Job Summary:
Creates an environment where front line nurses and ancillary staff provide whole person care that is safe, complication free, and optimizes functional independence for each patient. Maintains a highly-visible presence on the unit. Collaborates closely with staff, charge nurses, physicians, and other department leaders to ensure that clinical operations are efficient and effective, and achieve high patient/family/staff satisfaction. Supervises and directs the activities of various levels of assigned nursing and ancillary personnel utilizing both professional and supervisory discretion and independent judgment.Schedules, leads, and coordinates the daily activities of a defined unit on an assigned shift. Assists leadership in accomplishing unit and organizational goals.
Job Requirements:
Education and Work Experience:
- Bachelor's Degree in nursing or equivalent combination of education/related experience: Required
- Master's Degree: Preferred
- Five years' technical experience: Preferred
- One year's leadership experience: Preferred
- Two years' experience of acute care nursing in hospital setting: Preferred
Licenses/Certifications:
- Registered Nurse (RN) licensure in the state of practice: Required
- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certification or Basic Life Support (BLS) certification from approved vendor per AH policy: Preferred
- National specialty certification in area of expertise or in nursing administration: Preferred
Facility Specific License/Certifications:
- Basic Life Support (BLS) certification from approved vendor per AH policy: Required
Essential Functions:
- Builds a high performing clinical work team by recruiting and retaining skilled professional staff. Builds a strong infrastructure with designated charge nurses and unit champions. Engages staff in developing action plans for needed change to create safe, desired outcomes. Completes periodic evaluations of personnel supervised. Coaches and disciplines personnel when deems appropriate. Monitors attendance. Works closely with staff, unit champions, and the clinical educator to identify and meet educational needs. Uses consistent exercise of discretion and judgment.
- Sets and strives to achieve goals for patient safety, quality of care and compliance with regulatory requirements. Creates a culture of open communication. Develops strategies to improve patient/family, and physician satisfaction. Establishes standards of care for professional nursing practice that staff are held accountable to. Monitors critical processes and outcomes of care through audits, analysis of data, and complaints or incident reports. Exercises discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance, evaluating and comparing possible courses-of-action, and making decisions/recommendations after considering the various possibilities.
- Conducts daily rounds with physicians and other staff and actively communicates, as needed, to coordinate appropriate care for patients and families. Directs/monitors personnel in the performance of patient care activities in order to ensure adequate patient care and quality of work. Investigates and resolves patient care and operational issues, as needed. Initiates and coordinates individual and team conferences with health team members, patients, and/or families to initiate and revise care plans for optimal, individualized patient care as per care setting.
- Assesses the personnel requirements of the unit on a daily basis and requests additional personnel when determines they are necessary. Authorizes and assigns overtime to personnel when independently determines this to be appropriate. Completes monthly unit staff schedule on time, accurately, and in collaboration with staff members and management with minimal incidents of absence or unbalanced/short staffing events.
- Facilitates throughput through early discharge of patients, pull-ahead beds, and timely admission/transfer of patients and forecasting admission. Works with facility services to assure that the department and equipment is maintained to be safe and operational. Prevents complications of care including nosocomial infections. Conducts emergency preparedness reviews.
- Performs other job-related duties as assigned.
