Advanced Practice Professional- Plastic (PA or RNFA Only)

Position Summary

The Advanced Practice Professional (APP) manages comprehensive and individualized care for plastic surgery patients and their families in various settings. Responsibilities include completing daily rounds, consults, and pre-procedure/surgical evaluations, facilitating patient discharge, and coordinating care with other members of the clinical team.

Core Duties and Responsibilities

• Manages comprehensive and individualized care for plastic surgery patients and their families in the Emergency Room, inpatient phase of hospitalization, peri-operative arena, plastic surgery consultations, and during inpatient hospitalization.
• Completes daily rounds, consults, and/or pre-procedure/surgical evaluations.
• Completes integrated assessments and follows established clinical guidelines and protocols to order additional tests or consults as needed.
• Performs and communicates diagnostic test results following established clinical guidelines and scope of practice.
• Consults and communicates with clinic and hospital staff regarding abnormal findings in patient evaluations.
• Performs comprehensive clinical examinations and documents findings in the medical record.
• Facilitates patient discharge by coordinating appropriate services and tests prior to discharge necessary for outpatient follow-up appointments.
• Develops a comprehensive individualized plan of care for patients, which includes teaching, discharge planning, and necessary referrals to other members of the health care team.
• Demonstrates expertise in caring for patients across the age continuum of their educational experience and certification.
• Identifies unstable or complex patient care situations and facilitates appropriate intervention in the ambulatory and/or hospital setting.
• Recognizes emergency situations and initiates effective emergency care.
• Follows plastic surgery patients in the inpatient setting and acts as a coordinator for discharge disposition, procedures, tests, and post-hospital follow-up in the ambulatory setting.
• Assists in the collection of outcome measures of plastic surgery patients.
• Demonstrates critical thinking and diagnostic reasoning skills in clinical decision making by the identification, evaluation, and management of the individual needs of plastic surgery patients/families.
• Bases decisions made/actions taken on relevant scientific principles, established standards of care, and/or research findings.
• Utilizes teaching/learning theory and appropriate teaching strategies in the provision of education to nursing staff, hospital staff, students, patients, families, and the community.
• Promotes an environment that facilitates learning by responding to appropriate patient/family preferences, priorities, and readiness to learn.
• Updates own knowledge base throughout the year and completes all identified clinical competencies.
• Serves as a resource person for staff caring for the plastic surgery patient.
• Provides educational programs to professional and paraprofessional personnel in area of expertise.
• Participates and initiates inter-disciplinary approaches to patient care, program development, and education.
• Serves as a professional role model.
• Participates and provides leadership for committees and task forces.
• Documents hours and submits billing reports, as appropriate.
• Applies information from Performance Improvement activities, changing practice as necessary, to improve care provided to patients.
• Reviews and interprets plastic surgery data from sources such as patient registries, clinical and financial reports, length of stay, access to care, and cost per case reports and recommends/implements changes as necessary.
• Participates in clinical trials and research studies with the Principal Investigator.
• Assists plastic surgery Faculty, Administrators, and Directors in the collection of outcome measures.

Physical Requirements

Heavy/Hard Work: Work requires strength and/or stamina, lifting, moving, stooping, reaching, positioning of patients, standing, walking, and carrying of patients, materials, and equipment weighing 40+ pounds.

Working Environment

Working closely with others. Protracted or irregular hours. Working around biohazards. Working around infectious diseases. Working with or near the deceased. Working with hands in water. Electrical hazards associated with patient care equipment.

Skills and Abilities

• Proficiency with computers.
• Strong communication skills.