RN Clinical Manager - Hospice

JOB SUMMARY

The Clinical Manager is responsible for day-to-day logistics and coordination of patient care. The Clinical Manager is responsible for supervision of clinical personnel, ensuring that care provided aligns with best practice standards, and services are delivered appropriately.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

Field & Office Balance

• Spends approximately 50% in the field and 50% in the office.
• Completes patient visits as needed to support field staff Carries a caseload up to 6 patients when the census requires.
• Provides visit support to allow hiring and training of new staff as caseloads grow.
• Completes and tracks on-site supervisory visits as required.

Staff Management & Performance

• Manages Nurses and C.N.A staff, including performance management, caseload management, and productivity monitoring, with an emphasis on accountability, field training and mentorship for seasoned and new clinicians.
• Conducts 90-day and annual reviews for Nursing and C.N.A team members in a timely manner.
• Conducts and documents weekly/monthly check-ins with each managed employee, collaborating with leadership (especially Workflow/Training Manager) to ensure consistent messaging using Namaste standardized tools.
  • Weekly check-ins for all new employees until completion of introductory period; adjusts frequency thereafter.
  • Weekly written or verbal check-ins are required for employees on a Performance Improvement Plan or after a disciplinary action.
• Uses appropriate emotional intelligence, stress management, and de-escalation skills to lead staff effectively in both routine and challenging situations.
• Promotes accountability through daily use of the Agent Summary Report in HCHB to reconcile any late or incomplete visits that may affect billing, timely patient care, or team communication.
• Assists in screening and interviewing new employees and makes hiring recommendations.
• Supports orientation and competency completion for new hires alongside HR director and Director of Clinical Services
• Assists with Home Health RN skills checkoffs and annual skills fair support.
• Helps maintain agency culture through participation in events, recognition programs (e.g., Nectar), and celebrations of professional months.
• Proactively partners with the Director of Clinical Services to ensure seamless nursing on-call coverage for holidays, scheduled vacations, and unexpected absences. Steps in to provide coverage personally when necessary to maintain uninterrupted patient care.

Workflow & Training Collaboration

• Serves as secondary to Director of Clinical Services for:
  • Hospice workflow processes (HCHB).
  • Receiving case referrals, reviewing patient information.
  • Education and unified messaging for field staff.
  • Personnel implementation and evaluation of in-service and continuing education programs.
• Assists in formulating, revising, implementing, and evaluating policies, procedures, goals, and objectives.
• Supports scheduling team to ensure appropriate daily workload and timely visit assignments.
• Collaborates with Director of Clinical Services to manage SHP outcomes, including HCAHPS and staff education for improvement.
• Partners with Director of Clinical Services to facilitate IDT meetings for coordination of care.

Clinical Oversight & Patient Care

• Reviews patient medical diagnosis, prognosis, medications, procedures, and clinical course.
• Assures development, implementation, and updates of individualized plans of care, integrating physician orders and collaborating with Director of Clinical Services.
• Assists field staff in setting priorities and developing plans of care.
• Performs patient visits for admission, death, change in condition, and routine visits as needed to supplement and support RNCMs.
• Triages calls from facilities, patients, families, doctor offices, and Namaste nurses.
• Addresses complaints and concerns from facilities, patients, families, and internal staff (including IDG members and marketing team).
• Conducts quarterly record reviews and communicates findings to Directors and appropriate personnel.
• Attends and participates in quarterly QAPI meetings.
• Collaborates with Medical Director regarding eligibility questions.
• Collaborates with Medical Records and NP team to ensure F2F and RN02 completion prior to recert IDG and per Medicare regulations.
• Performs hospice triple checks to ensure documentation accuracy prior to billing.
• Assigning appropriate personnel to patients

Quality, Compliance & Outcomes

• Reviews non-admission data to provide education to admission staff, referral sources, and marketing team to identify trends for growth and quality improvement.
• Maintains or improves HOPE and HVLDL metrics based on Cornerstone standards.
• Participates in accountability meetings (Clinical, Billing, Scheduling).
• Complies with professional standards and principles.
• Assesses community health needs and assists in developing programs to meet those needs.
• Participates in public relations and community activities to promote the organization’s role in hospice and home health care delivery.

