Director of Behavioral Health Nursing

East Bay Community Action Program•Barrington, RI

68d

About The Position

The Behavioral Health Director of Nursing is a senior clinical leader responsible for guiding nursing services and supporting clinical operations across EBCAP's behavioral health programs. Reporting to the Associate Medical Director/Vice President of Behavioral Health, the role provides strategic leadership for nursing practice, clinical quality, compliance, medication management, infection control, and operational excellence across multiple sites. It advances integrated behavioral and physical healthcare while fostering a culture of safety, equity, innovation, and continuous improvement. The Director provides vision and operational direction for nursing and medical assistant services, leads CCBHC implementation and readiness, supports quality and regulatory compliance, and oversees clinical workflows and medication-related services. The role also develops nursing staff, builds collaboration between behavioral health and primary care, supports grant deliverables if awarded, and aligns nursing operations with organizational and community health priorities.

Requirements

Active Registered Nurse (RN) license in Rhode Island, in good standing.
Minimum of five years of nursing experience in community health, primary care, or behavioral health settings.
At least two years of leadership or supervisory experience.
Associate degree in Nursing required.
Experience with clinical quality initiatives, risk management, and regulatory compliance.
Working knowledge of electronic health records.
Valid driver's license and reliable transportation, with ability to travel between sites as needed.
Strong clinical leadership and decision-making abilities.
Expertise in healthcare compliance, accreditation, and quality improvement.
Ability to analyze data, identify trends, and drive operational improvements.
Exceptional communication, coaching, and staff development skills.
Experience leading teams through growth, change, and transformation.
Collaborative leadership style focused on integrated care.
Strong organizational and problem-solving capabilities.
Commitment to person-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive care.

Nice To Haves

NextGen experience is strongly preferred.
Bachelor's or Master's degree in Nursing, Healthcare Administration, or a related field, or equivalent senior nursing leadership experience.
Experience working in a CCBHC, FQHC, or similarly regulated healthcare environment.
Bilingual English/Spanish or English/Portuguese skills.

Responsibilities

Provide vision, leadership, and operational direction for nursing and medical assistant services across outpatient behavioral health, substance use treatment, crisis services, care coordination, and CCBHC programs.
Lead and support CCBHC implementation, certification, recertification, and ongoing readiness efforts.
Design and improve nursing workflows that strengthen integrated care delivery and patient outcomes.
Coach, mentor, supervise, and develop nursing staff while promoting accountability and excellence.
Partner with medical, behavioral health, quality, and operations leaders to ensure seamless service delivery and appropriate staffing coverage.
Lead implementation and ongoing oversight of the CCBHC Primary Care Screening and Monitoring program, including program infrastructure, workflows, staffing, and performance measures.
Serve as the primary liaison between Behavioral Health and Primary Care teams to strengthen collaboration, care coordination, and integration.
Ensure execution of SAMHSA grant deliverables and reporting requirements, if awarded, including implementation, performance monitoring, compliance, and continuous improvement.
Champion regulatory compliance and accreditation readiness across behavioral health programs.
Partner with risk management to identify, assess, and reduce clinical risks.
Lead investigations involving incidents, patient concerns, and quality issues, and implement corrective actions.
Oversee medication management processes, infection control practices, and clinical policy development.
Keep policies, protocols, and standing orders current, evidence-based, and aligned with regulatory expectations.
Direct nursing services supporting primary care screenings, MAT, crisis services, and integrated healthcare initiatives.
Develop protocols and workflows that improve care coordination, patient education, treatment adherence, and health monitoring.
Ensure safe and consistent implementation of medication clinics, Clozaril services, laboratory processes, infection control procedures, and nursing workflows.
Collaborate with quality and billing teams to improve documentation accuracy and timely reporting in the electronic health record system.
Monitor patient communication pathways and nursing task management systems.
Support onboarding, competency development, continuing education, and regulatory training for nursing staff and medical assistants.
Ensure teams are equipped for suicide prevention, de-escalation, trauma-informed care, emergency response, and evolving clinical practices.
Partner with People Operations on employee engagement, retention, and recognition.
Align nursing operations with organizational strategic goals and community health priorities.
Build relationships with community partners, healthcare agencies, payers, and regulatory organizations.
Represent nursing leadership in internal committees, leadership meetings, board-related initiatives, and external collaborative efforts.