Vp & Chief Nurse Officer, Atrium Health Cabarrus

Overview

Position Summary:

The Chief Nurse Officer is responsible for organizing, planning, directing and evaluating all nursing functions and other patient care areas (e.g., social services, emergency medicine, pharmacy, rehabilitation and respiratory care services). Additionally, the Chief Nurse Officer directs and develops hospital wide patient care standards, policies and procedures that assure high quality patient care.

Position Accountabilities:

AONE Nurse Executive Competencies

I. Communication and Relationship Building

A. EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

• Health care topics
• Organizational issues
• Demonstrate skill in interpersonal communication
• Make oral presentations to diverse audiences on:
  • Nursing
  • Health care topics
  • Organizational issues
• Nursing
• Organizational issues
• Health care topics
• Produce written materials for diverse audiences on:
  • Nursing
  • Health care topics
  • Organizational issues
• Nursing
• Facilitate group discussions

B. RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

• Build collaborative relationships
• Communicating in a way as to maintain credibility and relationships
• Following through on promises and concerns
• Exhibit effective conflict resolution skills
• Balancing the concerns of individuals with organizational goals and objectives
• Create a trusting environment by:
  • Following through on promises and concerns
  • Establishing mechanisms to follow-up on commitments
  • Balancing the concerns of individuals with organizational goals and objectives
  • Engaging staff and others in decision-making
  • Communicating in a way as to maintain credibility and relationships
• Engaging staff and others in decision-making
• Establishing mechanisms to follow-up on commitments

C. INFLUENCING BEHAVIORS

• Assert views in non-threatening, non-judgmental ways
• Apply situational leadership skills
• Achieve outcomes through engagement of stakeholders
• Promote decisions that are patient-centered
• Inspire desired behaviors and manage undesired behaviors
• Create a shared vision
• Facilitate consensus building

D. DIVERSITY

• Establish cultural competency in the workforce
• Establish an environment that values diversity (e.g. age, gender, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, culture)
• Incorporate cultural beliefs into care delivery
• Provide an environment conducive to opinion sharing, exploration of ideas and achievement of outcomes

E. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

• Represent the organization to non-health care constituents within the community
• Represent the community perspective in the decision-making process within the organization/system
• Serve as a resource to community and business leaders regarding nursing and health care
• Serve on community-based boards, advisory groups, and task forces
• Represent nursing to the media

F. MEDICAL/STAFF RELATIONSHIPS

• Create opportunities for physicians and nurses to engage in professional dialogue
• Address and model appropriate conflict resolution
• Represent nursing at medical executive committee and other department/medical staff committees
• Use medical staff mechanisms to address physician clinical performance issues
• Collaborate with physicians and other disciplines to develop patient care protocols, policies and procedures
• Confront and address inappropriate or disruptive behavior towards patients and staff
• Build credibility with physicians as a champion for patient care, quality and the professional practice of nursing
• Collaborate to determine patient care equipment and facility needs
• Collaborate with medical staff leaders and other disciplines in determining needed patient care service lines

G. ACADEMIC RELATIONSHIPS

• Identify educational needs of existing and potential nursing staff
• Create academic partnerships to ensure a qualified workforce for the future
• Collaborate in nursing research and translate evidence into practice
• Collaborate with nursing programs in evaluating quality of graduating clinicians and develop mechanisms to enhance this quality
• Collaborate with nursing programs to provide required resources
• Determine current and future supply and demand for nurses to meet the care delivery needs
• Serve on academic advisory councils
• Collaborate to investigate care delivery models across the continuum

II. Knowledge of the Health Care Environment

A. CLINICAL PRACTICE KNOWLEDGE

• Demonstrate knowledge of current nursing practice and the roles and functions of patient care team members
• Integrate bioethical and legal dimensions into clinical and management decision-making
• Ensure protection of human subject rights and safety in clinical research
• Communication patient care standards as established by accreditation, regulatory and quality agencies
• Adhere to professional association standards of nursing practice
• Ensure compliance with the State Nurse Practice Act, State Board of Nursing regulations, state and federal regulatory agency standards, federal labor standards and policies of the organization
• Ensure that written organizational clinical policies and procedures are reviewed and updated in accordance with evidence-based practice

B. DELIVERY MODELS / WORK DESIGN

• Describe various delivery systems and age-appropriate patient care models and the advantages/disadvantages of each
• Develop new delivery models
• Assess the effectiveness of delivery models
• Demonstrate current knowledge of patient care delivery systems across the continuum
• Participate in the design of facilities

C. HEALTH CARE ECONOMICS AND POLICY

• Understand regulation and payment issues that affect an organization’s finances
• Interpret impact of legislation at the state and federal level on nursing and health care organizations
• Take action when opportunities exist to adjust operations to respond effectively to environmental changes in economic elements
• Align care delivery models and staff performance with key safety and economic drivers (e.g., value-based purchasing, bundled payment)
• Educate patient care team members on the legislative process, the regulatory process and methods for influencing both
• Participate in legislative process on health care issues through such mechanisms as membership in professional organization and personal contact with officials
• Describe individual organization’s payer mix, CMI, and benchmark database
• Use knowledge of federal and state laws and regulations that affect the provision of patient care (e.g., tort reform, malpractice/negligence, reimbursement)

