Abbie Johnston

Unit Manager (UM) in a high-volume OPD overseeing over 200 staff carries broad clinical, operational, and strategic responsibility.

They lead and coordinate a large multidisciplinary nursing workforce, ensuring safe staffing, effective delegation, and continuous performance management. The UM is accountable for maintaining high standards of patient care by enforcing evidence-based practice, monitoring clinical quality, and ensuring accurate documentation. They oversee daily OPD operations, optimizing patient flow, minimizing waiting times, and ensuring seamless coordination between clinics, diagnostic services, and administrative units.

In addition, the role involves strict compliance with regulatory and accreditation requirements such as Dubai Health Authority and Joint Commission International standards, along with leading quality improvement and patient safety initiatives. The UM manages budgets, staffing resources, and supplies efficiently while supporting organizational goals.

A critical component is patient experience, the UM drives a patient-centered culture by improving service delivery, addressing complaints, enhancing communication, and ensuring a seamless and respectful patient journey. They also focus on staff development by mentoring team leaders, supporting ongoing education, and building a high-performing workforce.

Overall, the UM ensures the OPD delivers efficient, patient-centered care while maintaining operational efficiency and high patient satisfaction in a complex, fast-paced environment.

• Oversee the Out-Patient department with in excess of 25 specialty clinics, leading and managing 120 staff comprising of consultants, senior nursing teams and allied health staff
• Develop patient focused services, identifying future financial, capital & workforce requirements
• Ensure robust and highly effective capacity and workforce planning systems are in place to maximize productivity, monitoring protocols of care provision to deliver efficient care
• Responsible for multiple budgets, Identifying, negotiating and implementing cost improvement and revenue generation opportunities
• Proactively monitor financial and performance targets to ensure they are maintained
• Lead, manage, motivate and develop driving effective employee engagement
• Maintain accreditation and regulatory compliance across Out-Patients & Park Heights
• Review of patient feedback & undertake resolution of complaints.

• Lead, coordinate and identify formulations of evidence-based nursing & midwifery practice and guidelines
• Provide professional expertise, advice & leadership to the senior nursing staff ensuring all nursing & midwifery staff are supported and developed
• Promote evidence based visible, compassionate leadership, providing operational and high-level expert advanced leadership, clinical advice, teaching research, mentorship and support for staff
• Deputize for the Chief Nursing Officer and to cross cover for colleagues as required
• Responsible for staffing strategies to improve retention, promote career development and cut vacancies
• Lead quality and cost-effective service projects & develop programmes that actively contributed to the modernization of patient services
• Monitor & control cost centres working in conjunction with finance department to ensure fiscal responsibility.

• Support the Senior Management in providing high level leadership and organization to ensure all operational processes are developed and implemented within the Clinical Services for Medical Services & Paediatrics
• Provision of professional management support to the departments, organized to ensure processes are in place for efficient & effective care
• Managerial focus for the departments in the development and provision of high-quality patient centered care
• Operational management of services supporting the development and delivery of service strategy.

• Oversee the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the needs of patients in the Out-Patient Department
• Ensure evidence best practice and develop policies & procedures
• Provide leadership to clinical and direct care staff to ensure high standards of care
• Ensure clinical guidelines are implemented and actively participate in clinical audits
• Develop & support implementation of additional services required within the Out-Patient Department.

• Support to the leadership team, providing safe patient & family focused care focused on quality care within a 250 bed facility
• Accountable for supporting leadership in development, implementation and monitoring strategies that deliver high quality care
• Lead clinical & administrative staff to work efficiently & effectively and ensure effective collaborative working practices.

• Provide and co-ordinate direct patient care
• Operational accountability for staff schedules
• Maintain performance improvement and patient service excellence
• Develop, conduct competency assessments for nursing & administrative staff in collaboration with the Director of Clinic Operations.