Manager of Medical Fitness and Wellness

About the role

The Manager of Medical Fitness and Wellness provides strategic and operational leadership for an integrated medical fitness and community wellness facility. The facility includes medically informed fitness programming, a rehabilitation gym, a therapeutic rock‑climbing wall, group fitness and community classes, and related retail services. The role is responsible for overall success, safety, financial performance, operational efficiency, and member experience across fitness, climbing, wellness, and retail offerings. The manager partners closely with clinical leaders, fitness professionals, climbing specialists, and community stakeholders to deliver a safe, accessible, and medically integrated fitness experience.

Responsibilities

• Build Trust: Provide leadership, supervision, and support for fitness professionals, climbing staff, instructors, and support personnel; reinforce compassionate, patient‑centered interactions; coordinate patient flow and equipment availability for therapists; ensure adherence to safety protocols, emergency response, infection prevention, hospital policies, and accreditation standards; monitor gym activity to prevent injury; maintain incident documentation, equipment inspection logs, and compliance records; uphold HIPAA and confidentiality standards; maintain clear scope‑of‑practice boundaries; implement standardized onboarding, assessments, and data‑driven progression protocols; ensure a therapeutic environment meeting safety and regulatory requirements; coordinate equipment maintenance with Facilities and Biomedical Services; train and certify climbing staff; enforce screening, supervision, and safety procedures for climbing activities; develop and maintain policies and operational documentation.
• Obsess Over Excellence: Oversee daily operations of the rehabilitation gym and medically integrated fitness space; ensure equipment is clean, safe, functional, accessible, and available; manage safe operation and readiness of the therapeutic climbing wall, including inspections and safety checks; oversee gym retail operations (therapy‑related products, fitness accessories, wellness items), including inventory, ordering, pricing, display, and controls; track retail sales and trends, reporting to rehabilitation leadership; align retail offerings with patient recovery and wellness needs; coordinate staffing schedules for gym floor, climbing wall, classes, and community programming; assist with onboarding, training, scheduling, and competency validation; serve as resource and escalation point for staff; aid rehabilitation leadership with equipment selection, purchasing, and allocation; track equipment usage, condition, and replacement needs; monitor facility utilization trends and adjust programming, staffing, and equipment allocation; participate in quality improvement initiatives; track and report key performance indicators (membership mix, utilization, retention, contribution margin); maintain schedules, utilization data, and operational reports; support budget monitoring, supply ordering, expense control, and financial performance; assist with accreditation readiness, audits, and regulatory surveys.
• Lead Innovation: Support development and implementation of new fitness, wellness, climbing, and community programs; oversee climbing classes, youth programs, special events, birthday parties, and other community offerings; implement new programs, technologies, equipment, or service lines that advance medical fitness and wellness; monitor utilization, membership, participation, and operational trends to identify improvement opportunities; use data and performance indicators to inform programming, equipment allocation, staffing, and operational decisions; collaborate with rehabilitation and clinical leadership to develop innovative approaches integrating medical fitness with rehabilitation and whole‑person wellness; explore opportunities to expand access for medically complex patients while maintaining safety and clinical boundaries; evaluate and refine retail offerings based on patient recovery and wellness needs; participate in quality improvement initiatives that enhance outcomes, efficiency, safety, and customer experience.
• Deepen Connections: Collaborate with Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and other clinical teams to support integrated care pathways; build and maintain relationships with primary care providers, rehabilitation staff, community partners, and stakeholders; partner with nutrition and lifestyle professionals for whole‑person health programming; facilitate smooth transitions between inpatient, outpatient, specialty rehabilitation, medical fitness, and community services; represent the rehabilitation gym and medical fitness operations in departmental meetings and hospital initiatives; foster an inclusive environment for medically complex patients, members, and the broader community; promote high‑quality group fitness, wellness, climbing, and community programming; collaborate with front‑desk and membership staff to ensure seamless retail operations and positive customer experience; serve as a visible resource for patients, members, staff, and community participants regarding programming, safety, and facility operations.

Qualifications

• Associate or Bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science, Kinesiology, Health Sciences, or a related field preferred; Bachelor’s degree preferred.
• Current CPR/AED and First Aid certification required.
• Certified Exercise Physiologist, ACSM, NSCA, or similar credential preferred; additional certifications related to climbing, fitness instruction, or medical fitness desirable.
• Minimum of 3–5 years of experience leading gym or fitness center operations with responsibility for retail services, membership growth, and customer experience.
• Experience with staff leadership, program development, and operational management preferred.
• Experience in a medical fitness, rehabilitation, or healthcare‑adjacent environment strongly preferred; prior exposure to hospital‑based or medically integrated fitness programs is a plus.

Skills

• Strong understanding of fitness equipment and therapeutic exercise principles.
• Ability to work effectively with licensed therapists and multidisciplinary clinical teams.
• Excellent organizational, communication, leadership, and problem‑solving abilities.
• Capability to manage multiple operational priorities while maintaining high safety and service standards.
• Knowledge of equipment maintenance, facility operations, and fitness programming.
• Ability to monitor and interpret utilization, membership, financial, and operational data.
• Experience working within a regulated healthcare environment.
• Strong customer service and relationship‑building skills.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with patients, members, staff, clinical teams, and community partners.

Work Environment

Medical fitness and rehabilitation environment with community gym access. Work occurs across rehabilitation, fitness, climbing, retail, group exercise, and community programming areas. May include exposure to patient care areas and medically complex patients. Interaction with patients, members, families, clinical staff, fitness professionals, climbing staff, vendors, and community partners. The setting requires coordination with Facilities, Biomedical Services, and other hospital departments.

Physical Demands

• Stand and walk for extended periods.
• Work in a fast‑paced environment managing multiple priorities.
• Lift, move, and position rehabilitation and fitness equipment weighing up to 50 lb.
• Assist with patient mobility under the direction of a licensed therapist.
• Respond quickly and appropriately to patient or facility emergencies.
• Safely navigate and work throughout gym, rehabilitation, climbing, retail, and community programming areas.

Schedule

May include early mornings, evenings, weekends, or extended hours based on therapy operations, programming, special events, and facility needs. May require response to facility or patient emergencies and coordination with hospital departments.