Clinical Nurse Specialist

About the role

The Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) plays a crucial role in facilitating a multi-disciplinary and collaborative approach in the provision of healthcare within a specialty area. They are responsible for monitoring and sustaining excellence in the provision of nursing care, supporting the development of clinical standards of practice, and providing education and support to staff members.

Responsibilities

• Identifies high-risk patients and supports the management of complex care situations.
• Coordinates strategies across the continuum of care to promote optimal outcomes.
• Promotes an exceptional patient and family experience by partnering with leaders and teams to strengthen communication, responsiveness, service recovery, and culturally respectful, patient-centered care.
• Rounds in clinical areas, responds to requests from nursing staff and other care team members, synthesizes complex clinical information, and provides consultation, bedside coaching, and support for patient/family education, discharge planning, disease management, and continuity of care.
• Serves as a clinical resource, mentor, teacher, coach, and change agent for nursing staff by facilitating critical thinking, reinforcing clinical standards, identifying knowledge and competency gaps, supporting staff education and orientation, and promoting evidence-based nursing practice and nurse-sensitive outcomes.
• Participates in data collection, interpretation, and evaluation of quality and outcome metrics; supports development and revision of standards of care, care pathways, policies, procedures, and protocols based on evidence; and contributes to practice improvement, safety initiatives, regulatory readiness, and research/evidence translation activities.
• Collaborates with nursing leaders and multidisciplinary partners to identify barriers and opportunities in clinical practice, support implementation of cost-effective and efficient models of care, improve coordination of services, reduce avoidable readmissions, and advance system-level change that improves patient, family, population, and organizational outcomes.
• Considers fiscal and budgetary implications in decision-making and evaluates products, services, and technologies for appropriateness and cost/benefit.
• Participates and supports research.

Qualifications

• Masters of Science in Nursing (MS/MSN) in a degree program that adheres to National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialist standards for education preparation.
• Minimum 5+ years of clinical nursing experience.
• Active CNS certification.
• Current Alaska Advance Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) license.
• Current Alaska Registered Nurse (RN) license.
• Basic Life Support (BLS) per organizational policy.

Skills

• Maintains role competencies through formal graduate education and professional development.
• Communicates effectively within the specialty department and across the organization.
• Practices with a high degree of professionalism and ethical accountability.
• Participates in hospital-wide performance improvement and shared governance/professional governance activities.
• Participates and supports research.

Benefits

• Comprehensive Benefits Package including Medical Insurance, Cost-Share Dental and Vision Insurances, Discounted Pet Insurance, Retirement Contributions, and more.