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Essen Health Care is the largest privately held, multispecialty medical group in New York, providing high-quality, compassionate care to some of the state’s most vulnerable and underserved residents.

Founded in 1999, we’ve grown from a single primary care office into a network of 50+ locations offering urgent care, primary care and specialty services, from women’s health to endocrinology and psychiatry. We also provide nursing home support, care management, and in-home care through our Essen House Calls program. Guided by a Population Health model, our team of 500+ providers deliver care in-person, at home, or via telehealth, ensuring patients get the support they need when and where they need it.

We’re looking for talented, motivated individuals to join our growing team. Whether you’re a medical provider, administrator, or operations professional, there’s a career here for you. Join us in making a real difference in the health of our community.

The Director of Collaborative Care (CoCM) provides strategic, operational, and program leadership for Essen Health Care's integrated behavioral health program embedded within primary care. This position reports directly to the SVP of Care Management, with an indirect reporting relationship to the Chief Administrative Officer. The Director serves as the administrative bridge between behavioral health, primary care, and external stakeholders — including state agencies, managed care organizations, and community partners. This is a program management and stakeholder leadership role, not a clinical position. 

The Director is responsible for building the CoCM program from a population health and care management perspective — directly overseeing staff who carry caseloads across CoCM and other state and federally funded care management programs (including Care Management Agency and Integrated Care Coordination), ensuring financial sustainability through accurate billing and contract performance, driving measurable quality improvements, and leading engagement with DOH, OMH, SDOH partners, and managed care plans. The Director will scale the model across Essen's 50+ medical offices, home bound services and long term care as appropriate. 

Strategic and Program Leadership 

• Develop and execute the strategic plan for the CoCM program, including service expansion, geographic growth across Essen's network, and integration into primary care workflows. 

• Partner with executive leadership to set annual goals, build the operating plan, and forecast resource needs aligned with Essen's Population Health model. 

• Identify and pursue opportunities for program innovation, value-based care contracts, SDOH partnerships, and grant funding to support sustainability and growth. 

• Represent Essen's CoCM program at state agency meetings (DOH, OMH), managed care plan forums, and health plan contract discussions. 

Stakeholder and External Relations 

• Serve as the primary liaison to external partners including NYS DOH, OMH, SDOH-aligned community-based organizations, health plans, and academic affiliates. 

• Navigate state regulatory environments and funding streams relevant to behavioral health integration, including Medicaid managed care, Care Management Agency, and value-based payment initiatives. 

• Manage relationships with managed care organizations (MCOs) including MetroPlus, HealthFirst, Emblem, and others operating in Essen's service area. 

• Lead payer and CBO engagement to align CoCM program goals with community health needs and contractual obligations. 

• Build and maintain internal stakeholder relationships across Essen divisions including Care Management, Facility, Nursing Home, and ACO programs. 

Operational Management 

• Oversee day-to-day operations of the CoCM program, including EHR utilization, patient registry management, and workflow standardization across sites. 

• Ensure caseloads of Behavioral Health Care Managers (ICC-CoCM) meet evidence-based standards consistent with a population health approach. 

• Establish and maintain policies, procedures, and care management protocols for systematic case review, warm handoffs, and stepped-care escalation. 

• Lead implementation of new sites, technology rollouts, and workflow redesigns in partnership with operations and IT. 

• Ensure program operations are compliant with NCQA, DOH, OMH, and CMS requirements. 

Staff Leadership and Development 

• Directly supervise staff carrying active caseloads across CoCM and other state and federally funded care management programs, including Care Management Agency and Integrated Care Coordination (ICC). 

• Recruit, train, supervise, and mentor Behavioral Health Care Managers, Psychiatric Consultants (clinical oversight delegated), and Integrated Care Coordinators. 

• Monitor caseload distribution, productivity, and documentation compliance across all care management program lines under the Director's oversight. 

• Provide ongoing performance management and professional development planning for the integrated care team. 

• Foster a collaborative, mission-driven team culture aligned with Essen's commitment to underserved communities. 

Financial and Fiscal Management 

• Oversee billing and coding processes for CoCM CPT codes (99492, 99493, 99494, G2214) in partnership with Revenue Cycle to maximize reimbursement and ensure documentation compliance. 

• Analyze payer contracts and reimbursement rates; partner with contracting leadership to optimize CoCM revenue capture across Medicaid, Medicare, and commercial payers. 

• Develop and manage the annual program budget, monitor variances, and report financial performance to the SVP and CAO. 

Key Performance Indicators 

• Caseload size and patient throughput per Behavioral Health Care Manager. 

• Patient clinical improvement rates measured by validated tools (PHQ-9, GAD-7) — target 50% improvement at 10–14 weeks. 

• Percentage