Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer (VP/CNO)

Job Summary

The Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer (VP/CNO) serves as a key member of the executive leadership team and provides strategic, operational, and professional leadership for nursing services throughout Pratt Regional Medical Center. The VP/CNO is responsible for the overall direction, coordination, quality, and effectiveness of nursing services across the hospital organization. This position promotes a culture of clinical excellence, patient safety, accountability, collaboration, employee engagement, and patient-centered care.

In addition to oversight of nursing services, the VP/CNO may provide executive leadership and administrative oversight for additional clinical and support service departments as assigned by the President/CEO. The VP/CNO works collaboratively with physicians, executive leadership, department leaders, nursing staff, and other members of the healthcare team to ensure high-quality patient care while supporting the organization's strategic, operational, financial, and workforce goals.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Nursing Leadership and Operations

• Provides executive leadership and oversight for nursing services throughout the hospital organization.

• Plans, organizes, directs, and evaluates nursing operations to ensure safe, high-quality, patient-centered care.

• Establishes nursing goals, standards, policies, and practices consistent with the organization's mission, vision, values, and strategic priorities.

• Provides leadership and direction to nursing directors, managers, supervisors, and other nursing leaders.

• Ensures appropriate nursing staffing, scheduling, productivity, and resource utilization.

• Evaluates nursing department performance and identifies opportunities for operational and clinical improvement.

• Promotes effective communication and collaboration between nursing departments, physicians, ancillary departments, and hospital leadership.

• Maintains visibility and accessibility to nursing staff and leaders throughout the organization.

Quality, Patient Safety, and Regulatory Compliance

• Provides executive leadership for nursing quality, patient safety, and clinical performance.

• Supports the development, implementation, and monitoring of quality improvement initiatives.

• Ensures nursing services maintain compliance with applicable federal and state regulations, accreditation requirements, professional nursing standards, and organizational policies.

• Participates in regulatory and accreditation readiness activities and surveys.

• Reviews clinical quality indicators, patient safety events, patient outcomes, and performance data to identify areas for improvement.

• Promotes evidence-based nursing practices and high standards of clinical care.

• Collaborates with leadership to address patient experience, quality, safety, and risk-management concerns.

Workforce Development and Leadership

• Develops and supports nursing directors, managers, supervisors, and emerging leaders.

• Promotes a positive organizational culture focused on teamwork, professionalism, accountability, communication, and employee engagement.

• Supports nursing recruitment, retention, succession planning, and workforce stabilization strategies.

• Identifies opportunities to strengthen nursing education, competency, professional development, and leadership development.

• Coaches nursing leaders in effective communication, employee relations, performance management, and difficult conversations.

• Encourages professional growth and continuing education for nursing staff.

• Supports efforts to reduce turnover and reliance on contract or agency staffing when appropriate.

Strategic and Financial Leadership

• Participates as an active member of the executive leadership team in organizational strategic planning and decision-making.

• Develops and manages nursing department operating and capital budgets in collaboration with organizational leadership.

• Monitors financial performance, staffing productivity, supply utilization, and other departmental expenses.

• Identifies opportunities to improve operational efficiency while maintaining quality patient care.

• Assists in evaluating new clinical programs, services, technology, equipment, and growth opportunities.

• Provides recommendations to the President/CEO regarding nursing operations, workforce needs, clinical services, and organizational priorities.

Additional Clinical and Support Services

The VP/CNO may provide administrative oversight for additional clinical, ancillary, or support departments based on organizational structure and needs.

Responsibilities may include

• Providing executive support and leadership to assigned department directors and managers.

• Monitoring departmental performance, staffing, quality, budgets, and operational effectiveness.

• Assisting department leaders with problem-solving, process improvement, and leadership development.

• Promoting collaboration between nursing, ancillary, clinical, and support services.

• Participating in organizational projects and initiatives outside of traditional nursing operations.

• Assuming additional executive leadership responsibilities as assigned by the President/CEO.

Administrative Leadership and On-Call Responsibilities

• Participates in the organization's Administrative On-Call rotation.

• Provides administrative leadership and guidance for significant operational, clinical, staffing, safety, or emergency situations occurring outside normal business hours.

• Works collaboratively with nursing supervisors, department leaders, physicians, and other administrators to address urgent organizational needs.

• Escalates significant issues to the President/CEO or appropriate executive leadership when necessary.

• Supports emergency preparedness, incident command, and organizational response activities as appropriate.

Education Requirements

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Nursing (BSN) from an accredited college or university.

Preferred

• Master's degree in Nursing, Nursing Administration, Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, or a related healthcare leadership field.

Experience Requirements

• Minimum of two (2) years of progressive nursing leadership experience within a healthcare organization .

• Experience demonstrating increasing levels of leadership responsibility and accountability.

• Hospital nursing leadership experience strongly preferred.

• Experience managing nursing operations, staffing, quality, patient safety, regulatory compliance, and employee performance preferred.

• Experience working collaboratively with physicians, executive leadership, department directors, and interdisciplinary teams preferred.

Licensure and Certification

• Current Registered Nurse (RN) license in the State of Kansas or eligibility to obtain Kansas RN licensure.

• Current professional certifications appropriate to the position are preferred.

• Nursing executive leadership certification is preferred but not required.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

The successful candidate should demonstrate

• Strong executive and nursing leadership abilities.

• Effective communication and interpersonal skills.

• Ability to develop and mentor nursing leaders and staff.

• Strong critical-thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.

• Knowledge of hospital nursing operations and clinical practice.

• Understanding of healthcare regulatory and accreditation requirements.

• Knowledge of quality improvement and patient safety principles.

• Ability to analyze staffing, productivity, financial, quality, and operational data.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a changing healthcare environment.

• Strong conflict-resolution and relationship-building skills.

• Ability to work collaboratively with physicians and interdisciplinary teams.

• Commitment to patient-centered care and organizational excellence.

• Ability to maintain confidentiality and demonstrate professionalism and sound judgment.

• Ability to lead organizational change and promote accountability at all levels.

Leadership Expectations

The Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer is expected to

• Lead by example and demonstrate integrity, professionalism, accountability, and respect.

• Maintain a visible leadership presence throughout the organization.

• Foster an environment in which employees feel valued, supported, and accountable.

• Develop strong nursing leaders and promote succession planning.

• Encourage open, respectful, and consistent communication.

• Promote collaboration across departments and disciplines.

• Support innovation and continuous improvement.

• Maintain a strong focus on quality, patient safety, employee engagement, and patient experience.

• Balance clinical excellence with responsible financial and operational management.

• Represent Pratt Regional Medical Center professionally within the organization and the communities it serves.

Other Duties

This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by the Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, or qualifications associated with the position. The VP/CNO may be assigned additional duties and responsibilities based on the operational and strategic needs of Pratt Regional Medical Center.

Benefits/

Compensation

We offer a competitive salary and a comprehensive fringe benefits package, commensurate with experience.

• Health Insurance: Medical, dental, vision coverage.

• 401(K) Retirement Plan.

• Paid Time Off (PTO).

• Tuition Reimbursement.

• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA).