Director of Nursing

Summit BHC•Stone River Recovery Center, CA

7d•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Nursing is accountable for providing professional nursing care to clients and directing, planning, coordinating, monitoring, and supervising nursing operations and the safe delivery of behavioral health and nursing services. The role promotes a positive, empathetic, and professional approach and ensures that nursing policies, programs, and services support the facility’s strategic goals and objectives. This onsite leadership position manages daily nursing services, staffing, quality and safety, medication management, infection control, client assessments and care planning, records, supplies, and budget operations. The Director collaborates with facility and corporate leaders, the CEO, psychiatrists, pharmacy vendors, and interdisciplinary teams. The role may also provide coverage or training for other programs, on-call administration, and direct client care in emergencies.

Requirements

Graduation from an accredited school of nursing.
Three or more years of nursing practice experience.
One or more years of psychiatric or behavioral health experience.
Two or more years of progressive managerial experience.
Valid current RN license from the state or a compact state, where applicable.
CPR certification and de-escalation training; training is available upon hire and offered by the facility.
Skills in assessment and considerable knowledge of nursing principles and practice, staffing, budgeting, employee management, regulatory requirements, and care documentation; ability to meet regulatory requirements.
If not MSN-prepared, must enter into a nursing consultation agreement with a master’s-level nurse for supervision as required by state regulations.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s or master’s degree in psychiatric or mental health nursing preferred.
Certification in Psychiatric Nursing preferred.
First aid may be required depending on state or facility.

Responsibilities

Set the vision for nursing practice and manage daily nursing operations to deliver safe, timely, efficient, equitable, client-centered care.
Identify and prioritize operational issues and collaborate with department and corporate leaders as needed.
Communicate instructions, expectations, and timelines clearly.
Develop, maintain, and implement nursing services, policies, and procedures consistent with nursing standards, accrediting requirements, facility philosophy, and applicable laws and regulations.
Monitor operational indicators, census, acuity, staffing, revenue, and expenses; correct undesirable trends and allocate nursing resources according to client acuity and care needs.
Lead nursing staff through hiring, orientation, performance management, motivation, training, scheduling, and coaching; ensure adequate staffing and contingency plans.
Manage productivity and staff scheduling while curtailing unnecessary overtime and excessive work hours.
Maintain accountability for job performance, quality, safety, attendance, policy compliance, conduct, and client safety; identify staff education needs and ensure training is completed.
Oversee facility medication management, including inventory, records, standards, medication-room audits, pharmacy inspection corrective actions, and reconciliation of medication reports with the pharmacy vendor.
Make nursing diagnoses concerning clients’ medical and emotional status, recommend treatment options, supervise assessments and care plans, consult with psychiatrists and behavioral health staff, and coordinate nursing services with other departments.
Participate in management meetings to review client status, reassessment needs, census changes, and client or staff concerns.
Establish and oversee infection control and safety programs; review surveillance reports, identify trends, and develop infection prevention and control actions.
Collaborate with interdisciplinary treatment teams, departments, and administration to address clients’ physical, biopsychosocial, age-related, developmental, and cultural needs.
Develop and deliver health care-related training to support effective health services.
Assist the CEO with preparation and administration of the organization’s budget, manage within the approved budget, and participate in strategic planning and budget development.
Maintain adequate supplies and equipment for client services.
Oversee client clinical records, statistics, reports, and records used to evaluate and report organizational activities.
Stay informed about changes in nursing and behavioral health care and apply that information to compliance and performance improvement.
Assist the CEO in preparing staff for inspection surveys and in preparing and implementing Plans of Correction.
Monitor unit and floor operations through frequent rounds, intervene in crises, investigate incidents, and follow up on nursing and client-safety incident reports with Risk Management.
Provide onsite coverage for other programs when needed; develop and execute programs according to market needs; and provide training, case consultation, or Administrator On Call coverage during or after program hours as needed.
Conduct assigned Leadership Rounds to identify environment-of-care, safety, and infection-control concerns and provide real-time education about facility processes.
Assume a client care assignment in emergency situations as needed.