Clinical House Manager

Clinical House Manager - Nursing Operations Management Permanent, Full time

Overview of the Role

The CHM role is essential for the safe and smooth running of core and out of hour’s period in the NRH. The Primary aims of this post is to be the central point of contact for all operational areas during both working and out of hour’s periods. The post holder will work in the Department of Nursing on a day/night rotation and collaborate with the Unit managers to ensure that the clinical site is operating effectively and at a standard of excellence. She/he will provide an expert level of operational management and leadership. They will act as a senior clinical advisor to Units, other departments and disciplines in the absence of the Assistant Director or Director of Nursing. They will efficiently deploy staff in conjunction with clinical nurse managers and encourage a culture of openness and participation through effective communication.

The Post holder will be responsible for:

During Core hours

• ·To assume operational responsibility during core hours, linking with all clinical areas regarding patient status, escalating potential risks to ADON/DON or relevant head of department
• Organise, manage, and lead nursing pre-DOSH (daily operational safety huddle), managing risks identified or escalating as necessary to ADON /DON.
• To facilitate patient flow through NRH by liaising with the ADON as necessary and ensure open communication practices support the patient journey in NRH.
• To promote and improve communication networks ensuring collaborative working practices between the post holder and clinical areas.
• To record, report to ADON and analyse and audit sick leave and absence of staff and assist CNM’s in coordinating staff numbers and skill mix in clinical areas to meet the need of the patient group.
• Weekly auditing of unit rosters to manage allocation of nursing resources and unplanned absences as required.
• To manage NRH staff overtime/ relief cover and agency nursing resources bookings, including signing off time sheets of agency staff and agency invoices as per HSE/ NRH guidelines.
• To update core with staff deployment, covered and uncovered relief and sick leave absence.
• Keep all staff medical certificates safely maintaining confidentiality and hand over to ADONs.
• Weekly monitor the requirement of enhanced care by linking with unit CNMs and ADONs. Update enhanced care requirement folder daily and sent a weekly report to Finance manager & DON
• To participate in and co-ordinate the emergency response to fire, security alerts, cardiac arrests, and any other clinical emergency.
• To co-ordinate the Emergency Plan if required following the guidance as per Major Emergency Plan, NRH.
• Ensure actions follow the code of Professional conduct and ethics for Nurses and Midwives, 2025 and works within their scope of practice.
• To collaborate with the supporting Assistant Director of Nursing on a given day.
• To complete incident forms, inform ADON and follow up on actions where possible, write reports for any incidents in a timely manner.
• To manage NRH patient transport booking as required.

Outside Core Hours

• To assume operational responsibility out of hours, linking with all clinical areas regarding the status of all patients. Escalating potential risks to the NCHD and the Consultant on call and at the next handover.
• Organise, manage, and lead an out of hours safety huddle (OHSH) each night of the week including Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays.
• To manage patient safety in the event of unplanned absences after hours with the NCHD on duty.
• To participate in and co-ordinate the emergency response to fire, security alerts and cardiac arrests and any other clinical emergency.
• To co-ordinate the Emergency Plan, if required, following the guidance as per NRH Emergency Plan. Have knowledge of the security/fire alarm systems. Know the procedure to take if corrective action is required.
• To provide clinical leadership and maintain credibility through practice and professional update. To provide professional advice, consultation and direct assistance to colleagues and junior staff, as necessary.
• To be the first point of contact for clinical areas relating to complaints, and any untoward incidents involving patients, visitors, staff and take appropriate action.
• To complete incident forms, follow up on actions immediately where possible, write reports for any incidents in a timely manner and send to the appropriate personnel i.e., Medical Social worker, Quality and Risk Manager. Inform ADON and appropriate persons (unit CNM11) at next handover.
• To participate in creation of guidelines/SOPs as required. To assist staff new to the office for induction and orientation to night duty. Ensure any new staff member is well supported by person in charge and unit colleagues. If extra support or training required, please ensure its given and inform the CNM11/CNM1 managing that unit in writing.
• Review staffing levels on a shift-by-shift basis, ensuring adequate staffing numbers and skill mix to deliver safe patient care.
• Assist with the coordination of the safe transfer of the deteriorating patient to St. Vincent’s University Hospital or other Hospital, as indicated. Ensure that all relevant documentation is sent with the patient.
• Assist and participate in practice development and any quality improvements across the organisation whether or day duty or night roster.
• To liaise with out of hours on call services such as Maintenance, Radiology & Respiratory physiotherapy as required.
• To supply unit areas with out of hours emergency pharmacy requests as per NRH policy.
• To arrange out of hours transport of lab specimens as required.

