Centralized Surgery Scheduler

Job Summary :

Coordinates and schedules cases between Kaiser Permanente members, surgeons, anesthesiology, external providers, operating room staff, and vendors according to established surgery scheduling protocols. Responsible for coordination and consultation with Anesthesia for surgery clearance. Schedules cases in an effort to maximize the efficiency, cost-effectiveness and utilization of OR venues, surgeon availability, and other related resources. Makes members / patients and their needs a primary focus of ones actions; develops and sustains productive member / patient relationships. Actively seeks information to understand member / patient circumstances, problems, expectations, and needs. Builds rapport and cooperative relationship with members / patients, clinical staff, and physicians. Responsible and accountable for how actions or plans will affect members; responds quickly to meet member / patient needs and resolves problems.

Essential Responsibilities :

• This position, knows and complies with all Kaiser Permanente quality, safety, and emergency policies and procedures. Demonstrates quality and effectiveness in work habits and clinical practice in every interaction with patients, colleagues, providers, and leadership. Ensures patient safety in the preparation and provisioning of care related to but not limited to medications, procedures, infection prevention, fall prevention, including consistent use of two patient identifiers and procedural time outs. Reports safety hazards, accidents and incidents, and unsafe working conditions promptly.
• Coordinates resources to schedule surgeries for multi-disciplinary departments using established scheduling guidelines, OPTime average procedure length, and operating room availability.
• Manage schedules and communicate between Kaiser Permanente members, Health Plan surgeons, external providers, anesthesiologists, surgical department staff, OR venues, and patients to coordinate coverage as needed.
• Makes scheduling decisions that maximize cost-effectiveness, efficiency, and utilization.
• Accountable for the completeness and accuracy of surgical request forms, including patient demographics, procedure description and code, venue request, and time request.
• Collaborates extensively with each Kaiser Permanente OR Scheduler to assure maximum utilization of block time in each OR Venue.
• Collaborates with Preop Evaluation Education Center (PEEC), Kaiser Ambulatory Surgery Center (KASC), Minor Procedures Rooms, St. Joseph, and Good Samaritan Team Leaders, to ensure appropriate and accurate scheduling by procedure code.
• Collects data elements to produce surgical reports and provide statistical feedback to Surgical Departments.
• In addition to defined technical requirements, accountable for consistently demonstrating service behaviors and principles defined by the Kaiser Permanente Service Quality Credo, the KP Mission as well as specific departmental / organizational initiatives. Also accountable for consistently demonstrating the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors necessary to provide superior and culturally sensitive service to each other, to our members, and to purchasers, contracted providers and vendors.