As a Hospital Director your role is to manage and run the hospital. You could compare it to conducting an orchestra. It’s your job to ensure that all the component parts of the hospital are in place each day and that each member of staff is working in harmony to deliver high quality healthcare.
In this article we spoke with Gerry Graham, Executive Hospital Director at Elysium’s Farmfield hospital in Surrey, that offers low and medium secure services for male patients who have been detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 (amended 2007) and who benefit from extended treatment and rehabilitation. As a Hospital Director Gerry’s role is pivotal in ensuring the overall success of the hospital, with a goal of delivering high quality healthcare with excellent outcomes for service users and their families. In this article you will learn about the duties of the role, the skillset required and how you could take the next step in your career to become a Hospital Director.
Tell us more about your career journey at Elysium?
My first job at Elysium was the Hospital Director at Wellesley Hospital, a purpose built 73 bed hospital in the Southwest for men and women with mental health problems. At the time it was a fairly new hospital and I spent just over two years establishing it, working with the recruitment team to fill it with staff, build the culture and get it into a stable place. I am proud to have been able to achieve that in a short period of time. Then for the last 2 ½ years I have worked as the Hospital Director at Farmfield Hospital, improving its recruitment and retention and again, making sure the hospital is a place that my staff enjoy working at, where they feel valued and for it to be a great service for our Service Users. Over the last 2 ½ years I think we’ve achieved some really positive results. We’ve just had a recent CQC inspection and though we are still waiting on the rating, they gave some good feedback. They felt staff were engaged with management, and they felt like there was a good atmosphere. So, there is a lot of positives to take out of that. It’s honestly a family here at Farmfield.
What is a ‘day in the life’ of a Hospital Director?
Whether it’s a Psychologist, Social Worker, Nurse or Healthcare Worker, everything comes through to the Hospital Director. So, it is my job to make sure that we are delivering high standards of care required and that those standards are maintained. This is everything from the cleanliness of the hospital to how we detain Service Users and how we treat them. We’ve got dashboards that I look at that tell us about our compliance on a daily basis. So, for instance, physical health checks or consents to treatment, I’ll make sure that all the different departments are meeting all their requirements in relation to that. I am kind of the person in front and centre, so I attend all the contract meetings, I take the bad medicine when we need to take it and come up with improvements.
Its about making sure things are running smoothly and of course, there’s always a challenge. If some significant risks aren’t identified, I’ll work with the team to find the best solutions. So, I think a day in the life as a Hospital Director is just about problem solving. No two days are the same and no two weeks are the same.
What skillset do you need to be a Hospital Director?
I think for me it’s analytical skills that are quite important. It’s better to breakdown a problem and an issue. So, whether that’s statistical or qualitative, you’re able to break it down into its component parts and see what you can do, what you can do to improve it and then convey that message to others. Communication is also key. You will be working with all levels of staff, whether its Nurses, Healthcare Assistants or Housekeepers, so need to be able to communicate with all the teams. You also need to have compassion in order to be a good Hospital Director. It’s not just about being really compassionate with the Service Users but also with your staff. You need to be able to listen to what their needs are and how you can support them. I think it is only through having these qualities that they can see you as an individual and not refer to you as management.
What do you enjoy most about working in healthcare?
I love the people that I get to work with and really enjoy being part of a team. The Service Users who send in feedback are overwhelmingly positive about the staff and they were right to be because our staff are exceptional. So, I think that is the main reason I love the healthcare sector, I get to work with such amazing people and see the change these people make to those who need it most.
What advice would you give to someone who is thinking of applying for a position as a Hospital Director?
I have thirty years of experience in healthcare and have worked in management positions throughout my career, but there aren’t any barriers or a set career pathway to becoming a Hospital Director. We’ve got Hospital Directors who’ve gone through the nursing route or have been a Social Worker and Operation Theatre Technician. There are also Hospital Directors who have a background in administration who had just learned about all the aspects of the hospital and then can satisfy the Registered Manager’s interview. Essentially you need to become a Registered Manager to become a Hospital Director.
When it comes to Care Quality Commission (CQC) there will be a few questions about safeguarding but all of that is trainable. You can get all this information from research and reading, then it’s about understanding the service and the needs of the Service Users and how you operate safely. So, there isn’t a qualification to be a Hospital Director, it’s a lot to do with learning how to manage the services. At Elysium we offer training and learning around safeguarding which is mandatory, and then we offer some advanced safeguarding courses, but it’s just building your experience and that portfolio of knowledge that supports you. You get the job description for an Hospital Director but there is no qualification to be one.
What do you enjoy most about working for Elysium?
Elysium has good values, and everyone lives by these values. They put the services first and I think safety is mission critical. I also believe there is always opportunity for individuals to develop in their career and its brilliant for people starting out their career in healthcare.
If you are inspired by Gerry’s interview and think you have the skillset to become a Hospital Director, click to here to view our careers page and discover one of our opportunities across the UK.
Is a Career as a Hospital Director Right for You?
If you have strong leadership skills, a strategic mindset, and a passion for delivering high-quality healthcare, then becoming a hospital director could be the perfect career move for you. Whether you’re already in a leadership role or currently a nurse aspiring to take the next step, hospital management offers a dynamic and impactful career path.
As an Elysium Hospital Director you’ll develop expertise operations, financial management, and team leadership while driving excellence in our service users’ care. Your career at Elysium as a hospital director will be challenging, rewarding, and vital to the success of the day to day running of the site. If you’re ready to lead and make a lasting impact, we’d love to hear from you.