Discharge Planner (Full-Time/Day) Washington Township

About the role

The Discharge Planner facilitates safe, timely, and cost-effective transitions of care by coordinating all post-acute service and appointment needs for patients on the assigned unit. Working collaboratively with providers, care managers, and interdisciplinary team members, the discharge planner ensures that follow-up physician, laboratory, procedural, and financial appointments are accurately scheduled and linked to appropriate orders and payor requirements. This role communicates with third-party payers to secure authorization for inpatient and post-acute services. The Discharge Planner also assesses psychosocial and environmental factors affecting recovery, provides education and referrals to community resources, and supports patients and families in coping with the transition from hospital to home or another level of care.

Responsibilities

• Schedules necessary post-acute services including home health, DME, transportation, infusion services, specialty populations (dialysis, VBR, etc.) and community-based resources in collaboration with the inpatient care manager RN, MSW, Social Services Coordinator, or Social worker BSW.
• Obtains payer authorization for appropriate level of care, length of stay, and post-discharge services; ensures timely submission of clinical information and communicates payer determinations of denials to the care manager.
• Documents all discharge planning activities including authorizations, communications, and service arrangements promptly and accurately in the medical record to ensure regulatory and organizational compliance.
• Reviews and completes Medicare Notice of Hospital Discharge with inpatient and behavioral health hospital admissions for beneficiaries in hospital.
• Acts as a liaison between patients, families, healthcare providers, payers, and community agencies to support smooth transitions of care and ensure continuity post-discharge.
• Maintains coordination of intra-facility and acute care hospital transfers by collaborating with care management, utilization management and transfer center colleagues to initiate authorization, transportation and repatriation of medically stable patients.
• Communicates, escalates, and prioritizes transportation needs between care management colleagues and the transfer center.
• Completes required delivery and documentation for regulatory documents.
• (Facility specific) Coordinates payer interactions with physician advisors when necessary.
• Completes admission assessments under the supervision of a inpatient care manager RN, MSW, Social Services Coordinator, or Social worker BSW.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in healthcare related field.
• 2 years of experience in healthcare related field or Less than 1 year as a new graduate.
• Knowledge of the techniques and the ability to work with a variety of individuals and groups in a constructive and collaborative manner.
• Ability to manage multiple concurrent objectives, projects, groups, or activities, making effective judgments as to prioritizing and time allocation.
• Computer and EHR literate.
• Knowledge of patient appointment and procedure scheduling rules, insurance, Medicare and Medicaid, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and medical terminology.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in social work.
• Knowledge of discharge planning regulations, patient choice, and insurance authorization as needed.
• Familiar with electronic health records and documentation.
• Familiar with medical terminology.

Additional Qualifications

• Physical Demands: Lift and carry 40-50 lbs. Examples: Push/pull patients on bed, stretcher (requires 29 lbs. push force), lateral transfers up to 50 lbs. of the patient's weight. Frequent to continuous standing/walking. Patient transporters can walk 8-10 miles per shift.