At Central Maine Healthcare our team members are committed to providing exceptional care and experiences for our community and for each other every day.

Position Summary:

Reporting to the Nursing Director, the Nurse Leader is responsible for the day-to-day operations of assigned responsibilities and is accountable for assuring the consistent use of the nursing process in a professional and healthy work environment. In addition, the Nurse Leader is responsible and accountable for achieving departmental level expected quality, financial, customer Service, and people results.

In support of Nursing’s Vision, Philosophy and Strategic Plan, the Nurse Leader provides leadership for the development and implementation of departmental projects/initiatives, long- and short-term goals, and is responsible for planning, administering and evaluating the operation of their assigned department.

In conjunction with the Director, the Nurse Leader is responsible for overseeing implementation of patient care via organizational and departmental policies and procedures, evidence-based practice, CMH Service Standards, American Nurses Association Scope and Standards of Practice, The American Nurses Association Code of Ethics, and the Maine Nurse Practice Act. The Nurse Leader maintains effective communication with all employees, patients, families, physicians and stakeholders modeling the Service Standards. The Leader, as appropriate, assumes the role of the house supervisor.

Essential Duties:

• Demonstrates support of employee involvement through reward and recognition activities, both formal and informal, on a hospital wide and unit level basis (e-mails, note cards, etc.). Seeks out innovative ways to recognize and encourage staff.
• Promotes team building with staff and other department managers.
• Creates and sustains a culture of safety.
• Leads and manages change effectively.
• Responds to change productively, promotes enthusiasm for change.
• Effectively delegates to others while maintaining accountability.
• Creates an environment that stimulates empowerment and engagement.
• Assures that practice protocols, guidelines, and decisions are evidenced-based and responsive to changes and trends.
• Demonstrates passion and vitality.
• Role models professional nursing practice and behavior.
• Maintains awareness of professional standards for Nursing, ongoing health care policies and economics, maintains awareness of future trends and implications of research for improving nursing practice.
• Demonstrates clinical proficiency in patient population(s) served.
• m) Participates on assigned teams &/or committees: unit, departmental and hospital based.
• Demonstrates initiative and responsibility to develop personal, leadership and professional goals/ objectives and determines methods to meet these goals and objectives.
• Assumes other duties as assigned.

Operations:

• Plans, directs, and coordinates operations of assigned department:
• Staff meetings / communication sessions are conducted and documented.
• Oversees the department activities, develops methods of communication and monitoring the off-shift activities.
• Approves unit schedule and vacation requests.
• Maintains ongoing effective and collaborative communication with the medical staff.
• Fosters interdisciplinary collaborative relationships.
• Participates in marketing strategies for department/hospital as applicable.
• Develops annual goals and objectives for unit; develops strategies for meeting the goals, communicate the plan to staff and evaluate the outcome.
• Maximizes care efficiency and throughput.
• Responsible and accountable for fiscal management of assigned department through the Capital, Operating and FTE Budgets:
• Maintain awareness of hospital financial data, ongoing healthcare policies/ trends and their impact on department.
• Conducts ongoing evaluation of productivity.
• Analyzes, explains, and corrects variances to budget.
• Develops and manages unit budget, proactively developing methods to improve financial performance. Demonstrates ability to interpret financial data as a means to determine appropriate intervention strategy. Maintains awareness and understanding of financial tools available.
• Assesses departmental needs in order to staff appropriately for patient needs while maintaining fiscal responsibility.
• Monitors equipment, and supply usage/ par levels necessary for unit operation.
• Manages internal and external disaster or emergency planning and execution.
• Assists in providing direct patient care when the number and mix of patients and unit staff exceeds staffing availability.

Human Resource Management:

• Demonstrates ability to select and develop all employees:
• Oversees ongoing educational and professional growth of all employees.
• Facilitates staff growth in position expectations.
• Provides for comprehensive orientation and annual/ongoing competency validation to assure proficiency in performing assigned tasks based on developmental needs.
• Ensures staff compliance with hospital expectations.
• Counsels staff and documents deficiencies, sets improvement objectives, and completes follow-up.
• Demonstrates support of all affiliated student programs.

Performance Management:

• Conducts performance evaluations within specific time limits.
• Assists staff with goal-setting.
• Implements continual performance development.
• Monitors staff for fitness for duty.
• Implements timely corrective actions.
• Terminates staff.

