RAPID ACCESS COORD II

Company Overview

Covenant Health is the region’s top‑performing healthcare network with 10 hospitals, outpatient and specialty services, and Covenant Medical Group, the area’s fastest‑growing physician practice division. Headquartered in Knoxville, Covenant Health is a community‑owned integrated healthcare delivery system and the area’s largest employer. With more than 11,000 employees, volunteers, and 1,500 affiliated physicians, the organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life for the more than two million patients and families served each year. Covenant Health is the only healthcare system in East Tennessee to be named a Forbes “Best Employer” seven times.

Position Summary

The Rapid Access Coordinator serves as the primary contact for referring physicians and facilities requesting Covenant Health services for continued, often higher‑level patient care. The role collects appropriate clinical information and coordinates the acceptance of patient transfers and direct admissions into Covenant Health facilities in accordance with established clinical guidelines, protocols, and EMTALA. The Coordinator obtains accurate patient demographic information for registration, captures verbal patient status/type admission orders from providers, and enters them into the Computerized Order Entry (CPOE) system. Ongoing communication and collaboration with physicians, hospital CAOs, leadership, system and facility administrators on call (AOC), house supervisors, and capacity management staff are essential to resolve barriers to patient transfer acceptance. Critical thinking, multitasking, and timely action are required to ensure patients receive care promptly. This position reports directly to the Call Center Manager.

Responsibilities

• Coordinates and facilitates appropriate patient transfer and consult requests from referring facilities in accordance with established clinical guidelines, protocols, and EMTALA within established timeframes.
• Coordinates and facilitates appropriate direct patient admissions from physician offices and ambulatory outpatient centers in a timely manner.
• Coordinates and schedules tele‑medicine consults for emergency departments and inpatient facilities.
• Utilizes effective and professional communication to act as liaison on behalf of the patient between physicians, hospital staff, and referring facilities.
• Obtains and documents accurate patient clinical information relevant to transfers or direct admissions and clearly communicates information to accepting physicians.
• Demonstrates the ability to triage and prioritize patient acuity utilizing critical thinking skills, clinical decision making and acquired knowledge to assist in assessing situations and facilitating patient flow through the continuum of care.
• Obtains verbal admission order from the provider for patient type/status (inpatient, observation, etc.) and appropriate level of care (critical care, telemetry, medical, etc.) and enters the order into eCare.
• Obtains accurate patient demographic information from referring facilities and physician offices to perform patient quick registration.
• Immediately requests bed placement for patients and communicates bed numbers back to referring facilities or physician offices.
• In the event of delays in bed assignment, performs patient status checks and coordinates placement; involves the ED physician and/or Clinical or System AOC for urgent placement.
• Monitors and communicates daily system bed status across the organization.
• Maintains an up‑to‑date and accurate profile of bed capacity across all Covenant Health facilities, including the number of patients holding for a bed in the emergency departments, surgery and other patient holding areas.
• Elevates capacity issues to System Clinical AOCs, hospital CAOs and CNOs.
• Immediately elevates transfer acceptance issues to the appropriate level of system and facility leadership.
• Schedules appointments for Outreach Link for Covenant Health emergency department patients who need follow‑up treatment and/or resources for mental health or substance misuse.
• Coordinates air transportation when needed.
• Follows appropriate hand‑off protocols at shift change, including giving a full patient report, completing all patient transfer documentation and patient status orders, and logging off the telephone.
• In the event of unexpected telephone downtime and/or power outage, opens an urgent ticket with the Covenant Help Desk to implement Crisis Link and WiFi phones and immediately initiates proper downtime action steps.
• Completes all necessary training and refers to facility acceptance guidelines and protocols to coordinate transfers and admissions; attests quarterly to a review of all guidelines and protocols.
• Checks emails on a routine basis to stay up‑to‑date on process changes that need to be implemented immediately.
• Maintains an awareness of all services and capabilities within Covenant Health.
• Completes appropriate patient follow‑up and manages expectations related to transfer requests in a timely manner (e.g., follow‑up when additional testing is requested by the accepting physician, needed data for stroke/neurology transfers, when physicians request a patient be transported immediately, etc.).
• Demonstrates proficiency in working with the Patient Checklist, Flowboard, eCare, eCare Schedule Book, STAR and other office‑oriented systems as needed.
• Completes necessary reports and assignments during call downtime.
• Follows policies, procedures, and safety standards; completes required education assignments annually.
• Works toward achieving goals and objectives, and participates in quality improvement initiatives as requested.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Minimum Education: None specified; however, must be sufficient to meet the standards for achievement of the required license and/or certification.
• Minimum Experience: Minimum of two (2) years in a health‑related field.
• Licensure Requirement: Licensed EMT, Paramedic, or LPN in the state of Tennessee.

Schedule

Full‑time, 80 hours per pay period, day shift.