Director, Behavioral Health (On-Site)

At Northbay Health, the Director, Behavioral Health Program provides strategic, operational, and clinical leadership for Northbay Health's Behavioral Health services. This position is responsible for advancing a comprehensive, high-quality, patient-centered behavioral health program that supports the organization's mission, strategic priorities, and commitment to whole-person care.

Reporting directly to the Chief Nursing Officer, the Director provides leadership across behavioral health services and works collaboratively with physicians, nursing, clinical disciplines, operational leaders, community partners, and executive leadership to ensure safe, effective, accessible, and financially sustainable services.

The Director will play a key role in developing and executing the organization's behavioral health strategy, strengthening integration between behavioral and physical health, optimizing the patient experience, developing the workforce, and ensuring compliance with applicable regulatory, accreditation, and professional standards.. ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategic Leadership

• Develop and execute a comprehensive Behavioral Health strategy aligned with Northbay Health's mission, strategic plan, and organizational priorities.

• Provide leadership in the growth, development, integration, and continuous improvement of behavioral health services.

• Identify opportunities to expand access, improve care coordination, and address behavioral health needs across the continuum of care.

• Partner with executive and medical leadership to establish short- and long-term goals, priorities, and performance expectations.

• Evaluate emerging behavioral health trends, community needs, reimbursement models, and best practices and make recommendations regarding program development.

Clinical and Operational Leadership

• Provide oversight of behavioral health operations, ensuring the delivery of safe, effective, evidence-informed, and compassionate care.

• Establish and maintain appropriate clinical, operational, and service standards.

• Monitor patient access, quality, safety, outcomes, utilization, patient experience, and operational performance.

• Develop and implement processes that promote timely access to behavioral health services and effective transitions across levels of care.

• Ensure appropriate coordination between inpatient, outpatient, emergency, primary care, specialty care, and community-based services, as applicable.

• Identify operational barriers and implement sustainable solutions that improve efficiency and patient outcomes.

Quality, Safety & Regulatory Compliance

• Establish accountability for behavioral health quality and patient safety initiatives.

• Monitor quality indicators, adverse events, patient grievances, clinical outcomes, and other performance measures.

• Ensure compliance with applicable federal and state regulations, licensing requirements, accreditation standards, and Northbay Health policies.

• Partner with Quality, Compliance, Risk Management, Employee Health, and other departments to identify and mitigate clinical and operational risks.

• Promote a culture of safety, accountability, continuous improvement, and respectful patient care.

Workforce & Talent Development

• Recruit, develop, coach, and retain a high-performing behavioral health team.

• Establish appropriate staffing models and workforce plans based on patient volumes, acuity, program requirements, and organizational needs.

• Develop leaders and create opportunities for professional growth and advancement.

• Establish clear performance expectations and accountability throughout the department.

• Promote a healthy work environment characterized by collaboration, respect, inclusion, and psychological safety.

• Partner with Human Resources on workforce planning, employee relations, compensation, recruitment, retention, and organizational development initiatives.

Physician & Interdisciplinary Collaboration

• Develop strong working relationships with behavioral health physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, therapists, social workers, case managers, and other clinical professionals.

• Collaborate with medical staff leadership to promote evidence-based practices and effective interdisciplinary care.

• Facilitate effective communication between behavioral health and other clinical and operational departments.

• Support recruitment and retention of behavioral health providers and other critical clinical talent.

Financial & Business Management

• Develop and manage operating budgets and ensure appropriate stewardship of organizational resources.

• Monitor financial performance, productivity, staffing, volumes, and other key business indicators.

• Identify opportunities to improve financial performance while maintaining or improving quality and access.

• Evaluate business cases for new programs, services, technology, staffing models, and other strategic investments.

• Partner with Finance and other leaders regarding budgeting, forecasting, capital planning, and financial performance.

Community & Strategic Partnerships

• Develop and maintain relationships with community behavioral health organizations, social service agencies, educational institutions, public agencies, and other strategic partners.

• Represent Northbay Health in appropriate community and professional forums.

• Identify opportunities to strengthen the behavioral health continuum and improve coordination with community resources.

• Support initiatives addressing behavioral health access, health equity, social determinants of health, and community needs.

Patient & Family Experience

• Promote a compassionate, trauma-informed, patient- and family-centered approach to behavioral health services.

• Monitor patient and family feedback and use findings to drive improvements.

• Ensure behavioral health services are delivered in a manner that respects patient dignity, privacy, autonomy, and cultural and individual needs.

• Champion efforts to reduce stigma associated with behavioral health conditions and improve engagement in care.

Leadership Expectations

The Director is expected to serve as a visible and collaborative leader who:

• Builds trust and strong relationships across the organization and community.

• Leads through change with transparency, consistency, and accountability.

• Makes sound decisions using data, clinical evidence, organizational priorities, and patient needs.

• Develops strong leaders and empowers staff to achieve results.

• Communicates effectively with employees, physicians, executives, patients, and community partners.

• Demonstrates emotional intelligence, professionalism, and sound judgment.

• Promotes teamwork and collaboration across traditional departmental boundaries.

• Maintains a strong focus on patient safety, quality, access, experience, and financial stewardship.

Professionalism

• Holds self-accountable for deadlines, outcomes and obtaining resources.

• Models lifelong learning.

• Seeks mentorship appropriately.

• Creates an environment with a reputation for high ethical standards.

• Current, unrestricted professional license or certification appropriate to the individual's clinical discipline, when applicable.
• Progressive leadership experience in behavioral health, healthcare, hospital operations, or a closely related environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading multidisciplinary teams and complex healthcare programs.
• Experience with quality improvement, regulatory compliance, performance management, and operational planning.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and manage budgets and understand healthcare financial and operational metrics.
• Strong communication, relationship-building, problem-solving, and organizational skills.

Qualifications

• Education: Master’s degree required, doctoral degree preferred in a relevant clinical, behavioral health, or related healthcare discipline.
• Licensure/certification: RN degree preferred.
• Experience: Significant experience leading behavioral health services within an acute-care or integrated healthcare system. Experience developing or expanding behavioral health programs and services. Experience with behavioral health integration into primary care and/or broader healthcare delivery. Experience with strategic planning, program development, and business case development. Familiarity with behavioral health reimbursement, value-based care, and healthcare regulatory requirements. Experience partnering with physicians and medical staff leadership.

Skills: The Successful Candidate Will Demonstrate

• Comprehensive knowledge of behavioral health clinical practices, delivery models, and regulatory requirements.

• Strong understanding of integrated behavioral and physical healthcare.

• Ability to translate organizational strategy into executable operational plans.

• Strong financial and business acumen.

• Ability to analyze data, identify trends, and develop measurable improvement strategies.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

• Strong presentation and executive communication skills.

• Ability to lead through ambiguity and organizational change.

• Demonstrated ability to build collaborative relationships across disciplines and organizational levels.

• Commitment to equity, inclusion, patient dignity, and compassionate care.

Interpersonal Skills: Demonstrates the True North values. The True North values are a set of value-based behaviors that are to be consistently demonstrated and role modeled by all employees that work at NorthBay Health. The True North values principles consist of Nurture/Care, Own It, Respect Relationships, Build Trust and Hardwire Excellence.

Physical Effort: Attendance is an essential function of the job. The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to suc