D. GOVERNANCE

• Represent other disciplines that the organization’s board meetings
• Fiduciary responsibilities
• Participate in strategic planning and quality initiatives with the governing body
• Use knowledge of the role of the governing body of the organization in the following areas:
• Interact with and educate the organization’s board members regarding health care and the value of nursing care
• Credentialing
• Performance management
• Represent patient care issues to the governing body
• Represent nursing at the organizations’ board meetings

E. EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE/OUTCOME MEASUREMENT AND RESEARCH

• Monitor and address nurse sensitive outcomes and satisfaction indicators
• Design feedback mechanisms by which to adapt practice based upon outcomes from current processes
• Allocate nursing resources based on measurement of patient acuity/care needed
• Use data and other sources of evidence to inform decision making
• Use evidence for establishment of standards, practices, and patient care models in the organization
• Design and interpret outcome measures
• Disseminate research findings to patient care team members

F. PATIENT SAFETY

• Support the development of an organization-wide patient safety program

G. PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS/ METRICS

• Measuring success at improving specific areas of patient care
• Identifying the problem/ process
• Improving the process with the evidence
• Apply high reliability concepts for the organization
• Use evidence-based metrics to align patient outcomes with the organization’s goals and objectives
• Controlling solutions and sustaining success
• Analyzing the root causes or variation from quality standards
• Articulate the organization’s performance improvement program and goals
• Establish quality metrics by
  • Identifying the problem/ process
  • Measuring success at improving specific areas of patient care
  • Analyzing the root causes or variation from quality standards
  • Improving the process with the evidence
  • Controlling solutions and sustaining success

H. RISK MANAGEMENT

• Ensure compliance by staff with all required standards
• Facilitate staff education on risk management and compliance issues
• Develop systems that result in prompt reporting of potential liability by staff at all levels
• Correct areas of potential liability
• Identify early warning predictability indications for errors
• Identify areas of risk/liability

III. Leadership

A. FOUNDATIONAL THINKING SKILLS

• Recognize one’s own method of decision making and role of beliefs, values, and inferences
• Demonstrate reflective practice and an understanding that all leadership begins from within
• Provide visionary thinking on issues that impact the health care organization
• Maintain curiosity and an eagerness to explore new knowledge and ideas
• Apply critical analysis to organizational issues after a review of the evidence
• Promote nursing leadership as both a science and an art
• Address ideas, beliefs, or viewpoints that should be given serious consideration

B. PERSONAL JOURNEY DISCIPLINES

• Learn from setbacks and failures as well as successes

C. SYSTEMS THINKING

• Consider the impact of nursing decisions on the healthcare organization as a whole
• Use knowledge of classic and contemporary systems thinking in problem solving and decision making
• Use resources from other paradigms
• Promote systems thinking as an expectation of leaders and staff
• Provide visionary thinking on issues that impact the healthcare organization
• Recognize the contribution of mental models on behavior

D. SUCCESSION PLANNING

• Establish mechanisms that provide for early identification and mentoring of staff with leadership potential
• Develop a leadership succession plan
• Promote nursing leadership as a desirable specialty
• Mentor current and future nurse leaders
• Develop a workforce analysis plan and implement strategies to ensure an adequate and qualified workforce

E. CHANGE MANAGEMENT

• Adapt leadership style to situation needs
• Use change theory to implement change
• Serve as a change leader

IV. Professionalism

A. PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY

• Promote leader and staff participation in lifelong learning and educational achievement
• Demonstrate and promote leader and staff participation in professional organizations
• Role model standards of professional practice (clinical, education, and leadership) for colleagues and constituents
• Achieve and maintain professional certification for self
• Participate in and contribute to professional organizations
• Contribute to the advancement of the profession
• Hold self and others accountable for mutual professional expectations and outcomes
• Promote professional certification for staff

B. FOUNDATIONAL THINKING SKILLS

• Develop a personal and professional career plan and measure progress
• Act on feedback about personal strengths and weaknesses
• Coach others in developing their career plans
• Solicit feedback about personal strengths and weaknesses
• Seek input and mentorship from others in career planning and development

C. ETHICS

• Uphold ethical principles and corporate compliance standards
• Discuss, resolve, and learn from ethical dilemmas
• Hold self and staff accountable to comply with ethical standards of practice

D. ADVOCACY

• Promote clinical perspective in organizational decisions
• Involve nurses and other staff in decisions that affect their practice
• Represent the perspective of patients and families
• Advocate for optimal health care in the community

