INTERIM PROGRAM DIRECTOR - Nationwide Travel

Interim Program Director of Behavioral Health - Nationwide Travel (75% or more) - Full-time (Permanent)

Horizon Health is seeking an Interim Program Director of Behavioral Health to travel nationwide. This is an interim position until a full-time Program Director is hired, and hours of work and days are subject to the needs of the Program which operates on a 24 hour; seven days a week basis. Clinical Program Directors work in close contact with patients who have moderate to severe psychiatric concerns and/or behavioral issues. There is the possibility this position could be exposed to violent behavior from patients and/or behavioral issues as part of their daily duties.

Responsibilities

• Performs as liaison between Program, Hospital and Horizon; communicating information and needs appropriately
• Supports Hospital and Horizon missions, goals and objectives
• Provides leadership and direction in accordance with Hospital guidelines
• Provides clinical supervision for Program nursing, counseling, patient support and administrative staff
• Develops, in coordination with assigned VP, Clinical Practice, implements and updates all policies and procedures for the Program
• In coordination with the Hospital, ensures the Program meets and maintains all federal, state, local and accrediting bodies’ regulations and standards
• Develops a 24-hour call process to handle emergency situations
• Defines the philosophy, goals and objectives of the treatment program under the direction of hospital administration, Horizon’s clinical and operations staff, and in conjunction with the Medical Director
• Works with divisional and national support staff to ensure that the client hospital realizes maximum value from Horizon services
• Understands client hospital’s expectations of Horizon and works to meet these expectations
• Directs departmental staff involved in multidisciplinary teams to address process improvements involving patients, employees, other customers or teams appropriately
• Promotes and develops positive, professional interaction with client hospital, senior management, peers and staff through effective written and verbal communication, listening and providing feedback in times of organizational change
• Collaborates with medical and clinical staff in coordinating and managing the medical and psychosocial treatment plans
• Participates in assessing and reassessing the program needs of the patient
• Supervises all patient care and sets guidelines for accurately reporting and recording of patient symptoms, reactions, and progress
• Develops processes to audit and coordinate ongoing education to ensure all staff are trained on proper documentation of all aspects of the patient’s care
• Establishes a compassionate environment by providing emotional and psychological support to patients, families and friends
• Maintains patient privacy and confidentiality; and protects operations by keeping patient and program information confidential
• Provides recommendations to the Hospital to ensure sufficient staff to provide for patient care needs in keeping with appropriate regulatory requirements and staffing plan
• Operates within ethical standards
• Communicates and reviews Horizon and Hospital policies with staff
• Assures quality of care by adhering to therapeutic standards, measuring health outcomes against patient care goals and regulatory standards
• As needed, and using approved methods, assists in safely placing patients in seclusion or restraints; observes suicide/seclusion precautions; including physical requirements for physical holds and safe transport of patients. Note: This does not apply if the Program Director is the Community Education Director.
• Maintains continuity by documenting and communicating actions, irregularities, and continuing needs to the Hospital, VPO and VP, Clinical Practice
• Protects patients and employees by adhering to safety standards
• Completes all required staff competencies per program regulations in a timely manner
• Ensures operations of equipment by completing preventive maintenance requirements; calling for repairs; and evaluating new equipment and techniques
• Provides feedback to supervisor on ongoing basis in regards to concerns, improvements, changes, etc.
• Ensures employee folders are complete and in compliance with Hospital, Horizon, state and Federal requirements
• Serves on assigned committees and attends all Program, Hospital, Horizon, provider and staff meetings as required
• Recruits, interviews, and selects qualified staff for the Program.
• Provides for professional growth and development of staff through identification of needs, development of individual training plans and participation in training programs
• Monitors personnel performance on a continuous basis
• Conducts regular performance evaluations for staff
• Develops and submits annual Quality Improvement Plan; this plan is based on the identified clinical performance issues, internal clinical audit findings, recommendations from the VPCE and needs of the hospital
• Counsels employees, and, as necessary, takes appropriate disciplinary action for infractions of standards and policies
• Collaborates with the Medical Director in the maintenance of the program milieu
• Leads an aggressive referral development program that produces an appropriate census for the Program; adheres to productivity targets
• Manages Program budget development and monitoring as required by the hospital and Horizon