Patient Safety Specialist

Summary

Reporting to the Vice President, Patient Safety Officer, the Patient Safety Specialist is responsible for planning, implementing, directing, and evaluating patient safety improvement programs throughout the aligned business area. The Specialist serves as a direct resource with clinical and technical expertise to departments and works with teams to ensure the highest possible level of safety, quality, performance, and innovation are achieved.

The Specialist plays a critical role in ensuring the well‑being and safety of patients within our healthcare organization. This position requires a skilled professional who can develop, implement, and oversee patient safety initiatives to create a health culture of safety, mitigate risks, and enhance the overall quality of care provided.

Status: Full‑time

Location: Riedman Campus

Department: Patient Safety and Clinical Risk

Schedule: Day shift

• Master's degree in healthcare administration, nursing, or a related field preferred.
• Strong understanding of healthcare regulations, accreditation standards, quality improvement, safety science, and risk mitigation methodologies.
• Excellent communication (verbal and written), interpersonal, and leadership skills.
• Ability to analyze data and trends to drive informed decision‑making.
• Proven experience in developing and delivering training programs.
• High level of meeting management, computer, teaching and training, organization and time management, leadership/facilitation skills.
• High level of proficiency with Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint.
• Be available to be on‑site as needed.

• Bachelor's degree in healthcare management, nursing, or a related field.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience in healthcare, quality improvement, or a related field.

• For those with a BSN; valid NYS Registered Nurse License required.
• Certification in quality improvement, safety, clinical risk management or equivalent (e.g., CPHQ, Lean, CPPS) required or must be obtained within three years of hire.

• Recruit and implement comprehensive unit‑based safety programs (CUSP) in alignment with national and international standards.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams to address risks and integrate patient safety protocols into existing processes.
• Actively participate in and promote patient safety improvement activities.

• Conduct regular risk assessments to identify potential hazards and vulnerabilities in patient care.
• Analyze patient safety data, incidents, and near misses to proactively address emerging trends and areas for improvement.
• Facilitate event debriefings and analysis (e.g., Learning from Defects, Root Cause Analysis).

• Deliver training programs for healthcare staff to enhance awareness and understanding of patient safety principles.
• Foster a culture of continuous learning and improvement by providing ongoing education on patient safety topics.

• Update hospital policies and procedures related to patient safety, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Work collaboratively with relevant departments to ensure consistent implementation of policies across the organization.

• Facilitate entity event management processes.
• Lead investigations into patient safety incidents, collaborating with relevant stakeholders to determine root causes.
• Develop and implement corrective and preventive action plans based on incident analysis.
• Analyze trends of patient safety incidents, investigations, and action plans to identify opportunities for system learning.
• Synthesize event analysis and summarize for various audiences to promote system learning.

• Serve as a liaison between patients, families, and healthcare providers to address concerns related to patient safety.
• Advocate for patient safety initiatives and promote a transparent communication culture within the organization.

• Establish key Patient Safety performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of patient safety programs.
• Monitor and…