Assistant Nurse Manager

Assistant Nurse Manager 5EW Medical-Surgical Telemetry & Stroke

Full-Time | Evening Shift Leadership (3:00 PM 11:00 PM)

5EW is a 43-bed Medical-Surgical Telemetry and Stroke unit providing comprehensive care to adult patients with acute medical conditions, cardiac monitoring needs, and neurologic diagnoses, including stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA). The unit serves a complex patient population requiring advanced clinical assessment, interdisciplinary collaboration, and coordinated discharge planning.

As a key member of the nursing leadership team, the Assistant Nurse Manager partners with the Nurse Manager, Clinical Practice Specialist, physicians, rehabilitation services, case management, and interdisciplinary teams to drive excellence in patient outcomes, staff engagement, and operational performance.

Position Highlights

This off-shift leadership role provides visible operational and clinical leadership during evening hours, supporting frontline staff, patient throughput, quality outcomes, and patient experience. The Assistant Nurse Manager serves as the primary leadership presence on the unit during assigned shifts and is instrumental in supporting a culture of accountability, teamwork, safety, and professional development.

Key Responsibilities Specific to 5EW

• Provide evening operational and clinical leadership for a high-volume 43-bed Medical-Surgical Telemetry and Stroke unit.
• Support nursing teams caring for patients requiring telemetry monitoring, stroke care, neurologic assessments, and management of complex medical conditions.
• Ensure adherence to evidence-based stroke protocols, regulatory requirements, and quality metrics related to stroke care.
• Collaborate with physicians, rehabilitation services, case management, and ancillary departments to optimize patient progression and discharge planning.
• Lead daily patient flow activities, including admissions, discharges, transfers, and capacity management.
• Monitor staffing, patient acuity, and operational needs in real time to ensure safe and effective care delivery.
• Serve as a mentor, coach, and resource for nurses, nursing support staff, and charge nurses during evening hours.
• Conduct leadership rounding with patients, families, and staff to identify opportunities for service recovery and continuous improvement.
• Support initiatives focused on reducing falls, hospital-acquired conditions, readmissions, and improving patient experience outcomes.
• Facilitate implementation of evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and High Reliability Organization (HRO) principles.
• Assist with onboarding, competency validation, succession planning, and professional development activities for nursing staff.
• Promote engagement in shared governance councils, certification, and professional advancement programs.

Unit Priorities and Leadership Opportunities

• Advancing stroke program excellence and supporting achievement of organizational quality goals.
• Improving workforce engagement, retention, and professional development.
• Strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration and communication.
• Enhancing patient experience through leadership visibility and proactive service recovery.
• Supporting throughput initiatives and efficient care transitions.
• Driving reliability in nursing practice through standardization, coaching, and accountability.

Ideal Candidate

The successful candidate is a highly visible and collaborative leader who thrives in a fast-paced acute care environment. They are passionate about developing others, fostering a positive team culture, and achieving exceptional patient outcomes. This individual demonstrates strong clinical judgment, operational excellence, and a commitment to advancing stroke care, patient safety, and nursing practice.

This position offers an exceptional opportunity for an emerging nurse leader seeking to expand leadership experience while contributing to a highly engaged team and a growing culture of excellence on 5EW.

Job Summary

Serves as a frontline operational leader with direct accountability for shift-level operations and team performance. Partners with the Nurse Manager to ensure operational excellence, staff engagement, and patient outcomes for an assigned operational area. Supports and ensures the delivery of high-quality patient care aligned with the organization's strategic goals. Collaborates and manages clinical operations, ensures regulatory compliance, and fosters a culture of safety, professionalism, and continuous improvement. Supports staff development, evidence-based practices, and maintains clinical competency to provide direct care when needed. Completes onboarding, performance management, and succession planning, while furthering multidisciplinary initiatives and organizational projects.

Functions as a key driver of culture, safety, and innovation. This role is designed as a leadership pathway position, preparing high-performing clinical leaders for future leadership opportunities.

Primary Responsibilities

• Assumes delegated operational accountability for clinical performance, staffing, quality outcomes, patient experience, and team engagement in partnership with the Nurse Manager. Engages in the delivery of high-quality, patient- and family-centered care. Participates in rounding, provides real-time feedback and service recovery, monitors safety and quality metrics, and communicates performance outcomes to team members and providers to drive continuous improvement. Escalates quality, safety and experience concerns as needed and resolves issues as able.
• Accountable for unit-level performance metrics including quality indicators, safety outcomes, patient experience, workforce engagement, productivity, and throughput. Collaborates with providers, interdisciplinary partners, and unit team members to set goals and improve patient care in conjunction with the leader.
• Utilizes engagement data, turnover trends, and retention metrics to proactively address workforce challenges and develop unit-based improvement strategies.
• Controls onboarding, orientation, and competency validation for new and existing team members, ensuring readiness and professional growth.
• Develops emerging leaders through mentoring, coaching, and structured succession planning.
• Enforces regulatory standards and supports ongoing compliance efforts. Collaborates with leadership and team members to implement and sustain processes that promote survey readiness and adherence to accreditation and regulatory requirements.
• Monitors staffing plans, productivity, overtime utilization, and supply expense trends; collaborates with the Nurse Manager to meet budgetary targets while maintaining safe care delivery. Fosters a healthy, inclusive work environment. Supports retention initiatives, valuing diversity and encouraging innovation. Builds relationships, promotes open communication and creates a culture that supports collaboration, creativity, and continuous improvement. Provides coaching and feedback, addresses performance issues and supports peer review processes.
• Promotes shared governance and team member involvement in decision-making and unit operations.
• Supports innovation and evidence-based practice by staying current with healthcare delivery advancements. Incorporates research findings into clinical practice, disseminates relevant literature, and champions team member-generated innovations and multidisciplinary research at the unit level.
• Maintains individual clinical competency to support direct patient care when needed and role-model best practices.
• Translates organizational goals and values into unit-level strategies, aligning team efforts with the organization's mission and vision. Implements principles of a High Reliability Organization and performance improvement strategies, using data to guide change, mentor team members, and improve outcomes.
• Demonstrates and models High Reliability behaviors.
• Ensures patient safety in the performance of job functions and through participation in hospital, department or unit patient safety initiatives. Takes action to correct observed risks to patient and team member safety. Reports adverse events and near misses to appropriate management authority. Identifies possible risks in processes, procedures, devices and communicates the same to those in charge. Escalates safety concerns expediently when necessary and shares learning from safety concerns and events.
• Performs all other related duties as assigned.

Education & Experience - Required

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing required. If bachelor's degree is not in nursing, graduate degree must be in nursing.
• Licensure as a Registered Nurse in the State of Maryland or eligibility for licensure due to compact state agreements outlined through the Maryland Board of Nursing.
• Three (3) years of previous clinical experience required.
• Advanced certification (e.g., NE-BC, CEN, PCCN, etc.) required. Incumbents must obtain advanced certification within three (3) years of assuming the position. ACLS, BLS and/or other certifications to match patient populations served.

Preferred Education, Experience & Qualifications

• Master's degree
• Previous leadership experience as a charge nurse, clinical coordinator, assistant nurse manager, or equivalent role.
• Experience in Medical-Surgical, Telemetry, Progressive Care, Neuroscience, or Stroke Nursing.
• Demonstrated success in staff development, performance improvement, patient experience initiatives, and quality outcomes.
• Specialty certification such as PCCN, MEDSURG-BC, SCRN (Stroke Certified Registered Nurse), or other relevant certification preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

• Knowledge and skills necessary to provide care appropriate to the patient

University of Maryland Medical Center