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Salinas Valley Health

Acute care hospital network and services

Director of Quality and Safety

Full-TimeUpdated on 10/15/2026
$83.86 - $110/hr
Senior
Bachelor's, Master's
Salinas, CA, USA
In Person
Risk & ComplianceRegulatory Compliance & Ethics

About the job

Requirements
  • A Bachelor's degree in Nursing or another appropriate healthcare field is required.
  • A Master's degree is preferred.
  • Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) certification is required; new hires and transfers have one year from hire or transfer to obtain it.
  • A California Registered Nurse license or another appropriate healthcare training license is required.
  • Five years of experience in quality in an acute care setting with progressive leadership responsibility in healthcare quality or performance improvement is required.
  • Thorough understanding of Joint Commission standards, state and federal standards, value-based purchasing initiatives, readmission reduction and hospital-acquired conditions programs, core measures, and HCAHPS is required.
  • Analytical, performance-improvement methodology, computer, organizational, critical-thinking, and team-facilitation skills are required.
  • Expertise in data management, presentation, and analysis is required.
  • Experience implementing and managing healthcare quality programs is required.
  • Knowledge of budget preparation, monitoring, and control; human resources management; and management and supervisory theories, principles, practices, techniques, and methods is required.
  • Ability to communicate orally and in writing to diverse groups and individuals, work with administration, employees, and medical staff, identify and analyze complex departmental and patient-care issues, make independent decisions and advise administration, employees, and medical staff, and exercise judgment and tact in providing leadership, guidance, and assistance is required.
Responsibilities
  • Provide leadership, direction, and implementation of quality and performance-improvement activities to ensure compliance with regulatory and accrediting-body requirements and organizational goals, encompassing the performance of medical staff, nursing staff, and support services.
  • Collaborate with medical staff to ensure performance-improvement programs monitor, assess, and continuously improve quality of care and service.
  • Execute strategic planning and implement improvements to reach Quality and Safety milestones, working with all organizational levels to assess, improve, monitor, and report healthcare quality and safety.
  • Oversee public reporting and ensure accurate, timely data abstraction and data entry for required and voluntary reporting to federal and state regulatory and accrediting agencies; implement interventions to improve patient outcomes.
  • Build a patient safety culture in collaboration with the Vice President.
  • Coordinate Quality and Safety Committee activities; report organizational performance-improvement data to that committee and the Board of Directors' Quality and Efficient Practices Committee; develop and implement action plans following sentinel-event reviews; and work with Risk Management to promote communication and optimal-resolution principles among physicians and staff.
  • Manage event processes by identifying risks, encouraging accurate adverse-event reporting and thoughtful analyses of safety events and near misses, facilitating organization-wide learning, and facilitating system and local improvements for safe care.
  • Oversee the Safety Event Classification and Cause Analysis program and work with the Patient Safety Manager to calculate and report information to the Board's Quality and Efficient Practices Committee.
  • Develop, prioritize, direct, and coordinate deployment of Quality and Safety resources; facilitate structured problem-solving, data collection, meetings, documentation, research and benchmarking, pilots, and timelines; facilitate interdisciplinary performance-improvement teams focused on data analysis and process improvement; and oversee staff driving improvement efforts informed by adverse-event reviews, medical-staff outcomes data, and hospital leadership priorities.
  • Coordinate compliance with CMS QAPI conditions of participation and Joint Commission Improving Organizational Performance standards; work with IT and other departments on electronic clinical quality measures and other reporting measures; and coordinate with the Director of Accreditation and Regulatory on timely sentinel-event reporting and presentation of quality data during regulatory visits.
  • Direct institutional projects and improvements to improve national Quality and Safety rankings, including inpatient and outpatient core-measure reporting to the Joint Commission and CMS, AHRQ Patient Safety Indicators, and CMS Hospital-Acquired Conditions; support database management and timely data submissions for Vizient Quality and Accountability Scorecard, Leapfrog, QualityNet, CCORP, STS, and the American College of Cardiology.
  • Monitor and evaluate patient care against best practices, recommend care modifications, facilitate performance improvement, identify trends and variances, and use aggregated data and information to identify improvement opportunities; collaborate with stakeholders to ensure consistent patient-centered care.
  • Provide education and training to staff and physicians on performance-improvement activities, processes, and methodology; ensure services address program needs; establish integrated structures to assess clinical department and program effectiveness; and supervise staff while fostering teamwork, safety culture, collegiality, and productivity.
  • Address feedback, issues, and concerns from medical, administrative, and hospital staff; create, track, and communicate quality and safety process and outcome metrics; and ensure program needs inform key decisions.
  • Maintain and update the Organizational Performance Improvement Plan, Annual Quality and Safety Report, Health Equity Disparity Reduction Plan, and other quality and safety plans requiring annual review.
  • Serve as a positive role model and effective liaison for the hospital.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.
Desired Qualifications
  • A Master's degree is preferred.

