Lead Scheduling Secretary, Operating Room
UPMC Mercy | Full-Time | Daylight Schedule
UPMC Mercy is seeking an experienced Lead Scheduling Secretary to join our Centralized Surgical Scheduling team. This is an excellent opportunity for a highly organized professional with surgical scheduling experience who thrives in a fast-paced environment and enjoys being the key connection between patients, families, physicians, and the surgical team.
In this role, you'll do more than schedule procedures. You'll serve as a trusted liaison, helping coordinate care, resolve scheduling challenges, support providers and staff, and ensure an exceptional experience for everyone involved in the surgical process.
What We're Looking For:
- Previous experience in a surgical services or operating room setting
- Experience scheduling surgical procedures and coordinating complex schedules
- Strong customer service and communication skills
- Ability to build positive relationships with patients, families, physicians, and clinical staff
- Flexibility and adaptability in a fast-paced healthcare environment
- Strong problem-solving and organizational skills
- Ability to take initiative and support departmental operations beyond scheduling responsibilities
- Leadership experience or the ability to serve as a resource and mentor to team members is preferred
Why Join UPMC Mercy?
- Full-time daylight schedule
- Collaborative, team-focused environment
- Opportunity to play a critical role in patient care coordination
- Leadership responsibilities with opportunities for professional growth
- Meaningful work supporting patients throughout their surgical journey
If you're a customer-focused professional with surgical scheduling experience and a passion for helping patients and healthcare teams succeed, we'd love to hear from you!
Responsibilities
- Coordinate all surgical scheduling activities for inpatient and outpatient procedures, ensuring accuracy and adherence to departmental guidelines.
- Communicate effectively with surgeons, physician offices, patients, and ancillary departments in a professional, courteous, and respectful manner.
- Verify surgeon privileges, scheduling requirements, and suspension status prior to booking procedures.
- Enter, maintain, and validate scheduling data to ensure accuracy of surgical reservations and daily schedules.
- Collaborate with the Service Center and physician offices to obtain and communicate accurate scheduling information.
- Serve as a resource and subject matter expert for Surgical Services Secretaries, providing guidance and support on scheduling processes and problem resolution.
- Assist with interviewing, onboarding, training, and performance evaluation of new Surgical Services Secretaries.
- Demonstrate strong problem-solving skills and apply departmental policies and procedures to resolve scheduling issues efficiently.
- Review and verify daily surgical schedules with surgeons and office managers to ensure completeness and accuracy.
- Develop and maintain monthly staffing schedules for department secretaries.
- Assume supervisory responsibilities in the absence of the Unit Director/Supervisor, including finalization of the surgical schedule and oversight of departmental operations.
- Carry the weekend scheduling beeper and provide support for scheduling issues as needed when leadership is unavailable.
- Maintain accurate documentation and records, ensuring procedural information is readily accessible for reference.
- Compile and report statistical and operational data as requested.
- Demonstrate knowledge of UPMC programs, services, and resources to effectively support patients, providers, and staff.
- Foster collaboration within the healthcare team and communicate potential issues or concerns to leadership.
- Provide leadership in conflict resolution and support a positive, team-oriented work environment.
- Uphold patient confidentiality and organizational standards while delivering exceptional customer service.
- Assist colleagues and perform additional duties as assigned to support departmental operations.
- Completion of a business or secretarial school or 3 year of experience in scheduling in a health care setting.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills are required.
- Accurate typist and ability to use transcription machine.
- Experience in guest relations is preferred.
- Experience with computer-based systems preferred.
- Individual must function well under stressful conditions.
- Excellent organizational skills, tact, patience and understanding.
- Knowledge of medical terminology.
Licensure, Certifications, and Clearances:
UPMC is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Disability/Veteran