Opportunity Overview
The Chair of Surgical Specialties serves as the physician leader within the medical group, responsible for shaping the clinical vision, enhancing service line performance, and providing leadership across various surgical specialties. This position is pivotal in determining the organization, resources, and optimization of surgical services to ensure the delivery of safe, timely, and high-quality procedural care, while also focusing on improving access, operational efficiency, and financial sustainability.
In a collaborative dyad leadership model, the Chair will work to enhance perioperative performance, surgical access, quality and safety outcomes, workforce strategy, and growth, while maintaining consistent standards, fostering strong physician engagement, and aligning with the overall enterprise strategy.
Key Responsibilities
- Strategic & Operational Leadership:
- Develop and implement the strategy for the Surgical Specialties service line, encompassing ambulatory surgery, inpatient surgical services, and procedural care in both hospital and ASC environments.
- Establish and manage service segmentation, differentiating between elective and urgent surgeries, as well as ambulatory and inpatient procedures.
- Ensure that surgical care models are in line with case mix, patient acuity, site-of-care optimization, and perioperative capacity.
- Set clinical expectations regarding staffing models, block utilization, call coverage, procedural templates, and team-based perioperative workflows.
- Lead long-term planning for OR and ASC capacity, workforce requirements, service mix, and market expansion.
- Facilitate the integration of Surgical Specialties with Primary Care, Medical Specialties, anesthesia, hospital operations, and perioperative services.
- Quality, Safety & Perioperative Excellence:
- Ensure adherence to the highest standards of evidence-based surgical care, patient safety, and regulatory compliance.
- Promote initiatives aimed at improving surgical quality, including outcomes, complications, readmissions, and length of stay.
- Lead the standardization of perioperative pathways, enhanced recovery protocols, and best practices.
- Foster a culture of safety, reliability, and accountability among surgical teams.
- Access, Throughput & Utilization Management:
- Establish benchmarks for timely surgical access, referral-to-procedure timelines, and scheduling of cases.
- Optimize utilization of OR and ASC, including block management, turnover times, and throughput.
- Collaborate with anesthesia and perioperative leadership to align staffing, scheduling, and capacity.
- Minimize variations, delays, and inefficiencies throughout the surgical continuum.
- Value-Based Care & Financial Stewardship:
- Advocate for the role of Surgical Specialties in value-based and bundled payment models, focusing on quality, utilization, and cost management.
- Collaborate with payer strategy, finance, and population health leaders to enhance performance in bundled, episode-based, and risk-based arrangements.
- Define expectations for physician leadership regarding appropriate case selection, site of care, and resource utilization.
- Ensure alignment between physician compensation, incentives, and goals related to quality, efficiency, and financial performance.
- Physician Leadership, Engagement & Workforce Strategy:
- Lead the physician leadership framework for Surgical Specialties.
- Oversee the recruitment, retention, and succession planning of surgeons in collaboration with Chiefs and recruitment teams.
- Ensure consistent onboarding, mentoring, and leadership development for surgical staff.
- Provide timely performance feedback through the annual evaluation process.
- Encourage physician engagement, retention, and a culture of accountability and collaboration.
- Act as a point of escalation for complex issues related to surgeon performance, professionalism, or practice patterns.
- Operational & Financial Performance (Dyad Leadership):
- Collaborate with the administrative dyad leader to manage access, staffing models, productivity, and financial performance across surgical services.
- Ensure surgical practice patterns align with operational, quality, and financial objectives.
- Review and respond to performance dashboards, KPIs, and utilization trends.
- Support the development of sustainable surgical operating models in both hospital and ambulatory settings.
- Growth, Innovation & Care Transformation:
- Identify and advocate for new surgical programs, service expansions, and procedural innovations.
- Promote advancements in minimally invasive surgery, outpatient migration, and new site-of-care strategies.
- Support the integration of care management, rehabilitation, and post-acute services to enhance surgical outcomes and patient experiences.
- Communication & Alignment:
- Ensure effective and consistent communication among Surgical Specialty physicians and leaders.
- Align Chiefs, Medical Directors, and frontline surgeons with strategic priorities.
- Act as a visible and trusted leader and advocate for Surgical Specialties.
Qualifications
- MD or DO with board certification in a surgical specialty.
- Extensive clinical experience in surgical practice.
- Proven senior physician leadership experience.
- Experience in perioperative operations, quality improvement, and service line performance.
- Knowledge of value-based care, bundled payments, and utilization management.
- Experience in dyad leadership models.
- Strong strategic, communication, and change management abilities.
Leadership Competencies
- Systems Thinking: Designs integrated surgical care across various sites and services.
- Operational Excellence: Drives efficiency, throughput, and reliability.
- Physician Influence: Builds trust and alignment among surgical staff.
- Strategic Vision: Translates enterprise goals into a clear surgical strategy.
- Operational Partnership: Effectively collaborates with administrative and perioperative leaders.
- Change Leadership: Guides transformation with clarity and respect for surgical culture.
- Accountability & Results: Drives measurable clinical and financial outcomes.
Equal Opportunity Statement
Our organization is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all qualified individuals. We prohibit discrimination in employment based on race, color, creed, religion, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, ancestry, national origin, age, medical condition, disability, or veteran status. We strive to promote equal employment opportunities through a proactive and ongoing program within our service area. This commitment applies to every aspect of our employment policies and practices.
