Description

The Director of Nursing is a pivotal role responsible for ensuring the delivery of exceptional nursing care and services within the Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC). This includes ensuring high-quality care across multiple levels of service—independent living, assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing. The DON provides leadership to nursing staff, ensures compliance with state and federal regulations, promotes resident-centered care, and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams to support the health and well-being of residents. This role offers the opportunity to make a significant impact amongst the community, promoting a culture of care that empowers our residents and those who care for them to live their best lives.

Knowledge and Abilities:

• Passion for aging services and enhancing the lives of older adults.
• Strong understanding of clinical practices, long term care regulatory compliance, and quality assurance standards across multiple care levels.
• Strong clinical assessment, decision-making, and nursing care planning abilities.
• Ability to lead and motivate a team, promote team building, manage staffing, and develop staff training programs.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills for effective interaction with staff, residents, and families.
• Strong organizational skills for managing multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Ability to address and resolve issues effectively, ensuring high-quality resident care and services.
• Proficient in electronic health records and Microsoft Office Suite.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

• Oversee nursing services and ensuring high-quality care for all residents across all levels of care within the CCRC.
•  Lead and supervise nursing staff, ensuring adherence to established protocols and standards of care
•  Develop, implement and maintain policies and procedures that ensure high-quality resident care and compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Assist in monitoring resident health status and coordinating nursing care plans and services in collaboration with physicians, families, and interdisciplinary teams to meet resident needs.
• Promote a culture of resident-centered care and service excellence.
• Recruit, train, and mentor nursing staff; this includes assessing competencies; fostering a culture of continuous professional development and training opportunities for nursing staff.
• Develop and maintain nursing staff schedules to ensure adequate coverage while managing labor costs effectively.
• Conduct routine performance evaluations of nursing staff providing constructive feedback, performance counseling measures as necessary.
• Implement, monitor, and maintain quality assurance protocols to assess and monitor clinical outcomes and improve service delivery. 
• Regularly assess and monitor resident outcomes to ensure effective nursing care plan processes are being delivered. Implement and lead initiatives that enhance resident satisfaction and ensure compliance with regulatory standard
• Prepare and submit quality assurance reports on nursing activities including compliance and quality indicators.
• Serve as a key contact during regulatory inspections and prepare necessary documentation for regulatory reviews. Initiate, prepare, and implement a plan of correction as necessary.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state and local regulations, as well as standards set by accreditation bodies, to include maintaining necessary nursing department licenses (i.e. CLIA, DEA License)
• Responsible for oversight of the nursing department budget, including forecasting staffing needs and effectively controlling expenses.
• Oversee medical supply inventory including monitoring of supply usage and billing to meet the residents' needs.
• Foster a positive relationship with residents and their families, addressing any concerns or feedback regarding care and services in a timely manner.
• Participate in community outreach programs to promote the mission of the organization and maintain positive community relations.
• Lead crisis management efforts during resident health emergencies and/or incidents affecting resident care.
• Participate in community board committees, including the Resident Life Committee, Health Services Liaison Team to engage and enhance nursing care and service delivery.
• May include other duties and responsibilities as assigned. 

Requirements

Education:

•  Current Registered Nurse (RN) license in the state of North Carolina in good standing

Certificates

•  CPR certification is required.

Experience:

•  Minimum of 5 years of nursing experience, with at least 2 years in a leadership or supervisory role, preferably within long term care, assisted living, or a similar environment. 
• Experience specifically in a Continuing Care Retirement Community is highly valued.