Director - Advanced Practice

Neighborhood Healthcare•Escondido, CA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Community health is about more than just vaccines and checkups. It’s about giving people the resources they need to live their best lives. At Neighborhood, this is our vision: a community where everyone is healthy and happy. We’re with you every step of the way, with the care you need for each of life’s chapters. At Neighborhood, we are Better Together. As a private, non-profit 501(C) (3) community health organization, we serve over 500k medical, dental, and behavioral health visits from more than 100k people annually. We do this in pursuit of our mission to improve the health and happiness of the communities we serve by providing quality care to all, regardless of situation or circumstance. Since 1969, our employees have been making this mission a reality. Regardless of the role, our team focuses on being compassionate, having integrity, being professional, always collaborating, and consistently going above and beyond. If this sounds like an organization you would like to be a part of, we would love to meet you. ROLE OVERVIEW and PURPOSE The Director of Advanced Practice is a clinical leadership position responsible for advancing the practice, development, engagement, and organizational integration of Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) across Neighborhood Healthcare. The Director serves as a strategic liaison between APPs and Medical Leadership, ensuring that APP perspectives inform organizational decision-making while also translating organizational priorities into meaningful action within the APP workforce. This role is expected to move beyond identification of concerns by evaluating themes, gathering relevant information, engaging appropriate stakeholders, and developing thoughtful, actionable recommendations for Medical Leadership. A primary initial responsibility of the Director will be the ongoing stewardship, sustainability, and advancement of the Advanced Practice Training Academy (APTA). The Director will also support APP professional development, leadership development, practice optimization, competency, and care transformation initiatives. The position will report to the Associate Chief Medical Officer (ACMO).

Requirements

Physician Assistant Master’s degree from an accredited Physician Assistant Program required
California Physician Assistant License in good standing required
Current California DEA licensure is required and is to be maintained as a condition of employment
Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification through an American Heart Association (AHA)-approved source is required upon hire and must be maintained as a condition of employment
AHA-approved courses include an in-person, hands-on skills check with a certified instructor using a mannequin to demonstrate CPR and emergency response techniques
Online-only BLS courses without a live skills check do not meet this requirement
Board Certification (NCCPA) or board eligible with certification within 12 months of hire required
Nurse Practitioner: Master's degree in nursing, required
California Nurse Practitioner License in good standing, required
Registered Nurse License in good standing, required
Current CA DEA licensure is required and is to be maintained as a condition of employment
Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification through an American Heart Association (AHA)-approved source is required upon hire and must be maintained as a condition of employment.
AHA-approved courses include an in-person, hands-on skills check with a certified instructor using a mannequin to demonstrate CPR and emergency response techniques.
Online-only BLS courses without a live skills check do not meet this requirement.
5 years of clinical leadership experience required; however, candidates with substantial mentoring experience or qualifying leadership training may be considered in lieu of a formal leadership position
8 years of experience as an Advanced Practice Provider required
Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including superior composition, typing and proofreading skills
Ability to interpret a variety of instructions in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form
Ability to commit to ongoing professional development
Ability to research best practices in metabolic disease management
Ability to successfully manage multiple tasks simultaneously
Excellent planning and organizational ability
Ability to work as part of a team as well as independently
Ability to work with highly confidential information in a professional and ethical manner
Ability to lift/carry 25 lbs/weight
Ability to stand for long periods of time
Follow all safety procedures as outlined in Neighborhood Healthcare’s Illness and Injury Prevention Plan (IIPP) and report any injuries and/or unsafe conditions immediately
Maintain current knowledge of policies and procedures as they relate to safe work practices
Use appropriate body mechanics to ensure an injury free environment
Be familiar with location of nearest fire extinguisher and emergency exits
Follow all infection control procedures including blood-borne pathogen protocols
Maintain privacy of all patients, employee and volunteer information and access such information only on a need-to-know basis for business purposes
Comply with all regulations regarding corporate integrity and security obligations
Report all behavior and/or activity that are unethical, fraudulent, or unlawful

Nice To Haves

Experience with clinician education, mentorship, or precepting preferred
Experience with quality improvement, population health, or care transformation initiatives preferred

