Assistant Clinical Manager (PACU)

Cottage Health • Santa Barbara, CA

6d

About The Position

Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital is seeking an Assistant Clinical Manager for its 14-bed, 24-hour Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU). The Assistant Clinical Manager provides leadership, operational oversight, staff development, and clinical support to help ensure safe, efficient, high-quality patient care. The role serves as a clinical resource, coaches staff, promotes professional practice, and assists in achieving departmental and organizational goals.

The Assistant Clinical Manager supports daily PACU operations and patient flow; assists with staffing, scheduling, productivity management, and bed-capacity coordination; and serves as operational lead when the Clinical Manager is absent. The role collaborates with physicians, anesthesia providers, perioperative leadership, and ancillary departments to optimize care and throughput, and participates in strategic planning and department performance-improvement initiatives.

The position promotes safety, accountability, and service excellence; monitors compliance with regulatory, accreditation, and organizational standards; and participates in quality activities, audits, data analysis, safety-event investigations, and corrective-action planning. It also supports evidence-based practices and clinical standards.

The Assistant Clinical Manager coaches and mentors staff, supports onboarding, orientation, competency validation, and ongoing education, and encourages professional growth, certification, and shared governance. The role assists with performance evaluations and employee relations, fosters a collaborative and inclusive work environment, serves as a clinical resource for complex patient-care situations, supports adherence to policies and standards of care, promotes patient-centered care, and helps address patient and family concerns and service-recovery opportunities.

Requirements

• Associate of Science and active enrollment in a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program.
• Current California Registered Nurse license.
• At least three years of recent PACU, ICU, or perioperative nursing experience.
• American Heart Association (AHA) ACLS, BLS, and PALS certifications.
• Strong clinical expertise in perianesthesia care.
• Knowledge of regulatory and accreditation standards.
• Ability to analyze data and drive performance improvement.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• Strong organizational, prioritization, and decision-making abilities.
• Ability to effectively lead teams in a fast-paced environment.

Nice To Haves

• Two years of previous charge nurse, lead nurse, educator, or supervisory experience.
• Leadership experience in an acute-care hospital setting.
• Experience with quality-improvement initiatives and regulatory compliance.
• Demonstrated ability to lead change, develop staff, and improve operational performance.
• Strong communication, conflict-resolution, and team-building skills.
• CPAN certification, or ability to obtain it within an established timeframe.
• Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN).

Responsibilities

• Support daily PACU operations and patient flow.
• Assist with staffing, scheduling, productivity management, and bed-capacity coordination.
• Serve as operational lead in the Clinical Manager’s absence.
• Collaborate with physicians, anesthesia providers, perioperative leadership, and ancillary departments to optimize patient care and throughput.
• Participate in strategic planning and department performance-improvement initiatives.
• Promote a culture of safety, accountability, and service excellence.
• Monitor compliance with regulatory, accreditation, and organizational standards.
• Participate in quality-improvement activities, audits, and data analysis.
• Assist with investigating safety events and developing corrective-action plans.
• Support implementation of evidence-based practices and clinical standards.
• Coach, mentor, and provide performance feedback to staff.
• Support onboarding, orientation, competency validation, and ongoing education.
• Encourage professional growth, certification, and shared-governance participation.
• Assist with performance evaluations and employee-relations activities.
• Foster a collaborative and inclusive work environment.
• Serve as a clinical resource for complex patient-care situations.
• Support adherence to department policies, procedures, and standards of care.
• Promote patient-centered care and positive patient experiences.
• Assist in managing patient and family concerns and service-recovery opportunities.

Benefits

• Eligible employees may receive shift differentials, on-call pay, incentive pay, and bonus opportunities, where applicable.
• Manager and above positions may participate in Cottage Health’s annual management incentive program.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: Associate degree