Cost Management

• Reviews DME and supply ordering and invoices for accuracy and appropriateness; maintains or reduces costs per Pennant standards.
• Reviews pharmacy ordering for formulary options and appropriateness; maintains or reduces costs per Pennant standards.
• Manages and oversees Nursing and C.N.A caseloads in accordance with compensation models and patient acuity while maintaining staffing equality among the team.

Collaboration & Agency Support

• Demonstrates a growth mindset by proactively identifying opportunities to improve patient access, streamline processes, and support sustainable census growth while maintaining high-quality patient care.
• Collaborates with clinical, operational, and business development teams to identify barriers to admissions and develop creative solutions that increase referral conversion and patient admissions.
• Serves as a key leader in promoting organizational growth by cultivating strong relationships with referral partners, supporting community outreach efforts, and ensuring timely response to referral opportunities.
• Collaborates with marketing team to provide in-services and best practice training for field staff at facilities.
• Supports/backups other Clinical Leadership team members as needed.
• Creates best practice policies and collaborates with operations staff.
• Participates in administration on-call rotation.
• Sets quarterly focus with Director of Clinical Services and Executive Director to align with Clinical Managers’ incentive plans.
• Performs other duties as delegated by the Director of Clinical Services.

The above statements are only meant to be a representative summary of the major duties and responsibilities performed by the employee of this job.  The employee may be requested to perform job-related tasks other than those stated in this description.

Metrics and Areas of Success:

As a pivotal member of the hospice/home health organization, success in this role is measured by a variety of metrics and indicators that reflect the effectiveness and efficiency of operations, quality of care, and overall organizational performance. These metrics serve as benchmarks against which the performance of the position is evaluated and provide tangible evidence of achievement and contribution to the organization's goals. Key areas of accountability and metrics include:

• Average Daily Census
• FT Weekly average Visits points
• Hospice Direct Cost
• Pharmacy Cost
• DME Cost
• Medical Supply Cost
• Daily Sales Outstanding
• Clinician turnover
• HIS/HOPE Composite Score
• HCAHPS overall Composite Score
• State Survey results
• Internal Compliance Audit score
• Employee Engagement Survey results
• Employee Emergency fund

These metrics, while varied in nature, collectively contribute to the overarching goals of providing high-quality patient care, maintaining operational efficiency, ensuring regulatory compliance, and fostering a positive and engaged workforce.

JOB REQUIREMENTS (Education, Experience, Knowledge, Skills & Abilities)

• Graduate of National League of Nursing accredited school of nursing with a BSN degree is preferred.
• Previous experience in hospice/home care setting and with two years management or supervisory experience.  Proven ability to work within an interdisciplinary setting. Registered nurse with current licensure to practice professional nursing in the state.
• Complies with professional standards and practice.
• Has excellent observation, good nursing judgment and communication skills.  Understands hospice philosophy and issues of death/dying.
• Understands principles of pain/symptom management.
• Must be willing to challenge the status quo and work with a team to find innovative solutions for new, long-standing, and cyclical issues.
• Must be comfortable engaging in difficult conversations as a natural part of process improvement to create positive and meaningful change in an established organization to improve practice and elevate the company above competitors.
• Hospice & Palliative Care certification preferred but not required.
• The ability to drive and/or have access to transportation for agency related travel (e.g. community partners, patients, etc.) is an essential function of the job.  Must have and maintain a valid driver’s license, maintain automobile insurance coverage and have access to an automobile.
• Complies and maintains current CPR certification.
• Demonstrates excellent observation, verbal and written communication skills.