Director of Access

HIA Health•Fargo, ND

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Access leads access for all HIA services, including HIA Hospice, HIA Heather’s House Hospice, HIA Primary Care, HIA Palliative Care, and community services. Reporting to Mission Advancement, this role is accountable for creating an exceptional experience for referral partners, patients, families, caregivers, and community stakeholders. The Director ensures timely responses, accurate referral disposition, seamless care transitions, and reliable handoffs while fostering a culture of growth, responsiveness, collaboration, and continuous improvement. The position serves as a key ambassador for HIA and champions a patient- and family-first approach in every interaction. The role leads call-center coverage, referral and admissions workflows, nurse navigation, community relations, chart-review processes, and access-performance reporting. It also oversees the Transportation Manager’s service reliability, scheduling, staffing, vehicle readiness, and safety processes within the approved transportation scope. The Director develops team leaders and staffing plans, coordinates admissions capacity with service leaders, and addresses operational barriers through approved escalation pathways. Conversion goals must preserve patient choice and appropriate clinical decisions.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in nursing or a healthcare-related field.
Minimum of 3 years of experience in a healthcare or hospice setting, with progressive responsibility growth.
Experience with patient admissions, documentation, call-center performance, community relationships, and service coordination.
Knowledge of hospice eligibility criteria, regulations, and compliance standards.
Strong leadership and team management skills.
Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
Exceptional verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to problem solve and make decisions quickly and effectively.
Proficiency using electronic medical record (EMR) systems and referral management software.
Ability to work collaboratively with a diverse team of clinical and administrative staff.
Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities in a fast-paced environment.
If an RN, a current Registered Nurse (RN) license in MN/ND is required.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree.
Certification in Hospice and Palliative Nursing (CHPN), or the ability to obtain it within 1 year of starting the role.

Responsibilities

Lead call-center coverage, routing, scheduling, and follow-up; ensure urgent clinical concerns reach qualified clinicians promptly, including after hours.
Direct referral, enrollment, and admissions workflows for all HIA services, using appropriate service-specific criteria, records, consent, and payer processes with responsible teams.
Lead a focused community relations approach aligned with HIA’s strategic goals, strengthening referral relationships, service education, and community engagement to increase awareness, grow referrals, and serve patients and loved ones sooner while preserving accurate communication and patient choice.
Lead nurse-navigation workflows that advance strategic referral development and growth through proactive engagement and cultivation of referral partner relationships, coordinated care, and patient and family education.
Address access barriers, concerns, and hesitancy about the hospice benefit when patients are clinically eligible, supporting informed patient and family choice; ensure reliable handoffs, qualified clinical oversight, and timely escalation of clinical concerns and unresolved barriers.
Oversee the Transportation Manager’s service reliability, scheduling, staffing, vehicle readiness, and safety processes within the approved transportation scope.
Lead chart-review workflows for referral completeness, admission documentation, and identified gaps; route clinical questions to qualified reviewers and track corrective follow-up.
Report access performance and barriers by service line and for the enterprise to Mission Advancement; work with service leaders to improve response and transitions.
Develop team leaders, staffing plans, cross-coverage, and competency with People and Education.
Promote ownership of each referral through a completed handoff, prioritizing the patient and loved one experience.
Coordinate admissions capacity with service leaders and resolve operational barriers early through the approved escalation pathway.
Coach staff on clear explanations and respectful follow-up.
Perform other duties as assigned.