Executive Director, Patient Access Services

Overview

The Executive Director, Patient Access Services provides executive leadership over enterprise-wide Patient Access Services, ensuring the strategic alignment of all front-end operations—including hospital admissions, ambulatory access, insurance authorization, and patient registration—with organizational goals related to access, patient experience, compliance, and revenue cycle performance. Aligning operational performance with system-wide goals in access, reimbursement, compliance, and patient experience. Leads across the system to drive operational excellence, digital transformation, and patient-centered strategies, while maintaining fiscal accountability and preparing the organization for growth and regulatory change.

Leads enterprise-wide transformation initiatives in access services, driving innovation, scalability, and integration of digital technologies to support patient-centric care models and operational excellence. Is responsible for implementing Epic standard best practices across the system within the Patient Access division.

Provides subject matter expertise related to the development of a professional, compliant, comprehensive, and service oriented Patient Access division that provides an excellent patient experience. Collaborates with executive leadership across Revenue Cycle, IT, Finance, Compliance, and Clinical Operations including physicians to integrate access strategies with enterprise goals, ensuring seamless front-end operations that support system-wide revenue integrity, financial stewardship, long term organizational growth, and patient flow optimization.

Certifications:

• Epic Certification within 18 months and
• Certified Healthcare Access Manager (CHAM) within 2 years

Education:

• Bachelor's Degree:
  Health Care Leadership
• Bachelor's Degree:
  Business Management
• Bachelor's Degree:
  Related Field
• Experience In Lieu of
  
  Education:
  
  Patient Access Leadership (10 years)

Work Experience:

• Revenue Cycle - 10 years
• Patient Access Leadership - 10 years

• Designs, leads, and continuously evolves a best-in-class, enterprise-wide patient access operational model
• Delivers exceptional service to patients, physicians, and clinical partners
• Ensures alignment with organizational strategic goals
• Drives high customer satisfaction, optimizing access efficiency, and advancing financial performance
• Provides executive-level oversight
• Ensure accurate, timely data capture
• Streamline financial clearance and authorization processes
• Provide effective front-end cash collection strategies across all points of service
• Partners with senior leadership to standardize and scale access operations across the health system
• Integrates industry-leading practices, technology innovation, and regulatory compliance
• Leads and directs the Patient Access Services division through reporting Directors with guidance from the Vice President, Revenue Cycle Operations
• Establishes operational goals, objectives and budgets
• Plans optimal operating policies and procedures required
• Delivers quality services and enhance operational processes and workflows
• Implement and oversee system-wide adoption of Epic best practices for registration, scheduling, eligibility verification, and pre-service processes, ensuring data accuracy, efficiency, and regulatory compliance
• Ensure alignment of patient access operations with revenue cycle objectives
• Improve POS collections, reducing front-end denials
• Enhance financial clearance rates while maintaining an excellent patient experience
• Partners with executive leadership to define and drive organizational goals
• Align patient access strategies with enterprise priorities
• Acts as a catalyst for transformation
• Foster a culture of continuous learning, innovation, and agility
• Builds strong alliances with key stakeholders to lead change initiatives
• Enhance performance, patient experience, and system-wide integration
• Serves as a strategic representative on cross-functional committees, executive work groups, and system-wide teams to advance organizational priorities
• Facilitates transparent and effective communication across departments and external partners
• Acts as a trusted liaison to promote collaborative problem-solving and resource alignment
• Builds and sustains strong, mutually beneficial relationships both within the organization and with external agencies to support seamless operations and strategic initiatives
• Maintains proactive, transparent communication with executive leadership and direct reports regarding the performance, challenges, and opportunities within Patient Access Services
• Ensures timely escalation of critical issues and collaborates on solutions to support operational excellence and strategic objectives
• Develops, implements and maintains compliant policies and practices for all direct and indirect Patient Access Services staff and leaders for all Carle locations
• Oversees organizational adherence to all applicable regulations, standards, and directives issued by regulatory agencies, governmental bodies, and…