Associate VP, UHealth Access

University of Miami•Miami, FL

About The Position

UHEALTH PATIENT ACCESS “Access” at the University of Miami Health System (UHealth) serves as the entry point to care across the health system’s hospitals, outpatient clinics, ambulatory sites, specialty care sites, and virtual care environments. As the foundational entry point, Access plays a vital role in enabling patients to initiate, navigate and continue thier care jouney seamlessly. Patient Access at UHealth includes centralized scheduling, registration, referral coordination, pre-arrival services, and contact center operations. It plays a critical role in improving the patient experience by streamlining appointment availability, reducing barriers to care, and enhancing communication and transparency. Leveraging data-driven strategies and digital health tools, the Access team supports more than 1.8 million ambulatory patient encounters annually across over 50 locations in South Florida. As UHealth continues to expand, we are focused on increasing operational efficiency, strengthening throughput and capacity management, enhancing digital front door capabilities, and ensuring equitable access for all patients. The Access function partners closely with ambulatory operations, clinical departments, IT, revenue cycle, marketing and other teams to optimize scheduling, manage patient flow, and align services with institutional goals. The team is committed to advancing through AI/innovation, service excellence, and ensuring patients and families receive timely, coordinated, and compassionate care starting from the moment they engage with UHealth.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in a related field required.
Minimum 10 years of relevant experience.
Deep expertise in access operations, scheduling systems, and call center management.
Strong grasp of Epic or other EMR scheduling platforms and CRM solutions.
Proven track record implementing enterprise-level access strategies and digital transformation initiatives.
Analytical skills to design metrics and translate insights into operational improvements.
Strong interpersonal and leadership skills with the ability to collaborate across clinical and non-clinical teams.
Commitment to health equity and patient-centered care.
Ability to work with a variety of disciplines and levels of staff, including medical staff and across departments.
Familiarity with managing multiple projects in a highly matrixed and complex environment.
Demonstrated understanding of contemporary and progressive service excellence methodology.
Knowledge of business and management principles.
Ability to direct, manage, implement, and evaluate department operations.
Ability to establish department goals, and objectives that support the strategic plan.
Ability to effectively plan, delegate and/or supervise the work of others.
Ability to lead, motivate, develop and train others.
Commitment to the University’s core values.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute a comprehensive digitally enabled access strategy that aligns with UHealth’s mission, goals, and care delivery efforts.
Serve as a system-level leader and subject matter expert on patient access, bringing best practices and thought leadership to the organization.
Lead enterprise-wide access operations including template management, scheduling, registration, referral intake, and patient navigation across hospitals and ambulatory clinics.
Optimize workflows to improve lead times to appointment, utilization/fill rates, and no-show/abandonment rates.
Advance UHealth’s digital front door strategy—including self-scheduling, online registration, and digital intake tools—ensuring patients can engage on their terms.
Partner with IT and marketing to streamline omnichannel access and enhance CRM capabilities.
Oversee contact center operations with a focus on first-call resolution, digital engagement, and patient experience.
Define and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) for access (e.g., scheduling lag, conversion rate, leakage, call abandonment). Use data to drive continuous improvement and transparency across departments and locations.
Partner with clinical departments, medical group leadership, ambulatory operations, nursing, and the revenue cycle to implement aligned access standards.
Chair or participate in system-wide access governance committees to drive shared accountability and coordination.
Support site expansion and capacity modeling to ensure access aligns with patient demand and clinical resources.
Collaborate with strategic planning and finance on forecasting, access capacity, and operational scaling.
Promote health equity and patient-centeredness in all access initiatives.
Ensure compliance with applicable regulations and privacy standards related to patient registration and referral processes.
Maintain oversight of documentation accuracy, data quality, and patient safety protocols tied to access functions.