Clinical Nurse Manager | Med Surg

About the Role

Meritus Health is seeking a dynamic and experienced Clinical Nurse Manager to lead 5 West, our General Medical/Surgical Unit. This is an opportunity to lead a dedicated nursing team caring for a diverse adult patient population with a broad range of acute medical and surgical needs. As Clinical Manager, you will provide overall leadership, coordination, and operational oversight for the unit, with 24-hour accountability for clinical operations, staffing, quality, safety, team performance, and patient experience. You'll work closely with nursing leadership, physicians, case management, and other interdisciplinary partners to promote excellent patient outcomes, efficient patient flow, and an engaged, high-performing team.

What You Will Do

• Provide overall leadership and accountability for 5 West General Medical/Surgical
• Oversee daily clinical operations while maintaining 24-hour accountability for the unit
• Manage staffing, scheduling, productivity, and resource allocation to support safe and effective patient care
• Promote a culture focused on patient safety, clinical excellence, teamwork, and accountability
• Monitor patient census, acuity, capacity, and throughput to support efficient patient flow
• Lead quality, safety, and performance-improvement initiatives
• Ensure compliance with organizational policies, clinical standards, regulatory requirements, and accreditation standards
• Partner with physicians, case management, pharmacy, rehabilitation services, and other interdisciplinary teams to coordinate patient care and discharge planning
• Coach and develop team members through ongoing feedback, performance evaluations, and professional-development planning
• Support recruitment, onboarding, engagement, retention, and succession planning
• Address patient and family concerns with professionalism, compassion, and timely follow-through
• Participate in budgeting, productivity management, and operational planning
• Collaborate with nursing and hospital leadership on organization-wide initiatives

What is the Job Really Like?

• This is a highly visible leadership role where people, patient care, and operations come together every day. You are accountable for the unit 24/7, even when you are not physically on-site
• No two days look exactly the same—patient volumes, acuity, discharges, admissions, and staffing needs can shift quickly
• You'll balance clinical quality, patient experience, staff engagement, productivity, and operational goals simultaneously
• Staffing requires proactive planning, flexibility, and real-time problem-solving
• A significant part of your role is developing people—coaching strong performers, supporting new team members, addressing performance concerns, and building future leaders
• You'll work closely with interdisciplinary partners to remove barriers to care and support timely, safe transitions for patients
• You'll be expected to be visible and accessible to your team and understand what is happening on the unit
• Difficult conversations and competing priorities are part of leadership, but so is the opportunity to directly influence team culture and the patient experience
• Success requires both strong clinical credibility and effective people leadership

Minimum Qualifications

Education: Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) required; Master's degree preferred

Experience: Minimum of 5 years of nursing experience in a related clinical setting; prior nursing leadership or supervisory experience

Licensure & Certification: Current Registered Nurse (RN) license to practice in Maryland required; professional certification in a clinical specialty or nursing leadership preferred

Skills & Abilities:

• Strong leadership, communication, and team-development skills
• Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced inpatient environment
• Knowledge of medical/surgical nursing standards, regulatory requirements, and evidence-based practice
• Ability to use quality, safety, staffing, and operational data to drive performance improvement
• Strong organizational, problem-solving, and decision-making abilities
• Ability to coach, develop, and hold team members accountable
• Proficiency with computer systems and reporting tools

Work Environment and Demands

• Fast-paced inpatient medical/surgical environment
• Frequent walking, standing, and movement throughout the unit
• High mental demands requiring sustained focus, prioritization, problem-solving, and multitasking
• Regular interaction with patients, families, physicians, nursing staff, and interdisciplinary partners
• Combination of administrative responsibilities and active leadership presence on the unit
• Flexibility to respond to urgent operational or staffing needs outside scheduled hours
• Participation in hospital-wide initiatives, committees, and nursing leadership activities

You'll know you're succeeding when

• Patients consistently receive safe, compassionate, high-quality care
• Quality, safety, and regulatory expectations are consistently met or exceeded
• Your team feels supported, engaged, developed, and accountable
• New team members are successfully onboarded and retained
• Patient and family experiences reflect responsive, compassionate care
• Staffing and scheduling effectively support patient needs and unit operations
• Patient flow and interdisciplinary discharge planning are efficient and collaborative
• Quality indicators demonstrate sustained improvement
• Operational and budget goals are achieved
• Challenges are identified early and addressed proactively
• 5 West is a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing medical/surgical team where nurses want to work and patients receive exceptional care

Benefits

• Health, dental, and vision insurance available starting the 1st of the month following date of hire
• Life insurance
• Short and long-term disability coverage
• Paid Time Off begins accruing from day one
• 401k plan
• Education assistance program
• Employee assistance program
• Shift differential for evening, night, or weekend shifts