Admissions Specialist

SUMMARY PERFORMANCE DESCRIPTION : To coordinate the intake admissions, insurance precertification and reviews of treatment. To develop strategies that result in a positive community relationships and image that assists the facility in meeting its goals. To work closely with the Director of Business Development and Admissions Manager to enhance the goals of the hospital.

EDUCATION : Bachelor's Degree in a relevant field, such as education, counseling, marketing, or communication preferred.

SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS : Knowledge of or experience in behavioral health and chemical dependency fields. Ability to work under pressure, meet deadlines and adapt to workload demands. Provide a positive and professional presentation to build rapport quickly with referral sources and program staff. Must have good communication and organizational skills. Clinical experience sufficient to perform required assessment services.

PRIOR EXPERIENCE : Minimum of 3-5 years of experience in the behavioral health/Detox field or hospital setting preferred.

ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBLITIES

• Provide clinical evaluations of prospective referrals determining patients’ appropriateness for the program.
• Coordinate the psychiatric assessment process with the attending psychiatrists.
• Identify age-appropriate developmental tasks and needs as evidenced in the development of care and the treatment planning sessions.
• Maintain contact with personal care homes, nursing homes (assisted living/long term care facilities), medical-surgical units, local Emergency Departments, local Mental Health Clinic and other facilities and agencies to promote the program and to provide education regarding services available for their patients/clients/residents
• Complete appropriate medical necessity documents for insurance reviews and precertification.
• Aide in developing strategies to seek HMO/PPO and other third-party Utilization Review success including reporting regulatory or poor quality indications such as readmission, insurance denials, extended length of stay, and any other issues / needs as appropriate.
• Participate and provide appropriate reporting from Intake in all director/manager level and staff level meetings.
• Coordinate the announcement of new processes or referral changes to all referral sources as needed.
• Maintain referral logs and reports as needed.
• Aide in maintaining ongoing contact with community agencies to provide information on the program and assist in coordinating referrals.
• Comply in a timely, honest and quality manner with all Corporate and management reporting requirements, including, but not limited to, Quality reporting, HR and Finance reporting requirements.

WORKING ENVIRONMENT : Moderate physical activity. Will be located in and around the inpatient Hospital. Some hazard potential from possibility of physical acting out behavior of patient and health related communicable disease.

PHYSICAL AND MENTAL REQUIREMENTS OF JOB :

Must be able to work and concentrate amidst distractions such as noise, conversations, and foot traffic; ability to handle interruptions often and be able to move from one task to another. Must be professional when dealing with referral sources. Ability to exercise self-control in potentially volatile situations such as being verbally or physically confronted by patients in a threatening or aggressive manner.