Join an award-winning team of dedicated professionals committed to our core values of quality, compassion, and community! Alvarado Hospital, a member of Prime Healthcare, offers incredible opportunities to expand your horizons and be part of a community dedicated to making a difference.

Alvarado Hospital is a 306-bed full-service acute care hospital centrally located in San Diego adjacent to San Diego State University. Ranked in the top 5% nationally for patient safety, the hospital has also been ranked among America's 100 Best Hospitals for Orthopedic Surgery™, Spine Surgery™ and Critical Care™. Alvarado Hospital offers more than 25 programs and services, including the Advanced Spine & Joint Institute, cardiac services, San Diego Rehabilitation Institute outpatient rehabilitation, sexual medicine, geriatric-psychiatric care, vascular services, and an Emergency Department that is accredited for geriatric care. To learn more, visit www.AlvaradoHospital.com.

The Director of Behavioral Health is a Registered Nurse who assumes 24 hour administrative responsibility for the management of all Behavioral Health Program functions. Supervises, assesses, plans, implements and evaluates the delivery of patient care. Develops and implements programmatic plans, including performance improvement activities and compliance with current regulations. Supervises and evaluates all personnel assigned to the Behavioral Health program(s) and effectively utilizes employee resources, time responsibilities for the unit and is directly accountable to the CNO/Administrator/CEO. Communicates with staff, physicians and administration both written and verbally. Develops and administers comprehensive Behavioral Health Programing that responds to the patient demographic needs and support the organization's overall mission, philosophy, and goals. Integrates the Behavioral Health Services  into the continuum of care, as appropriate to the facility needs; provides leadership, direction and clinical supervision in accordance with the organizational and departmental goals and objectives. 

Education and Work Experience

1. Must have a current and valid Registered Nurse Licensure
2. Director of psychiatric services has a master's degree (preferred) in psychiatric or mental health nursing.
3. Must have a minimum of have a Bachelor's degree, with at least 2 years of experience in psychiatric nursing providing care to the mentally ill, or be qualified by education and experience in the care of the mentally ill, in accordance with local and state regulatory requirements
4. Must have minimum of two (2) years management experience with Behavioral Health Care programs
5. Must have BCLS (AHA) certificate upon hire and maintain current
6. Behavioral Violence Prevention within 6 months of hire and maintain current annually
7. Must have working knowledge of mental health laws and practice standards
8. Must have knowledge of the continuum of care for behavioral health treatment
9. Must have excellent verbal, written, and management skills.

Alvarado Hospital Medical Center offers competitive compensation and a comprehensive benefits package that provides employees the flexibility to tailor benefits according to their individual needs. Our Total Rewards package includes, but is not limited to, paid time off, a 401K retirement plan, medical, dental, and vision coverage, tuition reimbursement, and many more voluntary benefit options.  Benefits may vary based on employment status, i.e. full-time, part-time, per diem or temporary.  A reasonable compensation estimate for this role, which includes estimated wages, benefits, and other forms of compensation, is $95,388.80 to $156,000.00 on an annualized basis. The exact starting compensation to be offered will be determined at the time of selecting an applicant for hire and will be dependent on a wide range of factors, including but not limited to geographic location, skill set, experience, education, credentials, and licensure. Additionally, employees in this position may be eligible to participate in the Company’s annual discretionary bonus program. Discretionary bonuses, if any, are based on a number of factors, which include but are not limited to individual and Company performance.

We are an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and do not discriminate against applicants due to veteran status, disability, race, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation or other protected characteristics. If you need special accommodation for the application process, please contact Human Resources.  EEO is the Law:  https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/migrated_files/employers/poster_screen_reader_optimized.pdf