Position Title	Director, Population Health
Work Location	Silver Spring, MD
FLSA Status	Exempt
Full-Time or Part-Time	Full-Time
Telecommuting	No/Occasional

 

POSITION SUMMARY

The Director, Population Health supports program development, implementation, and evaluation for the Nexus Montgomery Regional Partnership, a $7.6M collaborative effort among the six hospitals operating in Montgomery County, Maryland (member hospitals) and multiple local community-based organizations. Nexus’ goals are to improve the health of the population as measured in the short term by reduced hospital and total cost of health care. Reporting to the VP of Population Health/Director of Nexus Montgomery (VP/PD), the Director Population Health collaborates with other PCC team members, member hospital staffs and leadership, community organizations, and local and state government agencies. The overarching responsibilities for this role are:

• Develop and manage the systems and reports required to track that approved programs are operating to schedule, within budget and scope, and meeting program goals. With Nexus team and partners, ensure challenges are addressed.
• With VP/PD, cultivate ideas for potential new Nexus programs or activities through review of national best practices for population health improvement, board and key stakeholders input, community partner proposals and development of community relationships. Lead the process of evaluating the potential of new Nexus programs or activities, noting the focus of Nexus is on leveraging the power of collaborative program implementation to more effectively address population health issues than can be achieved by any single hospital or community organization.
• Monitor key health care policy and payment developments that may impact, positively or negatively, on the cohesion of the Nexus partnership or the ability of the partnership to deliver on its objectives.

Primary Care Coalition (PCC) serves as the management and implementation infrastructure for Nexus under the direction of the governing Nexus Board of Managers (representing each of the six member hospitals), and its Finance Committee and the Partnership Program Interventions Committee. Current Nexus programs and their target populations are:

• Wellness and Independence for Seniors at Home (WISH): a pre-emptive care coordination service for Medicare Seniors living independently in community; implemented by The Coordinating Center; with the goal of reducing avoidable hospital utilization,
• Hospital Care Transitions (HCT): 30-90 day intervention programs implemented uniquely by each of the six Nexus member hospitals; with the goal of reducing readmissions,
• Community capacity expansion and system improvement for the Severely Mentally Ill (SMI); includes several related initiatives with the common goal of reducing hospital utilization for this population, and
• Specialty care for ineligible-uninsured (Project Access); schedules and pays for specialty visits for this population with a goal to improve health and reduce hospital utilization and readmissions.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

Program Management Support

• With the VP/PD, establish routine processes and reports to measure program implementation and operations against program plans and third-party contracts. Develop and disseminate a monthly program performance scorecard that analyzes and accurately reflects program statuses, successes, and challenges for key milestones, performance metrics, and budgets. As needed, lead, engage in, or monitor process improvement or risk mitigation activities.
• With VP/PD, assess capacity of Nexus infrastructure staff and Nexus partner organizations and assist in developing plans to optimize resources and effort.
• Ensure that PCC and partner organizations remain in compliance with contracted terms and ensure that all parties are aware of and addressing potential challenges to meeting contract terms.
• Establish strong working relationships with key partner, vendor, or internal program staff. Obtain answers to stakeholder questions relating to program stratus, challenges, and successes.
• With the VP/PD, draft the monthly Board of Managers and Committee updates on existing programs or potential new programs under consideration.
• Working with the Nexus communications staff, draft presentations and communications for internal and external audiences relating to the Nexus programs.

New Program Evaluation

• Develop processes for capturing, prioritizing and evaluating new ideas for potential programs. Ideas may be generated by Board of Managers or Committee members, Nexus/PCC staff, community partners and vendors, or result from opportunities and threats that arise from changes in public health policy and the local, state, or national level.
• Cultivate relationships such as with County staff, vendors, and other community based organizations to learn of or generate concepts for potential new initiatives or collaborations that would meet the goals of Nexus, benefit from collaborative implementation and strengthen community-based health improvement capacity.
• With VP/PD, manage an overall evaluation process for potential new initiatives. Within the direction set by the Board of Managers, contemplate a portfolio of programs that meet short term cost of care goals balanced with longer term population health improvement initiatives. New initiatives evaluation may include, establishing scope, collecting data, documenting assumptions, collaborating with internal and external partners, analyzing data, and preparing presentations and discussion documents. Work with Nexus/PCC data analytics staff to define data sources, obtain and design the data analyses needed for evaluation.
• Identify consulting, analytics, and vendor resources as needed to support new initiative feasibility studies, or the design, development or implementation of new Nexus programs. Lead overall resource selection process with key stakeholders. This position may have oversight of consultants or other resources.

