Job Description

The Group Manager – Perioperative Services is responsible for leading, coordinating, and optimizing perioperative and procedural service performance across multiple facilities, with a strong emphasis on infection prevention, patient safety, and regulatory compliance. The role bridges clinical service oversight, operational efficiency, and quality improvement, providing guidance to facility-level leaders and multidisciplinary teams.

This position requires a senior healthcare professional with strong administrative, analytical, and leadership capabilities, able to manage complex service lines, improve throughput and utilization, reduce variation, and drive measurable improvements in efficiency, safety, and patient outcomes across procedural services.

Responsibilities

The post holder will:

Operational Leadership:

• Provide group-level oversight of Operating Theatres, Endoscopy, Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, CSSD, and their associated Infection Prevention & Control practices across all facilities.
• Ensure perioperative and procedural workflows are aligned with IPC standards, aseptic techniques, and reprocessing requirements.
• Drive optimal utilization of procedural capacity through effective scheduling, case mix optimization, and reduction of delays and cancellations, without compromising infection control standards.
• Identify operational and IPC-related gaps and support facilities in implementing corrective actions to improve efficiency, safety, and compliance.Strategic Alignment & Initiative Implementation:
• Support group-wide strategic initiatives related to procedural services performance, patient safety, and infection prevention.
• Collaborate with executive leadership, IPC leadership, and clinical governance teams to translate strategic objectives into operational and IPC-aligned action plans.Professional Development & Staff Management:
• Develop and implement nursing training, competency, and career progression programs.
• Provide mentorship, coaching, and performance management for nursing leaders and teams.Scheduling, Utilization & Resource Optimization
• Oversee standardized scheduling principles that support safe patient flow, adequate turnaround times, and appropriate environmental cleaning and decontamination intervals.
• Monitor key KPIs including OT utilization, on-time starts, turnover time, delays, cancellations, and IPC-related indicators impacting procedural flow.
• Lead lean consumable management practices in collaboration with CSSD, IPC, supply chain, and clinical teams to minimize waste, ensure sterility assurance, and maintain patient safety.Quality & Compliance:
• Ensure perioperative and procedural services comply with clinical standards, infection prevention policies, regulatory requirements, and accreditation standards across all facilities.
• Work in close partnership with Infection Prevention & Control teams to ensure compliance with:
  • Aseptic and sterile practices
  • Instrument reprocessing and sterilization standards
  • Environmental cleaning and ventilation requirements
  • Surveillance and response to procedure-related infections
• Monitor service-level KPIs, audit findings, infection surveillance data, and incident trends, recommending and supporting corrective and preventive actions.Change Management:
• Provide leadership, mentorship, and performance guidance to perioperative, procedural, CSSD, and IPC-linked leaders at facility level.
• Promote strong multidisciplinary collaboration between surgeons, anesthesiology, nursing, CSSD, IPC, supply chain, biomedical, and support services.
• Lead change initiatives aimed at improving service integration, efficiency, infection control compliance, and staff engagement across procedural services.
• Ensure effective communication, adoption, and sustainability of operational and IPC-related improvement initiatives.

Qualifications

Education and Certification: 

• Advanced qualification in Healthcare Management, Nursing Administration, Quality, or a related healthcare discipline, with a strong focus on clinical operations, service optimization, and administrative leadership preferred.

Knowledge and Skills

• Strong administrative, organizational, and service performance management skills.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities with a focus on measurable outcomes, patient safety, and compliance.

Experience

• Strong exposure to administrative governance processes, including policy development, performance review cycles, audit follow-up, and executive reporting related to procedural services.
• Experience using data-driven decision-making, including interpretation of operational dashboards, utilization reports, cost data, infection control indicators, and performance metrics to drive corrective actions.
• Demonstrated capability in mapping and redesigning patient journeys across perioperative and procedural pathways, applying lean methodologies to eliminate non-value-added steps, reduce waiting times, and improve patient flow and experience.
• Proven track record in critically reviewing and optimizing scheduling systems, including block utilization, session allocation, turnover times, cancellation analysis, and capacity balancing across multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience working within the UAE healthcare system, with familiarity with local regulatory, accreditation, and licensing requirements is preferred