Staff Retention:

• Assesses staff satisfaction through daily staff interaction.
• Develops and implements strategies to address satisfaction issues in a timely manner.
• Implements ideas/methods to improve retention.
• Develops methods to reward and recognize staff.
• Staffing needs:
• Evaluates staffing patterns and needs.
• Matches staff competency with patient acuity.
• Manages human resources within scope of labor laws.

Communication:

• Maintains awareness of verbal/ nonverbal communication in interactions with staff, other departments, physicians, patients, families and students.
• Collaborates and communicates effectively with all members of the health care team; shares information to ensure staff, physicians, and affected departments are aware of unit changes.
• Maintains patient, staff and hospital confidentiality in all communication interactions: written, verbal, electronic and digital.
• Demonstrates ability to initiate and manage crucial conversations and coach leadership team/staff in same; resolves and manages conflict.
• Makes unit/department and patient rounds frequently to keep channels of communication open. Gives appropriate feedback in a timely manner to questions and concerns.

Customer Service:

• Displays positive attitude. Treats others with honesty and respect. Speaks positively in all customer interactions internal and external.
• Assess customer satisfaction when rounding on patients and use appropriate chain of command for unresolved issues or problems.
• Advocates for patients/ family and employees.
• Takes appropriate action on patient/family/staff/physician issues and concerns.
• Use GREAT (Greet, Relate/Recap, Explain, Ask, Tell/Thank you) to:
• Optimize the patient’s experience by reducing the patient and family’s anxiety and increasing the patient’s compliance.
• Develop positive relationships with other departments to foster patient satisfaction.
• Intervene with patients /staff using crucial conversation skills in situations in which customer needs have not been met to determine a positive, mutually agreeable resolution.
• Assesses customer service by reviewing and responding to patient satisfaction surveys.

Professional Growth:

• Accepts responsibility for and demonstrates personal professional growth:
• Identify own learning needs, develops and implements a plan to address those needs.
• Accepts feedback/input from peers, direct supervisor and direct reports, as necessary, to identify areas for growth or deficiencies.
• Obtains specialty certification or training and maintains active membership in professional organizations.

Performance Management/Process Improvement:
In conjunction with nursing leadership:

• Develops unit key performance indicators with input from all employees.
• Consistently utilizes PI principles for inter/intra departmental interactions.
• Develops tools and collects data as indicated.
• Uses data to drive Performance Improvement: able to aggregate data and present information so that Leader and staff can determine a course of action.
• Initiate changes in practice based upon PI data.
• Maintain mechanism to inform/ involve staff of PI processes and data.
• Develop and maintain ongoing understanding of nursing best practices for the types of patients for which care is provided.
• Maintain current knowledge and ensure department compliance and survey readiness with The Joint Commission (TJC), Centers for Medicare Services (CMS) and other regulatory bodies.
• Identifies and reports sentinel events.
• Participates in root cause analysis.
• Ensures thorough and timely investigation and resolution of occurrence reports for areas of responsibility.

Leadership

• Leader, Endoscopy / Minor Surgery
• Responsible and accountable for ensuring nursing and technician competency, education and practice in accordance with SGNA standards and guidelines for all procedures performed within the Endoscopy space.
• Responsible and accountable for oversight of surgical schedulers and schedule management within the procedural space.
• In coordination with hospital leadership, assist in implementation of system strategic initiatives related to endoscopic procedures for service lines including Gastroenterology, Pulmonology, Colon & Rectal Surgery, and Bariatric.

AGE SPECIFIC COMPETENCY:

• Dependent upon department and the patient population:
• Neonatal (Birth thru 28 days):
• Handles infants in gentle manner.
• Speaks in soothing voice.
• Holds and cuddles infant when necessary.
• Facilitates parental interaction and care of infant.
• Infant (29 days thru 12 months):
• Approaches infant in slow, non-threatening way.
• Speaks in soothing voice.
• Holds and cuddles infant as much as possible.
• Encourages parental interaction with infant.
• Allows for familiar toys/blankets to be brought from home.
• Pediatrics (one year thru 11 years):
• Allows choices when possible.
• Speaks directly using few, clear, simple terms and explanations.
• Limits number of strangers entering room.
• Provides consistent nursing assignments.
• Does not shame parents for lack of cooperation.
• Holds child for painful procedures.
• Adolescents (12 years thru 18 years):
• Allows participation in care and choices as appropriate.
• Provides for patient's modesty.
• Tells patient exactly what will be expected.
• Allows patient control.
• Speaks directly to patient in simple medical terms.
• Geriatrics (65 years and older):
• Identifies physical/social/emotional barriers and physical limitations at discharge.
• Teaches patient about one item at a time.
• Repeats instructions several times.
• Speaks slowly and distinctly when talking to the patient.

