Director Clinical Risk

Cayuga Medical Center

22d•$120,000 - $150,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Director Clinical Risk serves as the organization's Patient Safety Officer and provides strategic leadership for patient safety, clinical risk management, and harm reduction initiatives. The role leads enterprise-wide patient safety, event investigation, and regulatory compliance programs, including root cause analysis (RCA), failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA), accreditation readiness, and survey response activities. The Director partners with clinical, operational, and medical staff leaders to advance High Reliability Organization (HRO) principles, Just Culture, and continuous quality improvement. The role analyzes safety and risk trends, oversees corrective action plans, develops executive-level dashboards to improve patient outcomes and organizational performance, and serves as the primary liaison with accrediting and regulatory agencies to support compliance with Joint Commission, CMS, state, and other applicable standards. This is a full-time, onsite position at Arnot Ogden Medical Center. The employee must be able to remain at a workstation and move around the workspace as needed to complete job tasks, with or without reasonable accommodation.

Requirements

Master's degree in Healthcare Administration, Nursing, Public Health, Risk Management, Quality, or a related healthcare field.
At least eight years of progressive leadership experience in clinical risk management, patient safety, accreditation, quality, regulatory compliance, or healthcare operations, including leadership responsibility within a complex healthcare organization.
Current certification in at least one of the following: Certified Professional in Healthcare Risk Management (CPHRM), Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS), or Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ). If not held at hire, at least two of these certifications must be attained within two years of hire.
Demonstrated expertise in patient safety, clinical event management, RCA, FMEA, Just Culture principles, and performance improvement methodologies.
Proven experience leading accreditation readiness and regulatory compliance initiatives, including The Joint Commission, CMS, and applicable state regulatory agencies.
Demonstrated success leading multidisciplinary teams and collaborating with physicians, nursing, executive leadership, and operational leaders to improve patient safety and reduce clinical risk.
Strong knowledge of healthcare regulatory standards, patient safety science, quality improvement methodologies, and clinical risk management principles.
Exceptional executive communication, relationship-building, facilitation, conflict resolution, and change management skills.

Nice To Haves

Advanced certification in healthcare risk, patient safety, quality, or accreditation (e.g., CPHRM, CPPS, CPHQ, and/or CPHA), with demonstrated expertise in regulatory compliance and performance improvement.
Proven leadership experience as a Patient Safety Officer or senior healthcare leader overseeing clinical risk management, accreditation, and regulatory compliance within a complex health system.
Demonstrated success leading Joint Commission, CMS, DNV, and/or state regulatory surveys, including organization-wide readiness, survey management, and corrective action initiatives.
Deep expertise in patient safety, clinical risk management, and performance improvement methodologies, including event reporting, RCA, FMEA, safety analytics, HRO, and Just Culture principles.
Strong executive presence and experience leveraging data and technology to drive outcomes and presenting patient safety, risk, and accreditation performance to senior leadership, medical staff, boards, and regulatory agencies.

Responsibilities

Serve as the organization's Patient Safety Officer, providing strategic leadership for patient safety, clinical risk management, and harm reduction initiatives.
Lead enterprise-wide patient safety, event investigation, and regulatory compliance programs, including RCA, FMEA, accreditation readiness, and survey response activities.
Partner with clinical, operational, and medical staff leaders to drive HRO principles, Just Culture, and continuous quality improvement.
Analyze safety and risk trends, oversee corrective action plans, and develop executive-level dashboards to improve patient outcomes and organizational performance.
Act as the primary liaison with accrediting and regulatory agencies, ensuring ongoing compliance with Joint Commission, CMS, state, and other applicable standards.