Nurse Director

Nurse Director, Hospital Utilization Management

In addition to the responsibilities below, this position is also responsible for establishing best practice models; performing strategic planning and designing patient care delivery systems and practice standards in several locations; leading the investigation of patient / family / member concerns regarding patient care and services; partnering with physicians, outside healthcare providers, and other health care team members to achieve optimal and safe patient care across the continuum; managing resource needs in clinical areas to ensure appropriate assignment and utilization; evaluating the use and maintenance of equipment, supplies and medications; assuming accountability for patient and employee safety; maintaining clinical expertise, providing clinical supervision, competency and licensing necessary to fulfill job responsibilities and to direct the provision of care in the unit; delegating tasks and duties that are aligned to scope of practice; and performing clinical duties as required.

Essential responsibilities include preparing individuals for growth opportunities and advancement; building internal collaborative networks for self and others. Solicits and acts on performance feedback; drives collaboration to set goals and provide open feedback and coaching to foster performance improvement. Demonstrates continuous learning; oversees the recruitment, selection, and development of talent; ensures performance management guidelines and expectations to achieve business needs. Stays up to date with organizational best practices, processes, benchmarks, and industry trends; shares best practices within and across teams. Motivates and empowers teams; maintains a highly skilled and engaged workforce by aligning resource plans with business objectives. Provides guidance when difficult decisions need to be made; creates opportunities for expanded scope of decision making and impact.

Oversees the operation of multiple units within a department by identifying member and operational needs; ensures the management of work assignment completion; translates business strategy into actionable business requirements; ensures products and / or services meet member requirements and expectations while aligning with organizational strategies. Gains cross-functional support for business plans and priorities; assumes responsibility for decision making; sets standards, measures progress, and fosters resolution of escalated issues. Communicates goals and objectives; analyzes resources, costs, and forecasts and incorporates them into business plans; prioritizes and distributes resources. Removes obstacles that impact performance; guides performance and develops contingency plans accordingly; ensures teams accomplish business objectives.

Directs hospital administrative functions to support patient care by : approving timelines, considering the development of strategies with stakeholders to identify factors contributing to business value; developing and reviewing ad hoc reports and workflows, directing department response and assuming accountability for department performance targets; championing short- and long-term operational initiatives and directing program, services, and / or systems development; aligning cross-functional programs including workplace and patient safety, human resources (e.g., recruitment, selection, promoting active recruitment, performance evaluation and management), labor relations, training and development, and quality / risk management issues with KPs mission and values; directing continuous survey readiness activities including mock rounds and mitigating issues to maintain compliance and regulatory standards, and reviewing prepared audit documentation, information, and reports; and overseeing the development of budgets for assigned areas (e.g., branch office, staffing, business services departments) and ensuring overall financial performance meets expectations.

Manages care delivery operations and programs within a twenty-four-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week operational environment by : partnering with physicians and other clinical leaders to align key care delivery initiatives across KP, providing oversight over all workstreams; overseeing the development and implementation of long-term plans, policies, and processes for data-gathering and analysis while ensuring guideline and regulation alignment; driving cross-functional patient management solutions with internal and external leaders; aligning resources in hospital areas to ensure appropriate assignment and utilization; directing multidisciplinary hospital team(s) and holding team(s) accountable for performance; collaborating on and overseeing the design of emergency preparedness programs; adjusting departments emergency preparedness and recovery plans as needed, ensuring managers and staff are trained and understand expectations for during and after an emergency; providing strategic direction to project teams leading initiatives and ensuring implementation, equitable distribution of resources, and delivery on objectives; and overseeing teams responsible for the delivery of nursing services and patient care within a twenty-four-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week operational environment in alignment with cost, quality, and clinical and utilization standards.

Directs improvements to operations and technology processes by : driving internal and external strategic projects designed to achieve goals related to issue remediation and improved quality, service, affordability, and / or operating efficiency; defining standards for clinical teams to identify root causes of escalations, make recommendations, and implement solutions to improve the performance of operations system processes and address quality and safety issues; driving the development of strategic plans with the goal of achieving integrated services across the continuum of care in alignment with enterprise-wide goals; and consulting with senior and executive management to identify and implement relevant performance metrics to monitor the success of strategic improvement projects.

Ensures safe, quality, and standardized care delivery within a twenty-four-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week operational environment by : developing and implementing strategies to support the continuous improvement of the quality and safety of clinical practices, services, and operations for patients and staff; holding managers accountable for maintaining compliance with legal and regulatory requirements (e.g., Nursing Practice Act, The Joint Commission [TJC], federal, state, and local requirements) updated by governmental and regulatory agencies; and establishing and monitoring outcome objectives including overseeing design and implementation for systems, processes, and methods to evaluate and improve patient care within assigned department and across the continuum of care.

Minimum qualifications include : minimum seven (7) years of experience in patient care delivery; bachelors degree in nursing (BSN) and minimum seven (7) years of experience in business operations, clinical health care, or a directly related field; minimum two (2) years of experience managing operational or project budgets; minimum two (2) years of experience in a leadership role with direct reports. Registered nurse license (California) required at hire. Basic life support required at hire.

Additional requirements include knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) : patient safety; nursing principles; emergency preparedness; evidence-based medicine principles; change management; business process improvement; compliance management; confidentiality; health care compliance; maintain files and records; financial acumen; employee training; conflict resolution; stakeholder management; legal and regulatory requirements; health care quality standards; workforce planning; Microsoft Office; information systems.

Preferred qualifications include : certified in executive nursing practice (CENP) from the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL); nurse executive certification (NE-BC) or nurse executive advanced certification (NEA-BC) from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).