Access Consultant (Access Management)

Northwest Permanente, P.C., is a self-governed, physician-led, multispecialty group of over 1,500 physicians, surgeons, and clinicians, caring for over 600,000 members in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Kaiser Permanente is one of the nation's preeminent health care systems, a benchmark for comprehensive, integrated, and high-quality care.

Our Access Management team is currently seeking an Access Consutlant to provide consulting and analytical decision support services or technical expertise for a broad array of access and cadence issues, through partnership with NWP Analytics and other stakeholders. Responsible for more complex multi-faceted projects and analyses across disciplines and functional areas.

This position will work with Access Program Managers on system changes and KPHC related builds/workflows. Will be assisting in developing access performance monitoring process and coordinating compilation, data interpretation and presentation of monitoring information. Success will be accomplished by providing expert consultation to drive evidence-based practices/tactics, member advocacy, data interpretation and analysis, via collaborative efforts with key organizational partners (leaders, physicians, staff, other departments).

Major Responsibilities / Essential Functions:

Data Analysis

• Develop innovative analytic approaches which address multifunctional client needs and diverse or complex situations.
• Structure analysis approach for others.
• Work with chief and Practice Director to create business proposals for local projects and physician staffing, through analytical support.
• Meet monthly with physician chief and practice director to review ongoing projects and new needs.
• Learn the fundamentals of Advanced Access including interpretation of the access dashboard and other relevant reports.
• Develop working relationship with analysts (NWP Analytics) to calculate current and future supply-demand analysis.
• Review service line access plans for accuracy and appropriate minimum staffing/day of week schedule smoothing.
• Monitoring and working with PD on holiday and vacation schedule supply planning, through analytical support.
• Monitor access and work with service lines to anticipate and address gaps.
• Report analyst duties, e.g. design and develop automated actionable reports to inform managers in a timely fashion.
• Data analyst duties, e.g. assists in the research, analysis, and remediation of moderately complex data issues that directly impacts reporting and analysis.
• Business systems analyst duties, e.g., help define business rules applicable to the development and/or use of the application.
• Involves interpreting and analyzing established concepts and trends.
• Systematically review progress to ensure value is added / or requirements and milestones are met.

Cadence Optimization

• Consider the impact or effect process changes have within the system and ensure appropriate measures are implemented to increase overall value and efficiency.
• Research best practices and innovative schedule template changes in response to patient/clinic needs (i.e. sports physicals, flu season, etc.), in support of operations teams.
• Proactively identifies increasingly more valuable improvements to enhance strategies and analysis.
• Raise critical questions and concerns in ways that enhance the work of the teams.
• Ensure regional compliance standards and departmental protocols and procedures are met. Maintain process standardization and correct level loading of resources to ensure maximum value is achieved.
• Consider the impact or effect process changes have within the system and ensure appropriate measures are implemented to increase overall value and efficiency.

Stakeholder Management

• Recognize and anticipate scope issues and establish communications with internal customers (clinicians, managers and labor partners) to continually improve process.
• Develop strong working relationships with all levels to sustain a continuous improvement culture.
• Communicate complex information to team members and client, accurately and effectively.
• Influence client decisions through written and verbal communications.
• Contribute value-adding information and insights.
• Use best practices to meet client needs.
• Stimulate strategic thinking by clients.
• Manage complex client relations, guiding sponsors, clients and stakeholders towards project priorities that incorporate root cause analysis and correction.
• Develop regional relationships with other primary care, specialty care and hospitalists to foster communication about best practices.
• Communicate and explain complex ideas in a concise and simplified manner. Build consensus among team members.
• Builds effective relationships with peers, clients and other departments.
• Collaborates with Regional Appointing Services to improve processes and build effective relationships between operations and support systems.

Consultation & Solution Development

• Develops solutions to a diverse range of complex problems, which require creativity and innovation within broadly defined policies and practices.
• Requires in-depth analysis to identify and recommend new solutions for more complex problems.
• Provides professional/technical guidance to team members.
• Influences others to buy into new concepts and methodologies.
• Engages in matters requiring coordination across functional lines. Strong oral and written communication, presentation and facilitation skills and consulting skills.
• Exercises considerable latitude in determining objectives and approaches to assignment.
• Work is accomplished without considerable direction.
• Work is evaluated upon completion to ensure objectives and performance requirements have been met.
• Identifies opportunities that may benefit from resources and addresses through dynamic thinking and proactive problem solving.
• Structures, creates, and presents formal communications which are clear, succinct, and compelling.
• Design work and structure analysis to facilitate decision-making and develop multiple innovative and creative solutions to solve problems.
• Identify key issues and help define problems for deeper analysis.
• Work with team to analyze data and synthesize results to develop pertinent and insightful solutions.
• Help drive the creation of strategic and targeted improvement plans to drive improvement based on evidence and best practice.

Minimum Education:

• Master's degree in a Business Administration, Health Care Administration or related field OR a bachelor's degree AND two (2) years of experience in a directly related field OR an associate degree AND four (4) years of experience in a directly related field OR six (6) years of experience in a directly related field.

Minimum Work Experience:

• Minimum two (2) years of experience planning, directing, and coordinating the operations in a non-healthcare organization -OR- minimum one (1) year of experience planning, directing, and coordinating services and operations in a healthcare organization - OR - one (1) year as a KP Fellow.

Additional Requirements:

• Strong proficiency in the use of current software, including spreadsheets, process mapping tools, project workplan tools, charts and graphs, and basic Microsoft applications.
• Ability to lead in a culturally diverse environment and promote culturally competent care.
• Ability to communicate effectively in written and spoken English.
• Ability to analyze, integrate and use quantitative data informed decisions about quality improvement and collaborating with clinical staff, back office staff, and team to achieve expected outcomes.
• Ability to attend to details, prioritize and complete multiple tasks independently in a fast-paced environment and following agreed upon timeline.
• Demonstrated understanding of clinical and operational processes; staff licensure/certification, clinical competency requirements and scope of practice concepts.
• Excellence in customer service, service recovery and complaint resolution skills.
• Must be able to work in a Labor/Management Partnership environment.

Physical Requirements and Work environment:

• This job is performed in a normal office environment.
• Must be able to lift 10 lbs.
• Must be able to talk, listen and speak clearly on a telephone.
• Must be able to constantly operate a computer and other office equipment such as a copy machine, printer, or calculator.

Preferred Education:

• Master's degree in a Business Administration, Health Care Administration or related field.

Preferred Work Experience and Qualifications:

• Business management experience in health care setting.
• Supervisory experience in a unionized health care setting.
• Clinical background.
• Ambulatory health care experience.
• Ability to lead and implement change management and process improvement activities.
• Ability to understand and utilize data to improve performance.
• Ability to apply process improvement and project management principles.
• Ability to manage performance, coach, and develop staff.
• Ability to establish partnerships with physician group, organized labor representatives and peers in order to create a culture of commitment to patient focused service, excellent support of physician and nursing practices, innovation, compliance and integrity.

At Northwest Permanente, P.C., we are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy (including childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), national origin, age, physical and mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information (including characteristics and testing), military and veteran status, and any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Northwest Permanente, P.C. believes that diversity, inclusion, and equity among our employees is critical to our success and we seek to recruit, develop and retain the most talented people from a diverse candidate pool.