Director, Patient Access/Exp

Director, Patient Access/Exp

• 558510
• Columbia University Medical Center
• Radiology
• Full Time
• Opening on: Jul 17 2026
• Grade 106

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• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Bargaining Unit:
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• End Date if Temporary:
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Standard Work Schedule:
• Building:
• Salary Range: 140,000 - 160,000

The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the University''s good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.

Position Summary

The Director, Patient Access and Experience provides strategic and operational leadership for all patient access functions across the Department of Radiology, with full oversight of access operations, the radiology call center, and patient experience initiatives supporting the Columbia Doctors NewYork-Presbyterian Imaging (CDNYPI) and Columbia Doctors NewYork-Presbyterian Advanced Imaging (CNYPAI) joint ventures.

This role directly manages a team of modality-based call center managers (e.g., MRI/CT, Ultrasound, Interventional Radiology, Mammography/DEXA, General X-Ray/Fluoroscopy), each responsible for scheduling expertise, patient communication, and operational performance within their respective imaging service lines. By organizing the call center around modalities, the Director ensures scheduling staff develop deep knowledge of exam protocols, preparation requirements, and clinical workflows-resulting in higher scheduling accuracy, fewer patient callbacks, and an improved access experience.

The Director is accountable for end-to-end optimization of the patient access experience including scheduling operations, template governance, pre-visit workflows, registration accuracy, and patient satisfaction. This position absorbs full operational and performance accountability previously shared across multiple roles, serving as the single point of leadership for radiology patient access.

The position partners closely with radiology clinical leadership, site operations directors, IT, revenue cycle, and NewYork-Presbyterian counterparts to align access strategy with clinical, operational, financial, and growth objectives.

Responsibilities

• Call Center Operations & Modality-Based Management Structure
• Direct oversight and accountability for all radiology call center operations, managing a team of modality-based managers who each own scheduling performance for their assigned imaging service lines.
• Establish and maintain the modality-based management model, ensuring each manager develops subject matter expertise in exam protocols, preparation instructions, insurance/authorization requirements, and clinical workflows for their modality group.
• Set performance standards, service level expectations, and operational targets for scheduling, registration, call handling, abandonment rates, and first-call resolution across all modality teams.
• Monitor and drive access KPIs including third next available appointment (TNAA), wait times, template utilization, scheduling accuracy, no-show rates, and patient throughput.
• Ensure consistent, high-quality customer service across all patient access touchpoints, with modality managers accountable for specialized patient communication and instruction delivery.
• Manage staffing models, cross-training plans, and coverage strategies to ensure adequate call center capacity during peak volumes, staff absences, and new service launches.

Scheduling Template & Workflow Governance

• Lead governance and standardization of scheduling templates across all modalities and locations, partnering with modality chiefs, clinical leadership, and site operations directors.
• Ensure templates align with clinical capacity, productivity targets, patient demand patterns, and growth objectives.
• Oversee continuous evaluation and optimization of access workflows including pre-registration, insurance verification, medical necessity checks, and pre-certification processes.
• Coordinate with modality-based managers to ensure scheduling protocols reflect current exam requirements, contraindication screening, and preparation instructions.
• Ensure templates and workflows support strategic growth initiatives, new service lines, and evolving clinical models.

Patient Experience & Process Improvement

• Own the patient access experience end-to-end, from initial contact through registration and arrival, driving initiatives to reduce friction and improve satisfaction.
• Standardize patient instructions and pre-visit communications across modalities to reduce confusion, no-shows, and delays in care.
• Manage patient experience survey programs (e.g., Press Ganey), analyze results, identify trends across sites and modalities, and implement targeted improvement plans.
• Identify and eliminate barriers to timely scheduling and care delivery through data analysis, patient feedback, and frontline staff input.
• Develop and implement service recovery protocols and escalation pathways for complex scheduling or access issues.
• Use quantitative and qualitative data to drive continuous improvement and present performance reports to departmental leadership.

Revenue Cycle & Front-End Financial Clearance

• Ensure front-end registration activities across all sites result in accurate patient information capture and appropriate financial clearance of visits.
• Coordinate integration of pre-registration, pre-certification, insurance verification, and medical necessity checks into scheduling workflows.
• Partner with revenue cycle teams to minimize denials attributable to front-end access errors, and track performance against revenue cycle benchmarks.
• Collaborate with charge capture and billing teams to ensure scheduling and registration processes support clean claim submission.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Strategic Initiatives

• Serve as the primary liaison between Radiology leadership, NYP operational teams, IT, revenue cycle, and outreach/marketing partners on all access-related initiatives.
• Collaborate with site operations directors to ensure call center operations align with site-level workflows and patient flow requirements.
• Support implementation of new technologies, Epic enhancements, and digital tools that improve access and patient experience.
• Contribute to strategic planning for new services, site expansions, and volume growth by providing access capacity analysis and operational feasibility input.
• Work cross-functionally to build a cohesive patient experience across ColumbiaDoctors and NYP touchpoints.

Team Leadership & Development

• Recruit, develop, and performance-manage modality-based call center managers, fostering specialization and accountability within each team.
• Provide leadership, coaching, and professional development for all patient access and call center management staff.
• Foster a culture of accountability, service excellence, continuous learning, and operational rigor.
• Conduct regular performance reviews, set development goals, and manage disciplinary and labor relations activities as needed.
• Ensure appropriate staffing models and succession planning to meet demand across sites and modalities.

Reporting & Performance Management

• Develop and maintain dashboards and reporting tools to track access performance, patient experience metrics, and call center productivity across modality teams.
• Create monthly and quarterly reports synthesizing quantitative and qualitative data for presentation to senior leadership.
• Use data analytics to inform operational decisions, staffing adjustments, and strategic planning.
• Establish monitoring systems to identify trends, system issues, and opportunities for proactive process improvement.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in education and experience.
• Minimum of 7 years of progressive experience in healthcare operations, patient access, or ambulatory practice management, including at least 3 years in a leadership role managing managers or supervisors.
• Demonstrated experience leading scheduling, call center, or multi-site access operations in a complex healthcare environment.
• Proven track record in workflow redesign, process improvement, and performance management.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and leadership skills with the ability to translate data into actionable operational strategies.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, Public Health, or related field.
• Experience in radiology or imaging operations, ideally within an academic medical center or hospital/physician joint venture.
• Familiarity with Epic Radiant/scheduling systems and healthcare revenue cycle processes.
• Experience managing modality-specific or service-line-based teams within imaging or ancillary services.
• Experience leading patient experience or service excellence programs (e.g., Press Ganey).
• Advanced proficiency in Excel, business intelligence tools, and operational dashboards.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.