improvement tools and report generation is necessary.

License(s)/Certification(s):
Valid driver’s license when driving any vehicle for work-related reasons.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Highly motivated, self-starter who works effectively with minimum supervision

• Must be well organized and efficient

• Must be comfortable providing training and presenting in front of groups

• Must have an ability to organize work quickly and efficiently and be comfortable working against deadlines

• Must exhibit professional, friendly attitude both on the telephone and in person

• Must be able to prioritize work and adjust projects to meet changing demands

• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with UnityPoint Health staff, affiliated physicians and businesses, community and other professional groups

• Ability to understand and apply guidelines, policies and procedures

• Excellent collaboration and team-building skills

• Excellent interpersonal and communications skills (verbal and written)