A registered nurse who oversees all aspects of nursing in a health-care facility is known as a director of nursing. The director of nursing is also in charge of administrative duties such as patient care, supply needs, and finances. While a director of nursing is a licensed and educated nurse, his or her primary responsibilities are administrative and supervisory rather than patient care.
Patience, leadership abilities, tact, and the ability to work under pressure are all necessary skills for a nursing director. Strong organizational skills and the ability to communicate effectively are also important qualities for this position. Some director of nursing positions require knowledge of finance and budgeting.
The nursing director frequently serves as a link between the nursing staff and physicians or facility managers. He or she is expected to understand the concerns of the nursing staff and communicate those concerns to management and doctors. In addition, the director is expected to make recommendations to address the nursing staff’s concerns.
A director of nursing’s primary responsibilities include developing and implementing operational management strategies. Meetings with doctors and staff give the director the information he or she needs to plan operational strategies. Training, hiring additional staff, or changing schedules could all be part of putting those strategies into action.
The director is frequently responsible for conducting market research in order to lay the groundwork for strategic planning. Meeting with staff nurses and getting their feedback on changes that need to be made to improve patient care can also help the director figure out what the patients require. Another possible duty of a director of nursing is to present research findings to a board of directors.
While the majority of a director of nursing’s responsibilities are administrative, he or she is typically expected to visit clinical areas to assess patient and staff satisfaction. Face-to-face conversations, satisfaction surveys, and other methods to elicit feedback can be used to accomplish this. A master’s degree is usually required for a director of nursing, though a bachelor’s degree is acceptable in some areas. The director must hold a regional nursing license and be a registered nurse.