General Accountability

• The post holder has accountability both professionally for decisions she/he makes which impacts on patient and staff health, safety, and welfare. She/he must submit her/his NMBI Registration Certificated to Nursing Administration before 1stFebruary of each year.
• Ensure that a safe environment is maintained for staff and visitors in compliance with Health and Safety requirements.
• Keeping up to date with all relevant mandatory, statutory, and legislative training for the department.
• Ensures clinical competence of staff in performing clinical activities and adhering to all NRH infection control policies.
• Assist in the introduction of new clinical practices or techniques as national standards predict.
• Promotes nurtures and maintains a high level of staff morale hence promoting team spirit and job satisfaction among all nursing and non-nursing staff within the designated Programme.
• Ensures that the safety policies are complied with within the unit.
• Checks that nursing and non-nursing staff are on duty as scheduled.
• Ensures that staff wears proper uniform and adheres to the NRH dress code policy.
• Ensures that all nursing staff practice within the code set for the profession by NMBI where applicable.
• Carries out development and performance review interviews with individual staff in the unit.
• Decides how to deal with behaviour outside acceptable limits i.e., emotional upset in staff, or colleagues, undignified behaviour, absenteeism, conflict, grievance, and discipline.
• Ensures that all staff follow the complaint, disciplinary and grievance procedures.
• Investigates incidents and accidents involving all staff and report these verbally and in writing to the Assistant Director/ Director of Nursing.
• To work with the Department of Nursing on writing new and reviewing/updating nursing policies, procedures, and standards regarding the care of the patient and the family in conjunction with team members and in keeping with the philosophy and policies of the NRH
• To ensure that appropriate, accurate and concise records are always maintained.
• To support the use of information management systems.
• To liaise with nursing management and nursing colleagues and organise/attend/participate at meetings as required.

Staffing and Manpower Planning

• Arranges staff meal breaks in consultation with nurse in charge of the unit as per patient care permits.
• Supports, supervises and coaches nursing staff and other support staff in carrying out their allocated clinical duties to the required standard.
• Advises the Director of Nursing/ ADON when staff levels fall below or are in excess of that considered to be adequate to meet variations in workload.

Quality, Patient Safety & Risk Management

The NRH is committed to supporting a culture of continuous quality improvement through effective governance, clinical effectiveness, and outcome measurement.

Quality and Patient Safety supports the Health Service to deliver high quality and safe services to patients and service users. This involves developing appropriate standards of practice that can be measured from the clinician and service user perspective and requires that the Manager is:

Responsible to ensure compliance with Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) National Standards, Health Service Executive (HSE), CARF/adopted Accreditation Standards, National and Local policies, procedures, guidelines, best practice standards, relevant government legislation and regulations.

• Participate in various standards, NRH accreditation and quality control groups to support the overall achievement and maintenance of the designated NRH quality and accreditation standards.
• To promote and effect a Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) environment for services at NRH in line with existing and future regulatory requirements.
• To work closely with the Risk Management Department, clinical programmes and services in order to organise and assure implementation of all hospital and external quality, safety and risk management policies, procedures and requirements pertinent to services at the Hospital.
• Assist in the collection of data on the performance of nursing services. Maintain relevant records and audit same as required and as requested by the Assistant Director of Nursing.

Management of Challenging Behaviour

The post holder will ensure that

• All staff are aware that immediate support and counselling are available to those who have been involved in a violent incident.
• Post holder is required to manage unpredictable behaviour

Education/Staff Development

• Assesses and identifies training and development needs of all ward staff, set objectives for such learning; recommends these to the Director of Nursing /Assistant Directorand contributes to the development of trainingprogrammes where appropriate.
• Identify teaching/learning opportunities within the unit.

Self Development:

The post holder is expected to:

· Maintain and update knowledge and keep abreast of relevant professional development and all current trends in nursing.

· Discuss present performance and future needs with the Assistant Director of Nursing.

· Demonstrate the ability to relate nursing research to nursing practice

· Applies research findings to defined patients’ populations e.g. patients with disabilities.

· Demonstrate the ability to collect and report on data