Patient Flow Coordinator

Job Description

The Patient Flow Center is intended to improve the quality and safety of care, reduce the need for out of area placements, and optimize the use of resources. The Coordinator assists with placement of patients in the acute care setting in accordance with established guidelines to the appropriate facility and service line. This role typically reports to the Manager, Patient Flow Center.

Principal Accountabilities

• Uses critical thinking and sound judgment in directing patients to the most appropriate level of care and unit assignment and ensures accurate and complete communication with all areas across the system.
• Utilizes appropriate tools and technology to monitor and promote continuous patient movement.
• Maintains knowledge of systemwide dashboards to monitor capacity, open/dirty/closed rooms, throughput bottlenecks, and isolation status.
• Answers incoming calls and collects divert status, patient bedding information, order changes in level of care, patient status changes.
• Organizes placement process to meet patient load influx and eliminates bed assignment delays.
• Utilizes the bed board to identify open and available rooms for bedding patients.
• Maintains current knowledge of each facility unit nuance grids to ensure appropriate placement of patients based on capability and level of care.
• Monitors all patient placement and progression functions in a responsive manner responding to all callers with the aid of the electronic health record, approved clinical protocols, and established patient care protocols and healthcare information, in partnership with patient placement RN.
• Consults as needed with patient placement RN for an initial triage to assist in determining appropriate level of care for managing patient placement.
• Works with all Memorial Hermann hospital teams and key stakeholders on leading and facilitating efficient, timely placement of patients across the system.
• Uses available tracking systems to maintain ongoing surveillance of available staffed beds.
• Makes sure to monitor progress with bed assignments and arrivals of patients to assigned units; monitors for timeliness of transfers and discharges.
• Enters and thoroughly updates patient and operational data into various database systems in a timely fashion with a high level of accuracy.
• Incorporates knowledge of hospital and unit admission criteria, unit specialties, limitations, and patient need when determining proper patient placement.
• Participates in daily bed meetings where appropriate.
• Alerts department leadership of delays with patient flow for individual patients and departments experiencing delays.
• Safeguards safe care to patients, staff and visitors; adheres to all Memorial Hermann policies, procedures, and standards within budgetary specifications including time management, supply management, productivity and quality of service.
• Promotes individual professional growth and development by meeting requirements for mandatory/continuing education and skills competency; supports department-based goals which contribute to the success of the organization; serves as preceptor, mentor and resource to less experienced staff.
• Demonstrates commitment to caring for every member of our community by creating compassionate and personalized experiences. Models Memorial Hermann’s service standards of providing safe, caring, personalized and efficient experiences to patients and our workforce.