Location: Chicago, Illinois

Business Unit: Rush Oak Park

Hospital: Rush University Medical Center

Department: Presidents Office

Work Type: Full Time (Total FTE between 0.9 and 1.0)

Pay Range: $225,000 - $275,000 per year
Rush salaries are determined by many factors including, but not limited to, education, job-related experience and skills, as well as internal equity and industry specific market data. The pay range for each role reflects Rush's anticipated wage or salary reasonably expected to be offered for the position. Offers may vary depending on the circumstances of each case. This role has a corresponding incentive plan based on multiple factors. incentive compensation and additional benefits can be found on our Rush benefits page (https://www.rush.edu/rush-careers/employee-benefits)

Summary:
The Vice President of Patient Care Services & CNO serves as the Chief Nursing Officer and is a member of the executive team. The position actively participates in strategic planning, policy development, goal setting for the organization, and has administrative authority for nursing practice throughout the organization including inpatient and ambulatory settings. This individual ensures nursing practice meets the overall goals of the organization and is responsible for ensuring the practice of nursing is consistent with Federal and State laws and regulations, including applicable licensing requirements, nursing standards of practice, and in accordance with the approved medical staff policies and procedures. The position ensures that patient care operations result in a high level of quality, patient safety, team oriented, and patient focused and cost-effective services. This role will also serve as the system leader over the professional nursing practice structure for the organization.

Primary Customers: Patients and their families, Board of Trustees, Medical staff, Community Businesses, surrounding community, Nurses and all hospital team members. This position is secondarily involved with oversight of subsidiary corporation activities.
Reports to: Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, Rush University Medical Center & Rush Oak Park Hospital (for the CNO role)
Dotted Line Reporting: Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, Rush University System for Health & Rush University Medical Center (for nursing practice and the professional nursing practice structure)

Responsibilities:

Patient/Family/Customer First
• Treats others with courtesy, respect and caring touch in all interactions.
• Identifies, fulfills and exceeds customer needs treating those needs first
• Promotes patient rights, patient safety and ensures confidentiality and privacy at all times.
• Recognizes, respects, and effectively communicates with all.

Promotes Teamwork and Partnerships
• Treats each employee as an equal and valued member of the team; works cooperatively with other employees to complete the work.
• Willingly flexes to meet changing workload demands and priorities.
• Helps make Oak Park a great place to work by promoting positives and committing to resolve problems.
• Upholds ROPH Employee Behavior Standards in all interactions to improve teamwork and enhance patient satisfaction.
• Adheres to the Code of Conduct of ROPH in the performance of job duties and promotes the adherence of others as well.

Quality and Patient Safety
• Follows the National Patient Safety Goals.
• Prevents recognized safety hazards and proactively reports near misses.
• Maintains and supports a Just Culture by reporting errors
• Identifies potential opportunities and participates collaboratively to make improvements.
Coached by: Chief Administrative Officer, System Chief Nursing Officer, Nursing members of the Board of Directors.
Coaches: Patient care leaders who have nursing care responsibilities, clinical and support staff
Team Relationships: Executive team members, medical staff, leadership staff and patient care team members.

Position Performance Area/Expectations:

Strategic Leadership
• Assures the vision, values and strategic plan for nursing services are aligned with the overall organizational strategic plan.
• Continuously assesses and identifies ways to improve customer satisfaction including patient experience and physician and staff satisfaction with the practice environment.
• Actively participates in the strategic planning for the hospital to ensure continuous growth.
• Participates with governing body, management, medical staff, and clinical leaders in the hospital's decision-making structures and processes.
• Participates in the initiation, support, and/or evaluation of needed research in and for nursing.
• For any nursing departments, which do not report directly to the chief nursing officer, the CNO retains accountability through multiple means including communication, participation in CNO meetings, and involvement in partnership. Confer with Other VPs on matters related to nursing practice.
• Participates in decisions and recommendations for any nursing workforce supply and demand issues or service reduction.
• Reviews overall planning objectives for the fiscal year and develops departmental goals compatible with institutional goals.
• Determines and modifies the projections with clinical Directors and Managers as required and submits a total operational and capital budget package for patient care services.
• Requires justification from nursing managers for budget projections.

