Quality & Patient Safety Advisor (Local)

Vanderbilt University Medical Center•Nashville, TN

About The Position

Serves as a quality improvement advisor, providing project management facilitation, education, and data analysis to improve systems and processes under occasional guidance. Facilitates the development, implementation, and evaluation of organizational strategies to improve clinical quality and care, patient safety, and financial outcomes. The position works with departments, interdisciplinary teams, and external entities to develop improvement strategies; identifies and navigates barriers; supports teams in defining and monitoring outcomes; and coordinates patient safety event analysis. It plans process redesign, leads project teams, incorporates evaluation measures into project requests and evaluations, summarizes findings to prioritize improvement initiatives, and communicates quality management initiatives. The role supports continuous performance improvement and provides instruction and consultation to advance education and internal processes. The Department of Quality, Safety, and Risk Prevention supports Vanderbilt Health faculty and staff across its main campus, regional hospitals, and ambulatory divisions in delivering care that is safe, timely, effective, efficient, and patient-centered. The role contributes to sharing knowledge, spreading best practices, reducing variability, improving outcomes, and supporting Vanderbilt Health’s mission.

Requirements

Clinical experience is required.
Bachelor’s degree.
Five years of relevant work experience.
Knowledge of regulatory compliance and the ability to interpret and explain rules and regulations, including ambiguous or complex requirements.
Ability to make effective, accurate decisions in fast-paced or changing environments and consider a broad range of alternatives.
Intermediate front-of-room facilitation skills, including guiding collaborative processes and structuring activities using a facilitation methodology.
Knowledge of healthcare organizational dynamics, including quality, value, patient-centered care, and the healthcare continuum.
Ability to prioritize critical-path work and focus teams with limited resources while considering broader efforts.
Ability to transform and interpret data using appropriate visualization methods and translate findings into improvement plans and requirements.
Ability to develop cooperative internal and external relationships.
Knowledge of improvement methodologies, including opportunity analysis, key driver diagrams, performance measure requirements, PDSA improvement cycles, EA, FMEA, and CTQ.
Ability to develop processes for identifying and reporting patient safety risks, near misses, and adverse events; apply evidence-based mitigation strategies; and communicate findings.
Strategic planning skills, including defining direction and making resource-allocation decisions.
Data analysis skills.
Project management skills, including planning, organizing, and managing resources to achieve project goals.
Time management skills.
Clear, effective, and respectful communication skills.
Change management skills, including recommending problem resolutions and assisting with solution testing and quality assurance.

Nice To Haves

Nursing background.
Quality improvement experience.
Experience working in an operating room, surgery center, or clinical space where procedures are performed.

Responsibilities

Collaborate with departments, interdisciplinary teams, and external entities as needed to develop and implement strategies to improve care and processes.
Navigate the organization to address barriers and escalate issues when appropriate.
Assist department managers and quality improvement teams in identifying, developing, and monitoring outcomes.
Coordinate and facilitate patient safety event analysis for events of varying impact levels.
Develop and plan process redesign.
Organize, develop, and lead project teams.
Coordinate the incorporation of quantitative and/or qualitative evaluation measures into project requests and evaluations.
Summarize findings to promote prioritization of improvement initiatives.
Coordinate communication of quality management initiatives to appropriate forums.
Focus on continuous performance improvement to support institutional quality goals.
Provide instruction and consultation to departmental teams to advance education and improve internal processes.