V. Business Skills

A. FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

• Educate patient care team members on financial implications of patient care decisions
• Interpret financial statements
• Develop and manage an annual operating budget and long-term capital expenditure plan
• Ensure the use of accurate charging mechanisms
• Use business models for health care organizations and apply fundamental concepts of economics
• Manage financial resources
• Participate in the negotiation and monitoring of contract compliance (e.g., physicians, service providers)

B. HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

• Interpret and ensure compliance with legal and regulatory guidelines
• Ensure development of educational programs to foster workforce competencies and development goals
• Provide education regarding components of collective bargaining
• Analyze market data in relation to supply and demand
• Develop and implement emergency preparedness plans
• Implement ergonomically sound work environments to prevent worker injury and fatigue
• Develop and implement programs to reeducate the workforce for new roles
• Address sexual harassment, workplace violence, verbal and physical abuse
• Contribute to the development of compensation programs
• Evaluate the results of employee satisfaction/quality of work environment surveys
• Promote healthful work environments
• Formulate programs to enhance work-life balance
• Develop and implement an outcome-based performance management program
• Use corrective discipline to mitigate workplace behavior problems
• Support reward and recognition programs to enhance performance
• Participate in workforce planning and employment decisions
• Develop and evaluate recruitment onboarding, and retention strategies

C. STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

• Promote the image of nursing and the organization through effective media relations
• Evaluate achievement of operational objectives and goals
• Create the operational objectives, goals and specific strategies required to achieve the strategic outcome
• Develop marketing strategies in collaboration with marking experts
• Identify marketing opportunities
• Conduct SWOT and Gap analyses
• Utilize the balanced scoreboard analysis to manage change
• Defend the business case for nursing

D. INFORMATION MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

• Participate in evaluation of enabling technology in practice settings
• Use data management systems for decision making
• Demonstrate skills in assessing data integrity and quality
• Identify technological trends, issues and new developments as they apply to patient care
• Provide leadership for adoption and implementation of information systems
• Use technology to support improvement of clinical and financial performance
• Collaborate to prioritize for the establishment of information technology resources

Qualifications:

Education/Certification:

• Masters Degree in Nursing, Education or related field
• Appropriate professional leadership certification required (within 2 years if not currently certified) or within 1 year of eligibility for professional certification.
• Graduate of school of nursing required
• Currently licensed as a registered nurse in the state of North Carolina

Work Experience, Skills & Abilities:

• Specialty nursing experience preferred for roles with specialty oversight (e.g. behavioral health, long-term care, rehabilitation)
• Ability to participate in developing and implementing organizational strategies to address opportunities to improve the delivery of patient / nursing care
• Minimum of 5 years of nursing management experience at a senior level
• Must be knowledgeable of current leadership, management and quality improvement concepts

Physical Requirements and Working Conditions:

• Must be able to sit 50% of the workday and stand 40%.
• Position requires some travel so will be exposed to weather and road hazards.
• Generally exposed to a normal office environment.
• Must be able to operate all equipment essential in performing the job.

Enterprise Leadership Imperatives:

Thinks Critically and Strategically

• Recognizes important patterns in complex environments, distills the essence, and communicates through “powerful simplification.”
• Engages in rigorous problem solving definition, data collection, and analysis, then makes good decisions in the face of uncertainty and ambiguity.
• Sees the big picture and has a long-term perspective, while balancing it against short-term realities.

Envisions and Enacts the Future

• Is a committed steward of the Atrium Health culture.
• Creates and communicates compelling visions of exciting, achievable futures.
• Catalyzes innovation and builds supporting capabilities.
• Mobilizes people and transforms organizations to realize the vision.

Connects and Collaborates Across Atrium Health

• Leads effectively across cultures.
• Seeks win-win outcomes and puts the well-being of the patient and the overall organization first.
• Recognizes the critical importance of integration and collaboration in achieving high performance.
• Convenes and nurtures cross-system teams, and works effectively in the “white spaces.”

Builds and Leads Inclusive, High-performing Leadership Teams

• Builds consensus; decides when necessary.
• Establishes trust and creates a culture of psychological safety to enable candid debate.
• Delivers outstanding results through others.
• Understands the value of diversity in teams and gets the best out of all people.

Understands and Shapes the External Environment

• Understands the importance of actively engaging with and shaping these environments.
• Mobilizes and directs supporting capabilities in public affairs, communications and government relations to achieve desired outcomes.
• Identifies, assesses and builds relationships with key stakeholders.
• Is deeply knowledgeable about the Atrium Health business model and the consumer, competitive, political and social environments in which the organization operates.

Builds Talent for and Across the System

• Engages actively with colleagues in assessing and developing executive talent, focusing on competencies and character.
• Is a role model, embodying the best of Atrium Health’s culture.
• Demonstrated personal accountability for developing future generations of Atrium Health leaders who reflect the diversity of communities we serve.
• Invests time in coaching and mentoring high-potentials for success.