VP Patient Care Services

CHI St. Alexius Health Dickinson, part of CommonSpirit Heath, a national nonprofit health system based in Englewood, Colorado. The faith-based system operates in 18 states and includes 103 hospitals. Additional services offered within the system are: long-term care, assisted and residential living communities, community health services organizations, home health agencies, and numerous outpatient facilities.

CHI St. Alexius Health Dickinson is a 25-bed Critical Access Hospital with a Level IV Trauma designation and a modern, full-service medical campus. The facility provides a wide range of inpatient, outpatient, and emergency services and is supported by the resources and mission of CommonSpirit Health. With a focus on quality, safety, and compassionate patient care, the hospital plays a central role in meeting the health needs of the region. Leaders here work closely with clinical teams, local providers, and the community to advance rural health and deliver exceptional care close to home.

Dickinson is a friendly, fast-growing community in western North Dakota, known as the gateway to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. With about 25,000 residents, it offers a balance of small-town comfort and modern amenities, including a revitalized downtown, strong school systems, family-friendly neighborhoods, and abundant outdoor recreation. The region is known for its wide-open landscapes, low cost of living, and a welcoming, community-oriented culture—an ideal setting for leaders who value meaningful impact and a strong quality of life.

CHI St. Alexius Health – Dickinson is seeking an experienced, mission-driven nursing executive to serve as our Vice President, Patient Care Services, functioning as the hospital’s Chief Nursing Officer (CNO). This leader provides strategic direction, operational oversight, and clinical excellence across all nursing and patient care services, ensuring alignment with the mission, vision, and values of CommonSpirit Health.

As a key executive at a critical access hospital, the VP Patient Care Services advances quality, safety, patient experience, regulatory readiness, financial stewardship, and workforce engagement. The role requires a visible, hands-on leader who can effectively partner across the organization, the community, and the broader CommonSpirit system to elevate care and strengthen overall performance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide executive oversight of nursing operations, clinical leadership, and patient care delivery.

• Lead initiatives that improve quality, safety, patient experience, and clinical outcomes.

• Ensure full compliance with regulatory, licensure, and accreditation standards (CMS, Joint Commission, ND Board of Nursing).

• Partner with nursing and clinical leaders to review cost, quality, safety, utilization, and value metrics and drive performance improvements.

• Lead organizational change using CommonSpirit’s change models and strategic priorities.

• Oversee budget development, productivity, staffing models, and allocation of resources to balance patient needs with operational sustainability.

• Build and support a strong nursing leadership team through mentoring, coaching, and succession planning.

• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and ethical leadership.

• Develop and maintain effective relationships with medical staff, system leaders, community partners, and other hospital departments.

• Maintain clinical exposure and respond to staffing or work-flow needs as required, consistent with critical access hospital leadership expectations.

Education:

• Master’s degree or post-graduate nursing or healthcare-related degree required.

Experience:

• Minimum of 7 years of related clinical experience or 5 years of progressive leadership experience.

• Critical Access Hospital leadership experience preferred.

• Quality, safety and patient experience 
• Clinical strategy and operations experience 

Licensure/Certifications:

• Active Registered Nurse (RN) license in North Dakota (Compact accepted) required at hire.

• Basic Life Support (BLS) certification required at hire.