Title: Chief Nursing Officer

State Role Title: 49116

Hiring Range: Up to $176,492

Pay Band: 6

Agency: Dept Behavioral Health/Develop

Location: Central Office

Agency Website: www.dbhds.virginia.gov

Recruitment Type: General Public - G

Job Duties

The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services is seeking an innovative and results-driven nursing leader passionate about improving healthcare delivery, patient safety, and outcomes. The Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) will join the Facility Services Executive Leadership team and lead nursing services across multiple state-operated facilities. This role presents a unique opportunity to influence the care and lives of individuals across nine high-reliability psychiatric hospitals, a long-term care hospital, a training center for individuals with intellectual disabilities, and a rehabilitation center for individuals with sexually violent behaviors.

As the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), you will provide visionary leadership for nursing services across our diverse network. You will be responsible for overseeing nursing operations in clinical and behavioral health settings, ensuring high-quality, patient-centered care while fostering a culture of safety and continuous improvement. You will work closely with the Chief Medical Officer and other key stakeholders to develop and implement strategies aimed at improving patient outcomes, supporting successful community reintegration, and reducing recidivism. This leadership role demands a balance of operational oversight, strategic vision, and the ability to mentor and empower nursing staff across multiple locations. You will be at the forefront of driving the standardization of policies and practices, ensuring compliance with regulatory bodies, and supporting nursing staff development and competency. Intermittent travel to state operated facilities and/or Central Office is required.

Key Responsibilities:
• Executive Leadership: Provide oversight and leadership for day-to-day nursing operations, including staffing, allocation, patient safety, clinical outcomes, and the development of nursing policies and procedures across multiple facilities.
• Strategic Planning: Develop and lead both short- and long-range strategic planning for nursing operations, ensuring alignment with the hospital system’s mission and vision.
• Staff Development and Competency: Oversee training, competency assessments, and professional development programs for nursing staff, ensuring a high level of clinical knowledge and practice.
• Patient Safety and Quality: Promote a culture of safety by leading initiatives to enhance patient safety, improve outcomes, and standardize best practices across facilities.
• Collaboration and Liaison: Collaborate with the Chief Medical Officer to ensure effective treatment planning and discharge coordination. Serve as a liaison between the nursing department, agency management, and other stakeholders to foster a collaborative, team-oriented environment.
• Policy and Program Development: Lead the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of nursing policies and procedures. Coordinate with other departments to ensure standardized, modernized, and enterprise-wide nursing operations.
• Compliance and Accreditation: Ensure compliance with regulatory standards, including The Joint Commission (TJC) Accreditation, Centers for Medicaid and Medicare (CMS) Certification, and all federal and state regulations governing nursing practices in behavioral health and rehabilitation settings.
• Data Analysis and Reporting: Analyze operational data, synthesize findings, and develop recommendations for process improvements. Provide clear, actionable reports to senior leadership.
• High-Reliability Leadership: Foster high-reliability practices and a culture of safety, focusing on trauma-informed, recovery-oriented, and person-centered care approaches.

Minimum Qualifications

Virginia RN License, MSN or other relevant advanced degree. Experience in management, supervision, teaching and consultation of nursing staff and programs. Extensive knowledge of nursing theory, principle, and practice. Communication skills that result in clear, concise, and accurate verbal and non-verbal communication. Management skills and ability to provide guidance and direction for Nursing Departments across multiple locations and varying sizes of hospital operations. Comprehensive knowledge of the development, implementation, operation, and evaluation of nursing programs and related systems for behavioral health hospitals and rehabilitation centers serving individuals with behavioral health, developmental disabilities, medical, and nursing care needs. Knowledge of federal and state programs, services, laws, and regulations governing the agency and psychiatric hospital operations; and of program compliance including requirements for The Joint Commission (TJC) Accreditation and Centers for Medicaid and Medicare (CMS) Certification. Considerable knowledge of the principles, theories, and concepts of leadership and management; of trauma informed, recovery oriented, and person-centered planning; of fostering high reliability and a culture of safety in healthcare settings; of strategic and operational planning, of managed care principles and incentives; of census management and reduction; to analyze and synthesize large amounts of data and develop logical conclusions, recommendations, solutions, and presentations suitable to the audience; and to work within defined timeframes.

Additional Considerations

N/A

Special Instructions

You will be provided a confirmation of receipt when your application and/or résumé is submitted successfully. Please refer to “Your Application” in your account to check the status of your application for this position.

This position is eligible for telework opportunities; availability, hours, and duration of telework shall be approved as outlined in the Commonwealth telework policy.

For consideration, interested applicants must apply by completing the online application. A resume may also be included with your submission. However, emailed, faxed, and hand-delivered applications and/or resumes will not be accepted. This position is open until filled; however, applications/resumes will begin to be reviewed within seven (7) business days of the date of this posting. Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act.

DBHDS welcomes all applicants authorized to work in the U.S. For more information on how to seek this authorization, please refer to Working in the United States or contact the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office directly.

For any technical assistance with the jobs.virginia.gov website, please contact applicantinquiry@dhrm.virginia.gov.

Contact Information

Name: ShaKiera Miles

Phone: N/A

Email: shakiera.miles@dbhds.virginia.gov - Inquiries Only/No Submissions, to include resumes.

In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their AHP Letter (formerly COD) provided by the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS), or the Department for the Blind & Vision Impaired (DBVI). Service-Connected Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS/DBVI to get their AHP Letter. Requesting an AHP Letter can be found at AHP Letter or by calling DARS at 800-552-5019.

Note: Applicants who received a Certificate of Disability from DARS or DBVI dated between April 1, 2022- February 29, 2024, can still use that COD as applicable documentation for the Alternative Hiring Process.