Head of Patient Flow

Job summary

Are you an experienced, forward-thinking operational leader ready to shape the future of patient flow across Northumbria?

Medicine and Emergency Care Business Unit are seeking an exceptional Head of Patient Flow to provide strategic and operational leadership across Northumbria Healthcare, driving improvements in patient pathways, discharge and capacity management across the whole system.

Please note we reserve the right to close this vacancy prior to the closing date once the required number of suitable applications have been received.

Main duties of the job

This is a pivotal senior leadership position with responsibility for ensuring patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time. You will lead Trust-wide and system-level initiatives to optimise flow, reduce length of stay, minimise delays and maximise the use of capacity, ensuring delivery against national performance standards and improving patient outcomes. Working across organisational boundaries, you will collaborate with clinical teams, operational leaders, community services and local authority partners to deliver integrated, sustainable solutions that improve patient experience and system resilience.

About us

We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, covering one of the largest geographical areas of any NHS trust in the country. Leading in innovation and quality - opening a state of the art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn't, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare, this is the Northumbria Way! Please read 'applicant guidance notes' before submitting your application.

Job responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and operational oversight of patient flow, discharge and bed utilisation
• Leadend-to-end patient flow improvement across acute, community and partner services
• Drive delivery ofnational targets, including urgent and emergency care standards and ambulance handover times
• Use data and insight to identify risks, trends and opportunities for transformation
• Lead majorchange and service redesign programmes to improve flow and reduce delays
• Ensure effective escalation management and system resilience, including winter planning
• Develop high-performing teams, fostering a culture of continuous improvement, collaboration and accountability
• Build strong partnerships across the wider health and care system

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Management degree or equivalent or able to demonstrate significant level of equivalent experience.
• Formal post graduate qualification ideally in management or equivalent senior level experience.
• Relevant management experience within the NHS with specialist training to masters level.

Experience and Knowledge

Essential

• Experience of working in both acute and community setting with strong background in patient flow/discharge.
• Experience of service redesign and development
• Experience of leading, coordinating and organising teams
• Experience of project management
• A proven success in implementation of strategic plans
• A proven success in managing operational change while maintaining high standards of care
• Presentation skills gained through experience

Desirable

• Knowledge of or experience in coaching and mentoring practices and tools
• Knowledge of or experience in Quality improvement tools, techniques and methods