Inspirational Leadership
• Integrates all patient services across the continuum-inpatient, outpatient, home health, and community wellness. Oversees nursing practice throughout the organization.
• Interprets and represents nursing to all other department operations of Rush Oak Park Hospital.
• Leads the leadership team to develop/promote business, financial, and program strategies that are consistent with the organization goals.
• Represents the hospital to its "Community" - Patients and their families, business partners, external agencies, institutions, associations and other health professionals-as the leading healthcare provider.
• Leads in educating the public as it relates to the hospital's role, goals and objectives, philosophy, and accomplishments.

Operational Leadership
• Accountable for nursing performance indicators. Communicates indicators to directors, managers and team members and works to improve outcomes (i.e., financials, case management, human resources, productivity, customer satisfaction, regulatory agency, key processes, quality).
• Actively leads, participates and supports evidence-based practice; ensure that all nursing care is evidence-based.
• Ensures compliance with all regulatory agencies that guide hospital operations (The Joint Commission, IDPH, OSHA, etc.). Maintains other quality control programs/measures to ensure continuous improvement in operations.
• Ensures a well-organized service for patient care with supervisory and staff personnel for each clinical unit to ensure, when needed, immediate availability of a registered nurse for bedside care of any patient.
• Plans, implements, and continuously improves the patient care process to ensure quality of care and appropriate staffing.
• Defines and maintains the standards of patient care/nursing practice; ensures the continuous improvement of these standards through analysis of patient outcomes.
• Responsible for the appropriate staffing and competency of the patient care staff throughout the hospital, and the collection of data and of patient outcomes.
• Approves and recommends the policies and procedures that govern nursing practice, patient care and patient services at the hospital.
• Assumes a leadership role in preparation for The Joint Commission, IDPH, and other regulatory audits and evaluations.
• Participates in the policy making and supporting of patient and visitor rights and responsibilities.
• Ensures adequate resources are available to provide quality services.
• Participates at the executive level in planning, developing, and implementing the budget process for the institution and, in particular, Nursing Services.
• Implements the approved operating and capital budgets with full accountability for the department performance.

People Leadership
• Provides on-going professional development for nurses who deliver direct patient care, as well as nursing leaders through participation in orientation, programs such as for leadership, precepting, and resourcing.
• Coordinates and leads overall initiatives for patient care staff development and education.
• Ensures proper selection and orientation of quality team members.
• Participates in the credentialing, privileging, and evaluating advanced practice registered nurses and allied health professionals.
• Promotes high performance, cultural competency, and development of team members.
• Provides on-going coaching and mentioning to all direct reports.

Functional Leadership
• Promotes staff participation in community programs and takes a personal active role in volunteerism in market area in order to enhance awareness of the hospital.
• Establishes, monitors, and supports standards of nursing practice.
• Maintains membership in and participates actively in a least one professional nursing organization, through leadership activities.
• Attends conferences, educational seminars and workshops that are pertinent to career development and learning in order to maintain competence in the role.
• Promotes mentoring and education of self and others through collegial relationships, presentations and readings.

Cultural Leadership
• Serves as role model and promotes the Rush Oak Park values and the Nursing Professional
Practice Model / Care Model.
Patient Population this Position Services: Infants, children, young adult, adult and geriatric
patients / families who enter the facility or any satellite for care / services
Patient Population this Position Services: Infants, children, young adult, adult and geriatric patients / families who enter the facility or any satellite for care / services

Professional Nursing Practice
• Leads systemwide Professional Nursing Practice & Magnet readiness, including documentation, gap closure, site-visit preparation
• Ensures system alignment and governance integration, partnering with CNOs and executives to streamline structures, clarify accountability, and support nursing reorganization efforts.
• Directs Transition to Practice programs (residency, fellowship, preceptor/mentor development), including competency milestones, retention metrics, and outcomes.
• Champions professional development, including certification, advancement pathways, recognition programs, leadership training, and competency validation structures.
• Provides leadership for nursing informatics and technology, guiding EHR optimization, documentation efficiency, clinical decision support, and nursing sensitive data visibility.
• Holds direct leadership for Clinical Nurse Specialists, including role alignment, competency expectations, and measurable outcomes.
• Working knowledge of EBP and implementation science principles that foster translation of research to the point of clinical care.

Other information:
License: Current state of Illinois Registered Nurse licensure required.
Education: Earned nursing degree at the baccalaureate level or higher required.
Graduate degree required; earned doctorate preferred.
Certification: National certification required. National board certification in executive leadership preferred.
Special Skills: Must have excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
Experience: Expertise and at least 8 years progressive experience in Nursing Management and hospital operations. A high level of leadership skill is necessary: planning, organizing, problem solving; decision-making, delegation, etc.