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About the Role
The Outpatient Navigator supports continuity of care by guiding eligible patients transitioning from inpatient or residential behavioral health treatment into Partial Hospitalization (PHP), Intensive Outpatient Programming (IOP), or other community-based services. This role ensures timely, informed referrals, facilitates coordination among inpatient and outpatient departments, and provides education and support to patients and families regarding post-discharge services. The Outpatient Navigator plays a vital role in increasing step-down engagement, reducing readmissions, and strengthening care transitions, and may also help facilitate direct admissions to PHP/IOP programs.
Responsibilities
- Own the full stepdown process—from patient identification to program admission
- Meet every eligible inpatient and review open direct admission inquiries to facilitate referrals to outpatient
- Educate patients and families on the value of continued care post-discharge and highlights of the hospital’s program
- Maintain multiple in-person check-ins during patient’s inpatient stay
- Support patients with outpatient orientation/program introduction, including completion of required admissions documentation and consent forms
- Partner with other hospital departments to facilitate step-downs
- Participate in daily flash meetings to review emerging stepdown candidates, rationale for discharges not stepped down, and report out on day one PHP/IOP attendance for prior day’s step-downs
- Track step-down admissions and conversion rate and trends over time
- Identify barriers/opportunities to further enhance patient engagement and reduce readmissions
- Report weekly progress to facility CEO, COO, and Director of Outpatient Services
Requirements
- High school diploma or equivalent required
- Minimum of 2 years in behavioral healthcare setting (e.g., acute psychiatric hospital)
Skills
- Bachelor’s degree in social services-related field strongly preferred
- Licensed or license-eligible clinician (e.g., LCSW, LPC, LMHC, LMFT)
- Peer support specialist certification
- Experience with PHP and IOP levels of care, discharge planning, and/or utilization review
Experience Level
- Minimum of 2 years in behavioral healthcare setting
Education Level
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Bachelor’s degree in social services-related field strongly preferred
Equal Opportunity
- We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants for employment regardless of an individual’s characteristics protected by applicable state, federal and local laws.