A director of nursing (DON) is a registered nurse who supervises the care of all the patients at a health care facility.[1] The director of nursing has special training beyond the training of a staff nurse for the position that pertains to health care management, and in some places, a director of nursing must hold a special license in order to be employed in that capacity.
The director of nursing is one of up to seven directors at a typical health care facility. The other are the directors of food (or dietary) services, social work, activities, business management, housekeeping/laundry, and maintenance.[2] In most facilities, the director of nursing is only second to the facility's administrator, and will fill in in the administrator's absence