Clerk, Dietary Office Operator: FT, Varies

Position Highlights:

• Work/life: You will find support to help you manage your personal life while building a career.


• Employee-centric: Tuition reimbursement, loan forgiveness, comprehensive major medical, dental and vision insurance, paid time off, 401(k), health and wellness offerings, monthly employee events, and more. 


• Lifestyle: Sandusky was voted “Best Coastal Small Town in America”. You will have the opportunity to enjoy living and working in this growing area along the beautiful shores of Lake Erie.

About Firelands Health:

• Our goal at Firelands Health is to be the best & preferred independent healthcare employer for the Sandusky Bay region.


• Firelands Health is the area’s largest and most comprehensive resource for quality medical care. We are “big enough to care for you, and small enough to care about you”. We are locally managed and governed as a not-for-profit healthcare facility, serving the counties of Erie, Ottawa, Sandusky, and Huron, covering a regional service area with over 300,000 residents. Our mission is to provide excellent healthcare, promote community wellness, and improve the lives we serve.


• Our Core ACE Values:  Attitude: We choose to be positive and inclusive every day. Commitment: We are committed to exceed the expectations of those we serve. Enthusiasm: We will work passionately to make a difference.

What You Will Do:

• The Diet Office Operator provides a high quality dining experience to patients which meets their nutritional requirements and service expectations regarding temperature, timeliness and food quality.  Performance improvement processes are utilized to identify, assess and evaluate areas for improvement.

Customer Satisfaction:  Demonstrates a commitment to meeting customer expectations.

• Demonstrates a commitment to Firelands Regional Medical Center mission, values, and philosophy in the performance of duties.


• Demonstrates a commitment to service breakthrough through personal example and prompt follow-up on opportunities to improve service.


• Demonstrates a “can-do” attitude in al customer interactions.


• Partners with hospital associates to meet customer expectations for service.

Communication: Demonstrates effective communication skills.

• Collaborates with hospital department and fellow associates to meet customer expectations for service.


• Demonstrates accuracy and clarity in both verbal and written communications.


• Demonstrates sound decision-making; takes responsibility for decisions.


• Communicates pertinent patient and operational information to the appropriate resource for follow-up.


• Demonstrates a respect for the confidentiality of patient information.


• Demonstrates teamwork in the performance of duties.


• Maintains telephone customer service standards.


• Maintains HIPAA standards during all radio and telephone communication.

Diet Clerk/Diet Operator:

• Acts as a liaison between the customer (i.e. nursing team members, patient, patient family members) and the Nutritional Services Department utilizing excellent customer service skills and communication skills.


• Proactively communicates with patients during the meal order taking process utilizing appropriate customer service standards for patient interaction/communication.


• Utilizes diet office computer system to place/maintain electronic card file (i.e. enters patient name and diet order) for each patient and takes patient meal orders as calls come in.


• Assists the patient with menu selection via telephone as necessary.


• Provides basic diet information as patient interaction requires facilitating patient understanding of foods that are compliant and non-compliant with diet order.


• Consults registered dietitian for medical nutrition therapy intervention when poor patient diet comprehension or insufficient intake is noted.


• Updates diet office computer system with patient special nutritional needs.


• Communicates patient needs to nursing team members, host/hostess, or registered dietitian as necessary.


• Communicates information about wrong or missing items to the kitchen.


• Prints patient meal/diet reports from diet office computer system and hospital computer system as directed.


• Prepares paper menus for mental health patients which includes ensuring name, room number, and diet order are on each menu and menu choices are diet compliant.


• Maintains supply of hospitality folders with Directory of Services and Information About Your Diet pieces inserted.


• Completes other clerical tasks as directed by supervisor.


• Completes performance improvement monitors as directed.

Safety and Sanitation. When job responsibilities require, practices safety and sanitation techniques which meet department standards and regulatory requirements.

• Complies with department dress code policy.


• Uses correct body mechanics in the performance of duties.


• Utilizes chemicals according to department and manufacturer guidelines.


• Practices “clean as you go” in day-to-day task assignments.


• Practices standards precautions in the performance of duties.


• Utilizes the appropriate safety technique in the performance of duties.


• Maintains office in a neat, orderly manner.

What You Will Need:

• Behavioral expectations include:  striving for excellence (setting challenging goals, producing quality work, finding better/more efficient ways to do things); acting flexibly (adapting to change); meeting customer needs (meeting internal and external customer needs); working as a team (being a team player); fostering diversity in the workforce (treating all staff members with respect, integrity, and dignity); and being self-directed (taking the initiative and responsibility for actions).


• Good communication skills; speak and write English.  Good math skills.


• Some typing required.  Familiar with Windows computer operating system.


• Must be 18 years of age.


• Six months hospital food service experience; familiar with food assembly techniques. Experience with modified diets preferred.


• Must have the ability to rotate shifts (6:00AM – 2:30PM / 10:30AM – 7:00PM).