Director of Nursing

Director of Nursing Opportunity

St Simons By-the-Sea is a 101-bed behavioral health hospital specializing in psychiatric care and addiction treatment for both adults and adolescents. Our team is dedicated to delivering high-quality, evidence-based services in a supportive and collaborative environment where every staff member plays a vital role in changing lives.

With a strong commitment to clinical excellence and compassionate care, we provide patients with the tools and support they need to achieve lasting recovery. Our programs are designed to address the unique needs of each individual, creating meaningful opportunities for progress, healing, and long-term success.

Nestled on the picturesque shores of St Simons Island, Georgia, our facility offers a serene coastal setting that promotes privacy, comfort, and focus. This peaceful environment not only enhances the patient experience but also creates a truly rewarding workplace for professionals seeking purpose-driven careers.

Conveniently located within driving distance of Jacksonville, Florida, Savannah, Georgia, and surrounding communities through South Georgia and North Florida, St Simons By-the-Sea combines accessibility with a tranquil atmosphere—making it an ideal place to grow your career while making a lasting impact.

Visit the site virtually: ssbythesea.com

We are seeking an exceptional, battle-tested leader to serve as Director of Nursing. This executive role requires a decisive, forward-thinking leader capable of navigating complexity, driving transformation, and building high-performing teams in a fast-paced behavioral health environment.

The Director of Nursing is a key member of the executive leadership team and is responsible for establishing nursing strategy, ensuring clinical excellence, and aligning operations with the mission, vision, and values of Universal Health Services (UHS). This leader will shape culture, elevate performance, and position the hospital for sustained growth and operational strength.

Key Responsibilities

The Director of Nursing provides strategic and operational oversight for all nursing services within the hospital, including:

• Strategic Leadership – Developing and executing nursing strategies aligned with organizational priorities, quality standards, and long-term growth objectives
• Clinical and Operational Oversight – Ensuring safe staffing, regulatory compliance, accreditation readiness, and adherence to evidence-based practice while maintaining day-to-day operational stability
• Team Development – Recruiting, mentoring, and retaining strong nursing leaders and staff; cultivating a culture of accountability, engagement, and professional excellence
• Performance & Quality Management – Establishing and monitoring key performance indicators related to patient safety, quality outcomes, employee engagement, and operational efficiency; leading performance improvement initiatives with disciplined execution
• Decision-Making & Risk Management – Assessing complex clinical and operational challenges, managing risk appropriately, and making sound decisions in time-sensitive, high-impact situations

What Makes this Role Challenging

This position carries significant organizational influence and requires a leader who can balance strategic vision with operational demands. Success requires:

• Leading in a dynamic behavioral health setting with evolving regulatory expectations
• Driving transformation while maintaining workforce stability and consistent patient care outcomes
• Managing high-visibility initiatives that directly impact clinical quality, financial performance, and organizational culture
• Balancing long-term strategic initiatives with immediate operational and patient care needs

What do our current nursing leaders value at St Simons and UHS?

That despite our large company design, each facility is run independently, and so our nurse executives have the autonomy to manage their teams with clinical and educational support from corporate. You are never alone, as you are part of a large network of peer nurse leaders that routinely exchange ideas and review current topics within the industry. That we have an active Nursing Council based on shared governance and evidence-based practice. That we offer internal leadership and clinical education, including a generous annual tuition assistance and continuing education allowance designed to keep you at the top of your practice. That we offer and support real career advancement opportunity, including our COO-in-Training program and a variety of regional and national corporate roles designed to support the field and share advanced experience. And, that UHS offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package that reflects the work/life needs of our senior leaders.

Total Rewards for our Senior Leaders include:

• Annual incentive plan
• Relocation Support
• Tuition savings to continue your nursing education with Chamberlain University
• In-house Psychiatric Nurse Residency Transition-to-Practice Orientation (20 CEUs)
• Career development opportunities across UHS and our 300+ locations!
• Diverse programming to expand your experience
• HealthStream online learning catalogue with plenty of free CEU courses
• Competitive Compensation & Generous Paid Time Off
• Excellent Medical, Dental, Vision and Prescription Drug Plans
• 401(K) with company match and discounted stock plan
• Pet Insurance
• SoFi Student Loan Refinancing Program
• More information is available on our Benefits Guest Website: uhsguest.com

If you would like to learn more before applying, please contact Scott Errickson, Divisional Director-Clinical Recruitment at (484) 584-2725, or via email at Scott.Errickson@UHSinc.com

About Universal Health Services

One of the nation’s largest and most respected providers of hospital and healthcare services, Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE: UHS) has built an impressive record of achievement and performance, growing since its inception into a Fortune 500® corporation. Headquartered in King of Prussia, PA, UHS has 101,500 employees. Through its subsidiaries, UHS operates 29 acute care inpatient facilities, 346 behavioral health inpatient facilities and 168 outpatient and other facilities in 40 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom.

Job Requirements:

• Licensure: Current license or permit to practice professional nursing in the state of GA.
• Bachelor of Science in Nursing from a CCNE accredited nursing program; Master of Science in Nursing is strongly preferred within first year in role.
• Demonstrated working knowledge of behavioral health nursing clinical practices and management.
• Extensive knowledge of principles and practices relevant to nursing and patient care activities.
• Demonstrated knowledge of effective management and supervisory practices. Highly developed written and verbal communication skills.
• Five or more years of progressive nursing management experience in behavioral health setting preferred
• Ability to plan, direct, and monitor others’ activities with demonstrated leadership abilities that contribute to a positive work environment.

EEO Statement

All UHS subsidiaries are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants and teammates. UHS subsidiaries are equal opportunity employers and as such, openly support and fully commit to recruitment, selection, placement, promotion and compensation of individuals without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), genetic information, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

We believe that diversity and inclusion among our teammates is critical to our success.

Notice

At UHS and all our subsidiaries, our Human Resources departments and recruiters are here to help prospective candidates by matching skillset and experience with the best possible career path at UHS and our subsidiaries. We take pride in creating a highly efficient and best in class candidate experience. During the recruitment process, no recruiter or employee will request financial or personal information (Social Security Number, credit card or bank information, etc.) from you via email. The recruiters will not email you from a public webmail client like Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo Mail, etc. If you are suspicious of a job posting or job-related email mentioning UHS or its subsidiaries, let us know by contacting us at: https://uhs.alertline.com or 1-800-852-3449