Manager, Inpatient Nursing

Join Sutter Health at NCH-Novato Community Hospital

Manages and provides overall operational and clinical nursing leadership to an inpatient department(s) or setting. Plans and organizes inpatient nursing operations and resources to ensure effective and efficient delivery of patient care consistent with applicable laws, standards and regulations. Establishes protocols and practices, ensuring compliance with department, affiliate, operating unit, and/or system standards, policies and procedures, the Joint Commission (TJC) standards, and applicable laws and regulations. Takes a strategic and tactical approach in identifying best practices and standardizing workflows/processes, and developing plans of action to implement changes. Establishes and manages capital and operational budgets to achieve financial targets via effective utilization of personnel, resources and supplies. Develops and maintains a solid partnership with internal and external peers, leaders, and/or local/state/federal agencies to facilitate and collaborate on initiatives or issues resolution. Provides guidance and/or direct intervention in resolving challenging or complex situations.

Principal Accountabilities, Requirements and Qualifications are not exhaustive, but are merely the most descriptive of the current job. Management reserves the right to revise the job description or require that other tasks be performed when the circumstances of the job change (for example, emergencies, staff changes, workload, or technical development).

Job Accountabilities

Operations:

• Plans and organizes operations and resources to ensure effective and efficient delivery of patient care consistent with applicable laws, standards and regulations.
• Establishes protocols and practices, ensuring compliance with department, affiliate, operating unit, and/or system standards, policies and procedures, TJC standards, and applicable laws and regulations.
• Takes a strategic approach in identifying best practices and standardizing workflows/processes and developing plans of action to implement changes.
• Establishes and communicates priorities and operational objectives to ensure business results are achieved.
• Makes rounds with staff, patients and physicians, listening to concerns and issues, conducting service recovery, and ensuring appropriate patient care.
• Reviews patient complaints and incidents, responding as appropriate and develops improvement plan with supervisor or lead.
• Directs or leads continuous improvement efforts using Lean or other process improvement methods and concepts.
• Ensures appropriate records are maintained for documentation and audit purposes.
• Promotes efficient and effective communications between departments and/or business teams to improve and standardize workflows.
• Identifies and works to remove barriers that may hinder the delivery of care or the achievement of process/productivity improvement and efficiency.
• Provides guidance and direct intervention in resolving challenging or complex situations.
• Develops, implements and/or ensures corrective action plans are implemented to address or minimize operational risk.
• Manages vendor contracts to ensure terms and conditions follow operating unit and/or system protocols.
• Keeps leadership informed of operations and escalates complex issues requiring higher level intervention.
• Develops and maintains a solid partnership with internal and external peers, leaders, and/or local/state/federal agencies to facilitate and collaborate on initiatives or issues resolution.
• As necessary, responds to emergencies and/or calls from staff after regular operating hours.

People:

• Provides and fosters an inclusive work environment that encourages staff engagement and collaboration, establishing a culture of teamwork.
• Manages assigned staff, makes hiring and termination decisions, and reviews and approves timekeeping records.
• Establishes expectations with all direct reports, holds individuals and work teams accountable, and ensures job descriptions accurately reflect job responsibilities and expectations.
• Evaluates staff performance. Provides constructive feedback, coaching and counseling. Implements disciplinary actions and/or performance improvement plans to achieve desired performance. May work with leadership when major disciplinary action is necessary or in consultation with Human Resources.
• Provides opportunities for career development, role expansion, and cross-training.
• Monitors department training and orientation plans, ensuring staff meets competency requirements and participates in appropriate education and training programs.
• Conducts staff meetings for informative and educational purposes.
• Responds timely to alleged violations of policies, procedures, regulations and standards of conduct by evaluating or initiating investigative procedures. May consult with Human Resources or Compliance to determine appropriate course of action.
• Ensures staff maintains current and appropriate professional credentials.

Financial Management:

• Develops, recommends, and manages capital and operational budgets to achieve financial targets via effective utilization of personnel, resources and supplies.
• Monitors department productivity, ensuring operational challenges are addressed timely.
• Reviews financial reports and develops and implements corrective action plans to address unfavorable variances.
• Reviews and approves employee expense reimbursements, and billing statements from vendors according to established protocol.

Strategy/Planning:

• Leads departmental goal setting process and provides roadmap for accomplishing goals. Monitors progress, developing action plans to address issues and challenges.
• Communicates affiliate, operating unit and system goals to staff, helping staff understand impact on patients, operations and resources.
• Develops plan of action to address current and future resource needs in order to meet service and/or operational demands and objectives.
• Identifies process improvement opportunities, and initiates action plan to meet short/long term operational objectives.
• Develops metrics and methods for measuring outcomes against relevant internal and external benchmarks; assists in the identification of criteria and effective qualitative/quantitative measurement tools.
• Prepares reports and/or analyses, identifying operational trends and recurrent issues, and recommends and implements course of action.
• May participate in and/or facilitate ad-hoc committees and task forces to collaborate on or support new or ongoing initiatives.
• During peak periods or emergencies, may perform tasks to support patient care.
• May assume responsibilities of one-up leader role during his/her absence.

Education:

• Graduate of an accredited school of nursing.

Certification & Licensure:

• RN-Registered Nurse of California
• BLS-Basic Life Support Healthcare Provider

Department Required Certification & Licensure:

• ACLS-Advanced Cardiac Life Support: Emergency Department, MMC Labor & Delivery, MMC Obstetrics Acute
• Fetal Monitoring Certificate: MMC Labor & Delivery, MMC Obstetrics Acute
• NRP-Neonatal Resuscitation Provider: Department, MMC Family Birth Center
• PALS-Pediatric Advanced Life Support: Department, Emergency Department
• TNCC-Trauma Nursing Corp Course within 180 days: Department, Emergency Department
• ENPC-Emergency Nurse Pediatric Course: OR Department, Emergency Department
• NIHSS-National Institutes of Health Stroke Scales within 90 days: Department, Emergency Department

Typical Experience: 8 years of recent relevant experience.

Skills and Knowledge:

• Solid understanding of operations and workflows and how the department's process/workflow impacts other department operations.
• Demonstrates understanding of business and operational requirements.
• Demonstrated leadership skills, including team building, and coaching/mentoring with the ability to motivate and engage others.
• Demonstrates solid clinical proficiency and knowledge to effectively plan and coordinate patient care consistent with applicable laws, standards and regulations.
• Working knowledge and thorough understanding of state/federal/local and/or accreditation standards and requirements as it relates to operations and organization, with the ability to interpret and implement applicable standards and requirements.
• Demonstrates understanding of the healthcare financial environment.
• Demonstrates ability to develop and manage a budget.
• Understands age-specific needs in providing care to the patient population served.
• Demonstrates tactical and analytical thinking and planning skills, and is able to develop plans to accomplish objectives, identify obstacles and resolve operational issues.
• Knowledge of emerging trends and how it impacts operations.
• Ability to build and establish effective working partnerships with employees, peers and/or leaders to achieve business objectives.
• Demonstrates ability to handle confidential and sensitive issues.
• Verbal and written communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to handle difficult circumstances and make sound business decisions with little direction.
• Demonstrates ability to work in a dynamic and fast-paced environment with changing business priorities.
• Organizational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritize multiple projects while delivering quality service and achieving business results.
• Demonstrates a customer service focus in all decisions