Director of Nursing

Freedom Behavioral Hospital of Monroe; Monroe (LA); On-site; USD 95,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Freedom Behavioral Hospital of Monroe in Monroe, LA is seeking an experienced Director of Nursing (DON) to lead nursing services across the facility and satellite unit. The DON will oversee staffing, compliance, and patient care quality in an acute psychiatric setting.

The ideal candidate has RN licensure in Louisiana with a strong track record in nursing leadership, and preferably geriatric behavioral health experience.

Qualifications

• Acute psychiatric nursing experience required.
• Previous nursing leadership experience
• Geriatric psychiatric experience preferred
• Strong clinical judgment and decision-making
• Knowledge of regulatory and accreditation requirements
• Experience with QAPI and performance improvement
• Staffing management and nursing operations skills
• Ability to recruit, develop, train, and retain staff
• Ability to collaborate with physicians and leadership teams

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership to nursing and direct care staff and oversee nursing services.
• Ensure care meets standards and regulatory/accreditation requirements.
• Maintain safe staffing levels based on census and acuity.
• Develop and manage nursing schedules and coverage needs.
• Provide clinical leadership and support decision-making and physician communication.
• Participate in on-call rotation and unit operational coverage.
• Recruit, mentor, train, and retain a high-performing nursing team.
• Collaborate with HR on recruitment, performance, and actions as needed.
• Contribute to QAPI and quality improvement initiatives.
• Ensure survey readiness and regulatory compliance across nursing operations.
• Support admissions, documentation, and discharge planning with leadership.

Skills

Nursing leadership

Staffing management

Regulatory compliance

Collaboration with leadership

Clinical judgment

Education

RN license (LA)

Associate or Bachelor of Nursing

MSN / Master's preferred

Job description

Freedom Behavioral Hospital of Monroe is an 82-bed acute inpatient behavioral health facility serving adult and geriatric psychiatric patients in Monroe, Louisiana, with an additional satellite location in West Monroe.

We are seeking an experienced Director of Nursing (DON) to provide leadership and oversight of nursing services across the facility.
Previous nursing experience in an acute psychiatric setting is required, with a strong preference for candidates with geriatric behavioral health experience.

The ideal candidate is a strong, hands-on nursing leader who understands that successful nursing operations require teamwork, accountability, staff development, and consistent leadership. The DON will be responsible for developing, training, supporting, and holding the nursing team accountable while maintaining high standards of patient care, regulatory compliance, and operational performance.

Position Responsibilities

The Director of Nursing is responsible for the overall leadership, direction, and oversight of nursing services and for ensuring nursing care meets the standards established by the organization and applicable regulatory and accrediting bodies.

Key responsibilities include:

• Provide direct leadership, oversight, and support to nursing and direct care staff.
• Ensure nursing services are delivered in accordance with established standards of care, policies, procedures, regulatory requirements, and accreditation standards.
• Maintain appropriate nursing staffing levels and ensure units are staffed safely and effectively based on patient census, acuity, and organizational requirements.
• Develop and maintain nursing schedules in a timely manner while proactively addressing staffing and coverage needs.
• Provide clinical leadership and assist nursing staff with decision-making, clinical judgment, physician communication, and complex patient care situations.
• Provide direct patient care when necessary to support safe and effective facility operations.
• Participate in the nursing administrative on-call rotation as required.
• Recruit, develop, mentor, train, and retain a high-performing nursing team.
• Collaborate with Human Resources regarding nursing recruitment, hiring, employee relations, performance management, corrective action, and termination when necessary.
• Complete nursing staff performance evaluations within established timeframes and provide ongoing coaching and performance feedback.
• Establish clear performance expectations and promote accountability throughout the nursing department.
• Participate actively in the facility's Quality Assessment and Performance Improvement (QAPI) program, including monitoring, tracking, trending, and analyzing nursing and patient care data.
• Identify opportunities for performance improvement and implement corrective actions when nursing or quality concerns are identified.
• Maintain ongoing survey readiness and ensure nursing operations remain compliant with applicable federal, state, accreditation, and organizational requirements.
• Collaborate with Intake and Service Development to facilitate appropriate and timely patient admissions.
• Maintain a thorough understanding of facility admission criteria and ensure appropriate clinical review and documentation for new admissions.
• Participate as an active member of the Utilization Review and Treatment Teams to support communication regarding patient needs, treatment goals, interventions, progress, and discharge planning.
• Serve as a clinical and operational resource to administrative, nursing, and direct care staff.
• Participate in the development and implementation of policies, procedures, forms, workflows, and processes that impact nursing services and patient care.
• Collaborate with facility leadership on new programs, operational initiatives, and performance improvement projects to ensure safe and effective implementation.
• Monitor nursing documentation and clinical practices to ensure accuracy, timeliness, quality, and regulatory compliance.
• Work collaboratively with physicians, clinical leadership, administration, Human Resources, Quality, and other departments to support effective facility operations.
• Serve as an active member of the facility leadership team and contribute to the overall clinical, operational, and strategic goals of the hospital.

PREFERRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND/OR EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

• Education: Associate Degree or Bachelor's Degree in Nursing minimum, with MSN oversight. Masters Prepared strongly preferred.
• License: Current RN License in good standing with the State of Louisiana
• Experience: Previous psychiatric management experience is preferred

What We Are Looking For

The successful candidate will be an experienced behavioral health nursing leader who demonstrates:

• Previous acute psychiatric nursing experience – required
• Previous nursing leadership experience
• Geriatric psychiatric experience – strongly preferred
• Strong clinical judgment and decision-making abilities
• Knowledge of behavioral health regulatory and accreditation requirements
• Experience with survey readiness, QAPI, and performance improvement
• Strong staffing and nursing operations management skills
• Demonstrated ability to recruit, develop, train, and retain nursing staff
• Ability to establish expectations and hold employees accountable
• Strong communication, organization, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to collaborate effectively with physicians and multidisciplinary leadership teams
• A hands-on leadership style and willingness to support the nursing team when operational or clinical needs arise
• Commitment to providing safe, high-quality, patient-centered behavioral healthcare