Market and Policy Assessment

• Keep abreast of and assess market and policy changes, at the national and local levels, that may create opportunities or threats for existing or new Nexus programs or to the factors that bind the Nexus partnership itself. This includes monitoring key health industry news sources, policy development organizations, government agencies, and other channels as determined to be relevant to the success of Nexus and its programs. Market and policy changes include mergers or acquisitions of hospitals or other health providers, penetration of health products and services into the local market, changes to state funding of health related programs, changes in insurance coverage rules, including Medicare and Medicaid, increases or decreases in hospital payment rates, and modifications to federal or state provider payment programs.
• Synthesize, organize, and appropriately disseminate critical market information related to potential opportunities and threats to key stakeholders such as the PCC leaders and staff, Nexus Board and Committee members, and program contractors.

ADDITIONAL DUTIES

• Participate in relevant local and state work groups, committees and community meetings. Some such meetings are held outside standard business hours.
• With VP/PD, build relationships across the Nexus region, with community providers, influencers and grass-roots representatives. Ensure the experiences and needs of patients, families and community residents are included in evaluation of current and potential programs and initiatives.
• Support PD/VP in communications to the Nexus Board, HSCRC and other external stakeholders on programs performance, outcomes and recommendations; address impact on short-term and longer term population health goals and opportunities. As delegated by PD/VP, represent Nexus to external agencies and organizations.
• Identify and build opportunities for collaboration with other state sponsored collaborations and identify best practices or opportunities for improvement.
• Work collaboratively with other PCC programs, sharing program successes and challenges and identifying best practices and standard operating procedures that can improve all PCC programs.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor or Master in public health or policy, health administration, business administration, health care delivery or similar. At least 10 years of work experience in health care delivery, consulting, or analytics is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated advanced analytical skills. Experienced in project management, definition of program success measures, scorecard development, and reporting. Familiarity with data collection and data analysis design, sufficient to communicate needs with data management and data analysis staff.
• Demonstrated experience in process improvement with ability to work as a consultant, facilitator and colleague with multidisciplinary healthcare professionals.
• Demonstrated advanced communication skills. Ability to communicate effectively and persuasively, both orally and in writing to a broad range of stakeholders, including clients, clinicians, hospital administrators, and public health officials. Prepare and deliver effective presentations. Listen actively, build rapport easily identify conflict and tension and facilitate constructive resolution, inspire and build trust.
• Ability to organize, develop, implement, monitor and evaluate professional work plan goals and performance objectives. Must have superb organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to lead, facilitate and work with diverse groups. Experienced in creating engaging, non-judgmental meeting environments that encourage sharing of challenges and failures and supportive peer-to-peer learning.
• Computer literacy with proficiency and expertise in Microsoft Office, including WORD, EXCEL, and PowerPoint.
• Self-motivated individual with the ability to work independently and with minimal supervision.

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE

• Health care consulting, provider, regulator, or payer experience preferred.
• Experience building lasting partnerships and coalitions preferred.
• Knowledge of alternate payment models, including Maryland’s all-payer waiver, strongly preferred.

ADA REQUIREMENTS

This job operates in a professional office environment. The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

· This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, telephones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines.
· This is largely a sedentary role; however, some filing may be required.
· This would require the ability to lift files, open filing cabinets and bend or stand as necessary.
· Advanced math skills needed to calculate compensation, bonuses, benefits analysis, percentages, etc.
· Requires ability to learn new software applications as necessary.
· Must be able to lift up to 20 pounds.
· May require occasional travel.

DISCLAIMER

This job description indicates in general the nature and levels of work, knowledge, skills, abilities and other essential functions (as covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act) expected of an incumbent. It is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities required of an incumbent. An incumbent may be asked to perform other duties as required.Create Job