Health Coach

At Diverge Health we are a team of entrepreneurs passionate about improving health access and outcomes for those most in need. We partner with primary care providers to improve the engagement and management of their Medicaid patients, providing independent practices access to specialized resources and clinical programs to address medical, social and behavioral patient needs. Our care ecosystem is equipped with enhanced technology and data interfaces to enable provider and patient success in a value-based environment. Guided by our core values of humility, continuous learning and feeling the weight, our team is on a mission to strengthen communities from within, unlocking people's ability to live their healthiest lives.

Could this be you?  Diverge Health reinvests in neighborhoods by creating high quality frontline jobs and improving the health and digital literacy of our patients and their families.  This role is for anyone looking to chart a new course, with a desire to learn and grow in their career and interested in solving big problems with high impact. If you have an orientation towards learning, an innate desire to do meaningful work, 3-5 years of work experience in roles or industries that have heavy people interface, the community health coach role represents an opportunity for you to meaningfully influence people’s ability to live their healthiest lives.   

What you will do:

As a key part of the Health Coach role, you will receive highly structured, evidence-based training and ongoing clinical supervision and support. We equip you with specific nutrition, disease management and social barriers knowledge to effectively engage and impact patients. 

Health Coaches at Diverge Health provide one-on-one coaching sessions to help patients implement realistic, culturally appropriate lifestyle changes. Sessions are held in the home, clinic, or convenient community settings. With shared life experience, our Health Coaches have a unique ability to build trust, identify barriers, and motivate individuals to achieve goals that result in reducing avoidable patient visits to the emergency room. Health Coaches also identify social barriers and solutions that help stabilize socio-economic challenges.  All aspects of our care support are conducted in close collaboration with the patient’s primary care provider.  Given our role as a long-term partner to physicians and health insurers, our health coaches build long-term relationships with most patients, interacting with the same individuals year over year.  

Key areas you’ll add value:

• Reaching out to assigned patients via phone or in person.
• Conducting one-on-one patient/coach sessions in patient homes, via phone, in their physician’s clinic or at a community setting.
• Working with a supervising Nurse Practitioner on patient case reviews, continuously learning ways to improve patient engagement and coaching outcomes.
• Supporting patients by teaching and motivating them to reach their health goals.
• Assisting patients with scheduling and attending their primary care visits.
• Thoroughly documenting patient visits and interactions, as trained, in accordance with organizational and broader regulatory guidelines.
• Leveraging active listening skills to pinpoint barriers/challenges and offer support to patients in overcoming challenges.
• Teaching patients about their existing health benefits available through their health plan and the broader community and how to access those benefits (coaches will be trained on benefits prior to educating patients on them).
• Communicating health complications and risks to NP (Nurse Practitioner) for review and triage as necessary across our care team.
• Connecting eligible patients with community resources such as food banks, to support broader social needs in support of their overall health.

What you will bring

• 2+ years' experience in customer service, community organizations, teaching or a related field.
• High School diploma or GED. 
• Residence, or prior long-time residence, in the Cleveland community.
• Must possess exceptional interpersonal and organizational skills. 
• Comfortable with technology including communication and documentation systems and tools. Willingness to learn new skills and technologies.
• Ability to adapt and demonstrate resilience in a fast-paced, changing environment.
• Works well independently and in teams. Must respect unique needs and diverse backgrounds of members of the community.
• A demonstrated personal commitment to health, wellness and supporting others is preferred.
• Prior experience using technology systems to engage and document customer interactions.
• Bilingual preferred (English/Spanish, or English and the dominant language of the community where performing patient work).

Personal Characteristics

• Equally empathetic and objective, humble and highly conscientious; a teammate that inspires and motivates others.
• Comfort with uncertainty; self-motivated and directed; can manage effectively in high growth, rapidly evolving environments.
• A problem solver, able to think critically and strategically while being hands on in driving work; proactively identifies and resolves risks to execution and delivery.
• Strong representation of the company's mission, vision, and values across all dimensions of internal and external interactions.
• Strength in authentically connecting with people from all walks of life with empathy and humility.

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to travel within the community; must have a valid driver’s license and car insurance, and access to reliable transportation for patient home visits and community outreach.
• Lift and carry materials and supplies.
• Stand, walk, and move for extended periods while conducting community visits or health education sessions.
• Adapt to varying environmental conditions (both outside while traveling the community and inside patients' homes).

*Note on Training and Successful Job qualification:

• No prior medical experience is required to become a Health Coach.  Diverge prepares candidates to become Health Coaches through a full-time, paid training period, which is followed by continual learning support & dedicated clinical supervision.  We do have a graduation requirement to be placed into a Health Coach role which includes successful completion of training period including passing program exams. 
• Areas of in-depth training include, but are not limited to, motivational interviewing (coaching technique) patient self-management skills for health conditions, navigation of medical care within the healthcare system; navigation and appropriate utilization of relevant health plan benefits; prioritization and productivity management; software skills; and communication skills.Compensation is $24/hour with a 10% annual bonus