Responsibilities

Provide ongoing clinical leadership and stewardship of the Advanced Practice Training Academy (APTA)
Ensure the APTA program remains sustainable, standardized, and aligned with organizational workforce and clinical priorities
Partner with Medical Leadership and operational stakeholders to maintain and continuously improve APTA curriculum, clinical experiences, mentorship, and competency expectations
Coordinate and support APTA faculty, preceptors, and mentors
Monitor participant progress, outcomes, and feedback and recommend program improvements
Develop opportunities for APTA graduates to transition into mentorship, precepting, education, and leadership roles
Establish an ongoing process to evaluate program effectiveness and report outcomes to Medical Leadership
Serve as a structured, bidirectional liaison between APPs and Medical Leadership
Develop mechanisms to understand emerging themes, opportunities, and concerns affecting APP practice across the organization
Evaluate concerns to distinguish individual issues from broader organizational or systemic opportunities
Gather relevant information and stakeholder perspectives before escalating issues to senior Medical Leadership
Present concerns with appropriate context, analysis, potential solutions, and recommendations whenever possible
Communicate organizational priorities and Medical Leadership decisions back to APPs in a clear and constructive manner
Promote collaboration and shared accountability between APPs, physicians, Medical Leadership, and operational teams
Participate in designated Medical Leadership meetings and committees as the organizational leader for advanced practice
Develop and support an organizational strategy for APP professional development
Identify APPs interested in leadership, education, quality improvement, specialty practice, and other advanced roles
Develop mentorship and leadership-development opportunities for APPs
Create pathways for APP participation in organizational committees, quality initiatives, clinical programs, and leadership activities
Partner with Medical Leadership to identify and develop future APP leaders and support leadership succession planning
Promote professional growth and engagement across the APP workforce
Partner with Medical Leadership to identify opportunities to optimize APP practice and utilization across the organization
Participate in developing and implementing team-based models of care
Evaluate opportunities to improve access, quality, efficiency, continuity, and patient experience through effective APP utilization
Identify unnecessary barriers to APP practice and develop recommendations consistent with regulatory requirements, organizational policy, and patient safety
Represent the advanced practice perspective in designing and implementing new clinical programs and care-delivery models
Lead or co-lead selected care transformation, quality improvement, or clinical innovation initiatives involving APP practice
Support implementation and adoption of approved initiatives across the APP workforce
Partner with Medical Directors, Credentialing, Quality, Human Resources, and other stakeholders to support consistent standards for APP practice
Contribute to development and maintenance of APP onboarding and initial competency processes
Support development of ongoing competency expectations and professional development resources
Assist with developing and standardizing clinical privileging, proctoring, and competency pathways, as appropriate
Support maintenance and periodic review of applicable standardized procedures, practice agreements, and other APP practice frameworks
Identify organization-wide educational or competency needs based on trends in quality, safety, practice patterns, or clinician feedback
Provide supervision and oversight of the virtual care team
Approach concerns with curiosity, objectivity, and a solution-oriented mindset
Seek to understand multiple perspectives before making recommendations
Use available data and organizational context to inform recommendations
Differentiate individual concerns from systemic issues requiring organizational intervention
Bring forward potential solutions rather than simply escalating problems
Support organizational decisions once made, and help implement and communicate them effectively
Build collaborative relationships with physicians, APPs, Medical Directors, operational leaders, and senior leadership
Model professionalism, accountability, psychological safety, and constructive communication
Establish a sustainable governance, evaluation, and annual operating structure for APTA
Develop an organizational APP professional and leadership development framework
Establish a structured mechanism for gathering APP feedback and periodically presenting key themes, analysis, and recommendations to Medical Leadership
Assess current APP practice and utilization across the organization and identify opportunities for practice optimization
Partner with Medical Leadership to strengthen and standardize APP onboarding, competency, and practice expectations
Lead or co-lead at least one organizational care transformation, quality improvement, or clinical innovation initiative involving advanced practice
Leads with Neighborhood Healthcare's Values in Action, aligning decisions, behaviors, and team priorities with the organization's mission and strategic goals
Builds, develops, and retains a high-performing team by recruiting, ensuring appropriate staffing levels and ratios to support organizational goals and operational excellence
Establishes clear goals, priorities, and performance expectations, through mentoring, and fostering a compassionate, collaborative, and inclusive work environment while ensuring employees have the resources and support needed to succeed
Demonstrates integrity through ethical decision-making, transparent communication, accountability, and consistent application of organizational policies and standards
Provides ongoing coaching, recognition, and performance feedback, addressing performance concerns promptly while supporting employee growth and development
Ensures accurate administration of employee timecards by reviewing and approving records within established deadlines, resolving discrepancies, and holding employees accountable for prompt and accurate reporting of hours worked
Serves as a steward of organizational communication by proactively cascading enterprise-wide initiatives, strategic priorities, site, or department changes through multiple communication channels (Teams, email, in-person meetings, etc.), fostering alignment, engagement and understanding within the site, department, or area of responsibility
Champions collaboration and continuous improvement by building strong partnerships, encouraging innovation, and going above and beyond to achieve exceptional outcomes for our employees, patients, and communities