Position Description: Manager, Patient Care Services, Inpatient Psychiatric Unit - Stanford Hospital & Clinics

 The Opportunity

This is an opportunity for a clinical manager from a variety of different specialties to enhance their career at one of the most prestigious medical institutions in the US.  The Patient Care Manager, Inpatient Psychiatric Unit at Stanford Hospital & Clinics, which was ranked in 7^th place nationally for both in and out patient services will be in a position to manage a highly motivated, excellent and fully staffed unit.  In the most recent JCAHO inspection, the unit was in full compliance with no exceptions.

For a nurse manager with no psych experience there is a great deal of support for this position.  There is a full-time Clinical Nurse Manager, who works side-by-side with the Manager and provides exceptional support.  In addition to full-time physicians and nurses, this unit also provides lectures, chaplaincy services, physical and occupational therapy, recreational therapy, art therapy and social services. 

The patient population is comprised of “high function” adults with an average length of stay of two weeks.  These are not “street tough” or dangerous people, but instead need a moderate course of treatment. 

Our Client

Our highly prestigious client, Stanford Hospital & Clinics (SHC) is known worldwide for advanced patient care, particularly for the treatment of rare, complex disorders in areas such as cardiac care, cancer treatment, neurology, neurosurgery and organ transplants.  Stanford Hospital includes 611 licensed beds.  The clinics offer care in more than 100 specialties, including cancer, neurology, surgery and organ transplantation. 

Patients come to Stanford from all over the Western United States and the world, often for specialized procedures unavailable elsewhere.  In recognition of excellent care, the hospital and physicians consistently rank among the top in the nation in surveys by consumers and health care professionals. In July, 2002, Stanford was named to the Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report.  The Hospital was ranked #14 out of 100, in 2004.

Management

An overview of top management of the hospital shows an exceptional blend of clinical, operational and business expertise in the field of acute and specialty care and services.  Underlying the management team's skill-set is a passionate, deep-seeded and visionary commitment to excellence, innovation and growth.  The style of management and the organizational culture of excellence are deeply rooted in teamwork and mutual support. 

The level of teamwork and support among the management staff is extraordinarily high and remarkably effective.  This group of Managers and Directors, with their collaborative style and complete commitment to the mission, is the heart of the department’s success.  It is readily apparent that the management team consistently emphasizes teamwork, individual achievement and making the job fun.

To complement the management team, an individual must be able to blend their individual success into that of the entire team and share in the commitment and the satisfaction of taking care of the healthcare needs of the community.

Position Description

The Patient Care Manager, Inpatient Psychiatric Unit, which was ranked in 7^th place nationally for both in and out patient services, reports to the Associate Director, Nursing.  This position will be responsible for managing patient care delivery, human resources, performance improvement, budgets, change management and unit business goals.

The incumbent is responsible for the overall operation of the 16-bed, locked psychiatric inpatient unit, which is a short-term unit focusing on affective disorders.  The responsibilities also include a 22-bed unit which serves patients with medical conditions accompanied by psychiatric disorders or whose mental condition may respond to behavioral interventions, including elderly patients, eating disorders, substance abuse and pain patients.  The patient population is comprised of “high function” adults with an average length of stay of two weeks.  These are not “street tough” or dangerous people, but instead need a moderate course of treatment. 

The Patient Care Manager, Inpatient Psychiatric Unit is responsible for a staff of sixty FTE’s.  The unit is fully staffed; there are no travelers in use.  The units are stable and the staff is seasoned and functions very well together as a tight-knit team.  This staff does not float to other units within the hospital.  

The successful candidate can come from a variety of nursing specialties.  A psych background is not a requirement, instead the right person will possess the management skills to successfully lead the unit.  The current Manager, who has been in the position, did not have a psych background.  She came in two years ago to manage the unit and improve performance of the unit on a temporary basis.  Her management skills, knowledge of clinical management and team-building attitudes have resulting in an excellent department.  In the most recent JCAHO inspection, the unit was in full compliance with no exceptions.

For a nurse manager with no psych experience there is a great deal of support for this position, there is a full-time Clinical Nurse Manager, who works side-by-side with the Manager and provides exceptional support.  In addition to full-time physicians and nurses, this unit also provides lectures, chaplaincy services, physical and occupational therapy, recreational therapy, art therapy and social services.  There is also a beautiful court yard for the patients.

The Medical Director of the unit is an internationally renowned physician.  He is a pleasure to work with and is very supportive of the Manager and the staff.

The successful candidate will plan, organize, direct, maintain and evaluate patient care and unit activities according to established policies and procedures to provide high quality, individualized patient care.  He or she will maintain the integrity of the service to meet all accreditation and licensure requirements. 

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

• Applies knowledge of dimensions of patient care services excellence to strategic planning, program/process integration, capacity development and PCS evaluation metrics.
• Ensures PCS continuous readiness and compliance to regulatory standards.
• Optimizes clinical practice effectiveness through collaboration, supervision and direction of advance clinicians.
• Coordinates integration of research findings, changes in practice and educational programs into daily operations.
• Manages resources including direct reports and budgets to provide efficient, effective, cost-effective, outcome oriented staff education and training.
• Strengthens evidence-base foundation for policies/procedures and fosters consistency in implementation of policies/procedures.
• Provides oversight and coordination for PCS interdisciplinary governance councils and strategic teams/initiatives.
• Provides administrative leadership and direction for Magnet Nursing Hospital preparation and application process.
• Uses principles of adult learning and instructional design systems to implement multifaceted PCS education program/curriculum that ensures staff competency, role development and personal work related goal attainment.
• Develops the capacity of the PCS leadership team and systems within PCS to implement innovation and expedite change.
• Establishes collaborative relationships with internal and external individuals, organizations, and institutions.
• Provides leadership for research activities within the department in conjunction with the Center for Innovation in Patient Care and the PCS Research Council.
• Collaborates in developing, measuring and disseminating internal and external benchmarking report and dashboard data that capture PCS excellence and drive ongoing performance improvement.

Personal Characteristics

The Director, Patient Care Services, Practice and Education, needs to possess the patience, self-confidence and communication skills necessary to work with the clinical and administrative staff and the Physicians.

First and foremost, this individual needs to be a team player, be a superb communicator and have the style of a diplomat, i.e., be able to work in harmony with other operational entities and to negotiate agreements so each party benefits. It is imperative that he/she be skilled in bringing together the staff functions in a spirit of harmony and with a single-minded purpose.

A hands-on leader who can develop a strategic vision of the department and has the expertise to develop values and goals for a diverse group of constituents will be successful.  The successful candidate will have a proven record of accomplishment of strong leadership skills to ensure that the improvement process within the department continues, that priorities are established and the goals are met.

The successful candidate will be a person who possesses a strong work ethic, rejects setbacks and values accomplishments highly.  An action-oriented personality that deals with specifics within a broad conceptual framework will be most effective in this position.  This individual will have an appropriate sense of urgency to react to situations quickly and decisively.

Licensure, Certification and Qualifications

Qualified professionals will have a CA RN license, a minimum of two years of clinical experience including one year in a supervisory or formal teaching role, and professional knowledge of nursing theory, practice and administration. An advanced Degree is preferred, if the successful candidate does not have a Masters Degree, it is expected that they obtain one within four years.

Compensation

The compensation plan is based on a competitive base salary commensurate with the experience and the demonstrated accomplishments of the successful candidate.  It will reflect the opportunity at the hospital. The hospital has an excellent employee benefits package consisting of medical coverage, a dental plan, life insurance, Defined Benefit Retirement Plan and a 403 b program with employer matching.

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