"Executive Director, NQRE - F/T - Days"

Who We Are

UCI Health is the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine, and the only academic health system based in Orange County. UCI Health is comprised of its main campus, UCI Medical Center, a 459-bed, acute care hospital in Orange, Calif., four hospitals and affiliated physicians of the UCI Health Community Network in Orange and Los Angeles counties and ambulatory care centers across the region. Listed among America's Best Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report for 23 consecutive years, UCI Medical Center provides tertiary and quaternary care and is home to Orange County's only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, gold level 1 geriatric emergency department and regional burn center. UCI Health serves a region of nearly 4 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County.

To learn more about UCI Health, visit www.ucihealth.org.

Your Role on the Team

Position Summary:

The Executive Director of Nursing Quality, Research & Education (NQRE) serves as a senior system leader responsible for advancing nursing practice excellence, clinical education, professional development, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement of nurse-sensitive outcomes across UCI Health. Reporting to the System Chief Nursing Executive, the Executive Director provides strategic direction, leadership, and oversight for systemwide programs supporting professional nursing excellence-including Magnet, nursing research partnerships, practice standards, accreditation, and evidence-based care.
This role oversees nursing education for inpatient and outpatient services; systemwide patient education; specialty/advanced practice teams such as PICC, Wound Care, Ostomy, Diabetes Education, ALERT; and coordination of student clinical placements and academic partnerships. The Executive Director ensures alignment of educational, quality, and research initiatives with organizational goals, regulatory requirements, and emerging trends.

What It Takes to be Successful

Required Qualifications:

• Strong leadership, communication and change management skills
• Proficiency in program management, budgeting, and accreditation processes
• Master of Science Degree in Nursing
• Expertise in nursing education, clinical operations, quality improvement and regulatory compliance.
• Experience in curriculum development, program evaluation, and adult learning principles.
• Effective verbal and written communication, essential for teaching, advocacy, and stakeholder engagement.
• Comprehensive knowledge of health care delivery, including strategy, operations, regulatory standards and nursing quality
• A minimum of 7 years of progressive nursing leadership experience, preferably in an integrated system

Preferred Qualifications:

• Leadership experience in an academic medical center environment
• Doctorate degree in Nursing
• Certification in nursing education, professional development, or quality (CNE, NPD-BC, NEA-BC, CPPS)

Licenses and Certifications:

• CA Registered Nurse

Total Rewards

We offer a wealth of benefits to make working at UCI even more rewarding. These benefits may include medical insurance, sick and vacation time, retirement savings plans, and access to a number of discounts and perks. Please utilize the links listed here to learn more about our compensation practices and benefits.