Director of Nursing (Ld Services)

My client is one of the UK’s leading providers of independent specialist secure and step-down care across the UK.

With hospitals around the country, 30 years of experience in our sector and highly skilled and experienced teams, they help patients and commissioners find the right care pathways without the need for multiple reassessments.

The Director of Nursing (Learning Disability Service) role involves:
Leading the nursing department ensuring the highest standards of governance, patient care, safety and compliance with nursing and regulatory standards
Regularly monitoring wards of your hospital/unit, taking ownership, managing nursing issues as they arise, motivating and engendering a team spirit within the ward nursing teams, and offering support and guidance as appropriate
Operating a two way flow of relevant messages and information from the senior management team to your wards
Maintaining proactive relationships with customers ensuring there is absolute confidence in the nursing care delivered by your nursing teams, which fosters an environment of continuous improvement and innovation
Developing a supportive culture where your direct reports are accountable and fully able to meet their responsibilities to patients and their colleagues
Developing and implementing pro-active patient interventions, in areas of care and safety, where you actively guide, support and develop staff so that they are able to deliver positive outcomes
Maintaining full compliance with external standards as they relate to nursing and nursing care
Building and maintaining excellent and productive working relationships with hospital directors, senior nurses, ward nursing teams, lead clinicians, the regional executive director, heads of department, directors of nursing at other hospitals/units, the Area Human Resources Manager, communications and other head office teams as appropriate, as well as patients, families, carers, commissioners, regulators, and local communities
Being responsible for co-ordinating and managing nursing teams and nursing care, ensuring that key hospital/unit business objectives are prioritised and met
Making certain that regular reviews of governance and operational nursing performance take place with appropriate actions being implemented
Ensuring that any action plans are implemented within specified timeframes
Developing necessary nursing related cost control strategies to enable the achievement of the hospital/unit operating budget, ensuring that financial performance is met
In conjunction with the Hospital Director, assisting in the development and implementation of the hospital/unit marketing plan

Qualifications/Experience

To be successful as Director of Nursing (Learning Disability Service) you’ll need:
Senior Nurse Qualification
An in-depth understanding of operational hospital management at department level, within the mental health and learning disability sectors
To be fair, reasonable and clear in your dealings with all stakeholders, with a style that engenders confidence and the ability to lead and influence the hospital/unit nursing team
Confident decision making skills
Current knowledge of mental health and learning disability regulations and issues as they apply to nursing, patient care and safety
Awareness of new developments within mental health and learning and disability nursing and be willing to apply these as appropriate within the hospital/unit
Experience of managing nursing teams within mental health and learning disability settings

About our benefits

In return for your expertise and hard work, they offer a wide range of benefits:
25 days annual leave plus bank holidays (at commencement of employment)
A Group Personal Pension Plan (GPPP)
Private Medical Insurance Scheme
Life Assurance
Free meals while on duty
Carefirst – Employee Assistance Services
Continuous learning and development
Childcare vouchers
Career development
Personal health insurance
Voluntary Benefits