Benefits:

Competitive salary

Dental insurance

Health insurance

Paid time off

Medical Assistant / Patient Navigator - Occupational Medicine Northwest Medical Group (NWMG) - Moses Lake, WA

Join a growing, mission-driven healthcare organization where your care experience directly impacts patient outcomes, employer partnerships, and team success.

Position Summary: The Patient Navigator serves as the primary coordinator of the patient's care journey within the occupational medicine practice. This role ensures seamless progression through the treatment plan by proactively managing chart preparation, referral coordination, L&I documentation, patient communication, and care plan tracking from initial referral through claim closure. The Patient Navigator partners with providers, the scheduling team, the authorization specialist, and external stakeholders to ensure that every element of the patient's care is executed efficiently, on time, and to a high standard of quality.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

Prepare patient charts a minimum of two (2) business days in advance of scheduled visits, ensuring all records, specialist notes, results, and L&I correspondence are organized and available for provider review

Support patient rooming, intake, and exam room preparation

Assist with order entry and management per provider direction, and prepare required L&I forms (APF, PIR, and others) for timely submission within regulatory deadlines

Manage outbound referrals end to end: send the referral, track appointment status with the specialist, confirm the patient was seen, and retrieve notes into the chart prior to the next NWMG visit

Monitor patient progress against the care plan, tracking treatment milestones, visit compliance, and service utilization across all modalities (PT, OT, MT, BH, PGAP, work hardening)

Communicate proactively with patients about their care journey, setting expectations for next steps, reinforcing the importance of completing their full recovery plan, and serving as their primary point of contact within the practice

Coordinate with the authorization specialist to ensure reauthorization requests are initiated with adequate lead time

Collaborate with vocational counselors, attorneys, claims managers, and employer representatives as appropriate to support the patient's return-to-work plan Facilitate communication between providers, clinical staff, front office, and billing using ModMed task queues, Klara, and Teams per established protocols

Maintain accurate documentation of all care coordination activities within ModMed

Adhere to HIPAA and confidentiality standards in all patient interactions

Participate in weekly Patient Navigator team meetings and daily clinical huddles

Key Competencies

Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple patient cases simultaneously

Attention to detail, particularly with regulatory documentation and time-sensitive deadlines

Effective written and verbal communication skills

Customer service orientation with a patient-centered mindset

Ability to work independently, exercise sound judgment, and anticipate needs in a fast-paced environment

Familiarity with occupational medicine workflows and L&I claim processes preferred

Qualifications

Medical Assistant certification (CMA, RMA, or equivalent) preferred but not required; comparable clinical experience in a healthcare setting is accepted

Experience in occupational medicine, workers' compensation, care coordination, or a clinical support role preferred

Proficiency with electronic health record systems; experience with ModMed preferred

Bilingual in English and Spanish strongly preferred

Education and Experience

High school diploma or equivalent required

1 to 3 years of experience in healthcare, care coordination, or a clinical support role preferred

Experience with L&I / workers' compensation claims processing is a significant advantage