Unit Specific Requirements:
Leader, Emergency Department:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with Emergency Nursing Association Scope and Standards of Practice.
• Oversight of the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Program.
• Actively participates in the hospital-wide Emergency Preparedness Program.

Leader, Intensive Care & Single Stay Unit:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) Scope and Standards of Practice.
• Oversight of Rapid Response Program.

Leader, Medical-Surgical Units:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with Medical-Surgical Scope and Standards of Practice.

Leader, Orthopedic Institute& Inpatient Rehab Units:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Scope and Standards of Practice.
• Oversight of TJC Disease Specific Certifications.
• Maintain working knowledge and coordinate training/utilization/testing of the FIMS (Functional Independent Measure System). Ensure staff certification every 2 years via computerized testing with 80% success rate.

Leader, Women’s & Children’s:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with Maternal-Child Scope and Standards of Practice.
• Insuring surgical care of the obstetric patient is complaint according to AORN, AWHOWN and MDHHS requirements.
• Maintaining and monitoring the required NRP education for all staff.
• Provides leadership in the design, implementation and evaluation of process improvement initiatives Women’s Education Services.

Leader, Central Staffing:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with assigned areas of the hospital.
• Responsible for system wide project management related to nursing initiatives.
• Responsible and accountable for oversight of house supervisors and bed flow management.
• Responsible and accountable for identified ancillary staff supporting hospital departments.
• Responsible for nurse traveler management and onboarding.

Leader, Intermediate Care Unit:

• Responsible and accountable for ensuring competency for nurses practicing in accordance with assigned areas of the hospital.
• Oversight of 12 bed intermediate care unit.
• ACLS and telemetry trained.

Education and Experience:

• Licensed to Practice Nursing in the State of Maine
• Bachelors Degree required;
• Note: Either Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree must be in nursing
• Minimum of 3 years current related hospital experience, with three years of relevant committee/team leadership experience
• Positive communication skills
• Experience working in a rapid changing environment and under pressure
• Demonstrated initiative and project completion skills
• Strong customer service philosophy
• Personal and professional accountability
• Exceptional verbal and written communication
• Demonstrated effectiveness as a change agent
• Demonstrated decision-making skills
• Demonstrated delegation skills
• Current BLS

Preferred Attributes:

• Master’s Degree preferred, or must currently be matriculated in a Master’s program
• Specialty/Leadership certification
• Process improvement training requirements:
• Employees his position may be exposed to blood, body fluids and/or airborne pathogens and are required to wear personal protective equipment
• Employees in this position must be able to push, pull, lift, carry, turn, crouch, and bend as necessary to complete nursing care tasks, see attached description of physical demands.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Ability to engage patients an Experience Standards
• I am creating a warming, caring, and non-judgmental environment
• I am actively listening and seeking information
• I am honest, truthful, and consistent
• I am respectful, treating all individuals with dignity and empathy
• I am serving as a role model, taking both initiative and ownership when appropriate
• I am working collaboratively and demonstrating teamwork
• Serve as the champion of the patient and team member experience by providing an A+ experience to every patient and team member, every day
• Nurse Leader Position References:
• American Association of Critical Care Nurses, AACN Standards for Establishing and sustaining healthy work environments. 2016.
• American Organization of Nurse Executives, The AONE Nurse Executive Competencies, http://www.aone.org/resources/leadership%20tools/PDFs/AONE_NEC
• American Nurses Association (2001) Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretative Statements. Washington, DC.
• American Nurses Association, Scope and Standards of Practice (3rd Edition) February 20

If you are passionate about making a difference and are looking for your next great career opportunity, we look forward to reviewing your application!