Night Duty Manager

Department: Nursing
Reports to: Nursing Director

Supervises: Night Duty Nursing Staff
 
Job Summary
To ensure that all night incidents are identified, managed and reported, problems are addressed and patient care is maintained. Provision of customer-focused management of ward and hospital activities, facilities and resources at night, from 19h00 to 07h00, fulfilling the role of the nursing manager of the hospital. All nursing staff on night duty will report directly to the night supervisor for all nursing functions and incidents.
Key Responsibilities

OPERATIONAL MANAGEMENT OF CLINICAL AND QUALITY OUTCOMES

• Ensure the awareness, compliance and adherence to the relevant acts/prescripts applicable within the environment.
• Advocate for the rights of patients/clients
• Implement nursing regulations of The Nursing and Midwife Council of Ghana
• Code of Ethics and Professional Practice of the South African Nursing Council.
• Comply with The National Core Standards requirements.
• Implement Best Care Always
• Control drugs as per regulations of the Pharmacy Act (Act 53 of 1974), perform checks on drug totals and drug register, ensure that procedures and recording are adhered to. Rationalise and control emergency stock.  Set stock standard levels.
• Maintain a safe, clean hygienic environment for all the staff, patients and visitors ensuring that the staff are aware and informed of safety procedures.
• Ensure the awareness, compliance and adherence to the relevant acts/prescripts applicable within the environment.
• Ensure patient confidentiality at all times
• Educates patients in the nature of oral health related conditions and in the general promotion of oral health related disease prevention

HUMAN RESOURCES:

• Monitor and manage staff attendance and ensuring coverage of hospital at all times. Complete duty roster and record books in accordance with Employment Act.  Allocate staff, based on workload and level of competence ensuring optimal staff usage and maintaining the stability of nurse/patient ratio.
• Assess patient-/bed status and acuities and prioritize nursing staff needs/attendances and competencies and transfer nursing staff appropriately
• Meeting with the patients and assess staff numbers per department
• Monitor staff breaks (tea times 22h00, 04h00 and dinner/lunch breaks from 23h00 to 02h00 — one hour break per person)

QUALITY PATIENT CARE

• Promote and maintain good working and inter-personnel relationships with management, patients, staff, doctors and colleagues.  Co-ordinate the activities of all hospital departments to provide uniformity of direction.
• Demonstrate professional ethics and leadership qualities.  Maintain standards and conduct to the Nurses and Midwife Council of Ghana
• After hand-over/visiting hours, proceed to do full hospital rounds, preferably starting at the high-risk areas.
• Identify and manage possible patient and/or family complaints
• Identify, manage and solve problems as needed, contact hospital nursing manager if necessary
• Issue and record medication from after-hours cupboard as required form nursing departments
• Night Manager to be aware of any admissions and transfers internal or external to other healthcare facilities and allocate beds to admissions and internal transfers
• Attend to all resuscitation calls and co-ordinate the smooth running of all activities during and after the resuscitation also the placing of nursing staff as needed
• Repeat hospital rounds as frequently as possible and assess nursing staff tea and dinner/lunch breaks.
• Maintain a safe, clean hygienic environment for all the staff, patients and visitors ensuring that the staff are aware and informed of safety procedures.
• Control drugs as per regulations of the pharmacy legislation perform checks on drug totals and drug register, ensure that procedures and recording are adhered to. Rationalise and control emergency stock.  Set stock standard levels.

ADMINISTRATION

• The following will be handed over when taking over from the registered nurse on hospital call for after hours during the day from 18h30 to 19h00.
• Bed-/patient status per nursing department with number of theatre cases (done and still in operating room), labour room patients, seriously ill patients, VIP patients, staff admitted as patients and any pending issues or incidents
• Acuity and staff attendance of all nursing departments — sick leave, absenteeism
• Handing over keys of the after-hours cupboard
• Assist medical practitioners with all enquiries, possible admissions and related issues during the night duty period
• Collect nursing manager reports as send by nursing departments (before 06h00) and compile night duty report
• Do handover about specific issues to unit managers and complete report to the hospital nursing manager as from 06h30

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

• Administer and supervise ensuring standards for quality nursing are met in hospital, evaluate on an on-going basis and take appropriate action.
• Perform clinical instruction as necessary.
• Monitor and enforce ward standards, procedures and staff performance.
•  Manage ward activities including irregularities and policy violations and take corrective and follow up action.
• Do in-service training with staff.

CONTINUOUS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

• Constantly aware of work process problems or bottlenecks that prevent the achievement of goals, objectives and targets
• Takes appropriate action through discussions with Nursing Unit Manager/Nursing Manger in improving any process that will allow the improvement to workflow, reduction of cost and/or improvement to quality, service and productivity
• Actively participates in performance improvement and continuous quality improvement (CQI) activities.

LIMITS OF AUTHORITY

• Operate within determined limits of authority and scope of practice in the achievement of the strategic plan and any other agreed goals and objectives as approved by the Nursing Manager and CEO.

SKILLS AND COMPETENCY REQUIREMENTS

• Minimum 5 years proven leadership and management experience in the relevant environment (ideally private)
• Understanding of legislation and regulations relating to healthcare and the nursing profession
• Understanding of resourcing models within broader healthcare industry
• Ability to describe a problem effectively, gather and analyse information and create options in order to generate a workable solution.
• Capacity to create group synergy in pursuing collective goals. This includes a capacity to promote a friendly co-operative climate, understand group dynamics and apply appropriate facilitation techniques in working with others to achieve a shared goal.
• Capacity to create individual and team ownership for decisions, plans and strategies by including people in making decisions and empowering them to take responsibility and show initiative.
• Motivation and orientation to act in an ethical, transparent and morally defensible manner. Linked to the capacity to stand up for one’s beliefs (and take tough, principled stands, even if they are unpopular).
• Capacity to be optimistic, take a long-term view of success and failure and persist in pursuing goals despite obstacles and set-backs Includes the capacity to bounce back from adversity).
• Capacity to demonstrate knowledge of and insight into financial principles and processes impacting on the organisation.
• Computer literacy and previous exposure to financial budgeting
• Excellent communication skills in English both written and verbal
• Organised and able to work well under pressure
• Good planning and organisational skills
• Strong leadership and good interpersonal skills
• Flexible

EDUCATIONAL AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATION

• Degree in Nursing.
• Post-graduate Diploma in Nursing Management and/or Nursing Education (advantageous)
• Current registration with the Nursing and Midwifes Council of Ghana

KEY CONTACTS