About the company

Salinas Valley Health is a regional health system that provides acute inpatient and outpatient medical care to the Salinas Valley, Monterey Peninsula, and surrounding areas. The system runs a 263-bed hospital with specialties including Cancer Care, Cardiac Care, Orthopedics, Obstetrics, and a Stroke Center, plus an Emergency Department and an urgent care/surgery network; it also hosts the region’s only Perinatal Diagnostic Center and collaborates with Stanford and other larger hospitals to extend access to advanced care. In 2021 it earned Magnet Recognition for nursing excellence, reflecting a strong focus on patient safety and care quality. Its goal is to improve community health by delivering high-quality, accessible medical services and expanding reach through partnerships and specialized centers.

Company Size

501-1,000

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

Salinas, California

Founded

1953

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • July 2026 Leapfrog Full Transparency Badge strengthens payer and employer trust.
  • August 2026 U.S. News recognition supports patient volume and recruiting.
  • June 2026 student-art and market programs reinforce community loyalty.

What critics are saying

  • OHCA capped Salinas Valley Health spending growth at 1.8% in 2026.
  • May 2026 Araujo summary judgment leaves legal costs and precedent risk unresolved.
  • Persistent OHCA caps force service reductions that hollow out the regional hospital network.

What makes Salinas Valley Health unique

  • Monterey County’s only integrated public health system, anchoring Salinas, Gonzales, and King City care.
  • 2026 U.S. News gave seven High Performing ratings, including maternity care.
  • Community partnerships with Hartnell College and Rancho Cielo feed local workforce pipelines.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Flexible Work Hours

Paid Sick Leave

Company News

PR Newswire
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Dr. LaKeeya Tucker appointed chief medical officer for Memorial Hospital Miramar and Pembroke

Memorial Healthcare System has appointed Dr LaKeeya Tucker as Chief Medical Officer for Memorial Hospital Miramar and Memorial Hospital Pembroke, effective 2 March 2026. In her role, Dr Tucker will partner with clinical and operational leaders to support quality outcomes, advance patient safety initiatives and strengthen medical staff engagement. Dr Tucker is a board-certified obstetrician and gynaecologist with over 23 years of clinical and executive leadership experience. She previously served as Chief of Staff at University of Michigan Health Sparrow Lansing from 2020 to 2022 and chaired the Quality & Patient Safety Committee for the University of Michigan Health Regional Hospitals Boards. She is also a Certified Physician Executive through the American Association for Physician Leadership.

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Sep 6th, 2022
Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System partnered with State of California on Sep 6th 22'.

September 6, 2022 - Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System is proud to partner with the State of California in recognizing its team of dedicated healthcare professionals.

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Aug 23rd, 2022
Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System partners with Rancho Cielo

Through its partnership with Rancho Cielo Youth Campus, Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System is pleased to give a gift to its staff and volunteers each year that is also an investment in a brighter future for at-risk youth in Monterey County.

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Aug 10th, 2022
Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System recognized as one of the top five hospitals in the nation

Recognized as one of the top five hospitals in the nation for being socially responsible, Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System ranked high in health equity, patient outcomes and value of care by the Lown Institute Hospitals Index.