System VP of Patient Progression and Throughput

The System Vice President of Patient Progression and Throughput provides executive leadership and strategic oversight for patient progression across the system. This role is accountable for clinical quality, patient safety, operational performance, access, growth, and financial results across the continuum of care. The role engages key stakeholders to drive optimization of operations, reporting and analytics, best practice, maximization of resources and communication to align and achieve operational and clinical quality metrics. Leads strategic planning and operational execution of key patient progression initiatives and programs. The VP partners closely with executive administrative and clinical leaders to ensure safe, efficient, high-quality, and patient-centered care. Partners as a dyad with Chief Medical Officers to ensure the integrated delivery of high-quality services supporting all locations within the System as well as services provided to rural referring physicians and organizations in our region that share joint accountability for the clinical, operational, financial, and strategic performance. Essential Job Functions • Provides executive leadership for enterprise-wide patient throughput, access, and care coordination, with accountability for Transfer Center, Patient Flow, and Nursing Coordinator operations; establishes system governance, operating model, staffing and productivity standards, and performance management to achieve strategic, quality, and service-level outcomes. • Owns system-wide governance for clinical appropriateness and level-of-care placement, ensuring consistent application of approved criteria across facilities; partners with physician and nursing executive leadership to align decisions with quality, safety, regulatory requirements, and capacity strategy. • Defines and executes the enterprise patient access and physician service strategy, prioritizing demand across service lines and facilities; leads a system portfolio of throughput initiatives to improve time-to-bed, experience, and capacity utilization, with measurable performance targets and executive reporting. • Leads enterprise-wide, cross-functional operational governance with hospital presidents, CNO/CMO leaders, and ancillary executives to identify constraints, remove barriers, and standardize best practices that ensure safe, efficient, and predictable patient flow across all sites of care. • Sponsors and governs enterprise performance improvement programs; sets multi-year goals, approves investment and resource allocation, and drives accountability for results through KPI dashboards, operational reviews, and corrective action to sustain quality and financial performance. • Directs regional and rural access strategy in partnership with hospital executives and Rural Health leadership to strengthen referral relationships, expand appropriate admissions and transfers, and align transfer pathways with system growth, network integrity, and community mission priorities. • Leads development and optimization of the post-acute and transport partner network (transport providers, SNFs, LTACHs, critical access hospitals, and community services), aligning relationships with transition-of-care strategy to improve capacity, reduce length of stay, and support system-wide patient outcomes. • Builds and sustains a high-accountability culture; recruits, develops, and mentors leaders and managers across throughput functions, establishing succession planning, competency standards, and escalation pathways to ensure consistent executive decision-making and service excellence. • Establishes enterprise documentation and data governance for throughput operations, ensuring integrity, timeliness, and standardization to support compliance, audit readiness, care continuity, analytics, and executive decision-making. Leadership Attributes • Strategic Execution: Drives organizational objectives by operationalizing changes and initiatives effectively and efficiently. • Proactively anticipates both the needs of the health system and the impact operations has on the organization’s success. Collect and analyze data; prepare, and present recommendations, and explain associated benefits and risks for improving operations, quality, and access to care. • Business Acumen: Demonstrates and further develops competencies in the areas of leadership, fiscal management, employee engagement, human resources knowledge, organizational dynamics and governance, organizational communication, strategic planning, change management, risk management, compliance, patient safety and quality improvement. Demonstrates professional ownership, self-development, and a desire for life-long learning. • Emotional Intelligence: Serves as a role model for others leading and influencing the team to provide outstanding customer service. Develops and fosters relationships with health system leaders, departments, and members of the team to support open communication, trust, transparency, and collaboration. • Leadership: Creates a supportive department culture by fostering individual motivation, coaching, and training for optimum job performance. Collaborates with Human Resources to develop, implement and support programs and processes that add value to the health system, its leadership, and employees. Leads to improve culture, employee and clinician engagement, empowerment, growth, and retention, while remaining committed to the Health System’s management and prosperity for its patients, residents, employees, and community. Standard Expectations • Takes responsibility for professional growth and development needs; meets all educational requirements. • Practices and implements process improvement principles and oversees assessment and in areas of responsibility. • Performs other duties as assigned to meet the needs of the departments, service lines, and the organization.