RN- Medical Surgical Nights

This role provides professional nursing care for patients in an inpatient hospital setting. The incumbent has authority, responsibility, and shift accountability for the delivery of nursing care through the nursing process, applying competent clinical knowledge, independent nursing judgment, and principles of growth and development across the life span to achieve quality patient outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Modifies patient’s plan of care based on data collection and patient’s individual needs
• Uses Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) to provide patient care
• Delegates according to scope of practice
• Verifies the plan of care with interprofessional colleagues, patient, and caregiver(s)
• Provides education based on learning needs and involvement of family
• Promotes effective communication among interprofessional team members & healthcare consumers
• Influences policy to promote safe patient care
• Utilizes appropriate resources in providing care, especially in sensitive situations
• Incorporates processes to enhance the organizational plan of growth and influence
• Participates in developing strategies to promote healthy communities and practice environments
• Recognizes strategies to improve nursing quality
• Provides critical review and/or evaluation of policies, procedures, and guidelines to improve quality of healthcare
• Demonstrates understanding of importance of data collection and utilization
• Disseminates educational findings, experiences, and ideas with peers
• Engages in activities related to nurse sensitive indicators to enhance quality of care
• Participates in continuing professional development
• Identifies ethical situations and seeks assistance of appropriate colleagues
• Identifies ways to maintain and improve ethical environment of the work setting conducive to safe, quality health care
• Adheres to the moral and legal rights of patients
• Engages in opportunities for work/life balance
• Completes annual required education related to specialty accreditation as defined by accreditation standards (for facilities with specialty accreditation requirements)

Requirements

• Current Registered Nurse license issued by the state in which services will be provided or current multi-state Registered Nurse license through the enhanced Nurse Licensure Compact (eNLC)
• Obtain certification in Basic Life Support within 30 days of hire date
• One (1) year of registered nursing experience

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree (BSN) preferred

Skills

• Possesses interpersonal skills to positively and effectively communicate, negotiate, and resolve conflict
• Uses competent clinical practice and critical thinking skills to efficiently deliver patient care with all health care providers while maximizing efficient use of resources
• Ability to be flexible in response to changes in work volume, staff, and scheduling changes
• Ability to work successfully under highly stressful conditions and capable of adapting to varying workloads and work assignments on a constant basis

Physical Requirements

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recommends minimizing the need for employees to manually lift patients, and limit safe patient handling to 35 pounds. All transfers, lifts and re-positioning will be completed utilizing the lift equipment and/or other patient handling aids as indicated by the patient’s profile and appropriate algorithms.

• Heavy/Hard work: requires strength and/or stamina, lifting, moving, stooping, reaching, standing, walking, and carrying of materials and equipment weighing 40+ lbs
• Visual acuity must be within normal range
• Hearing within normal range required (e.g., to assess breath sounds, bowel sounds, apical pulse, monitors)

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Working Environment

• Working protracted or irregular hours
• Working around biohazards
• Working around infectious diseases
• Working with or near the deceased
• Working with hands in water
• Working with electrical hazards associated with patient care equipment

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Career Advancement

The CAPE program is a system-wide clinical advancement program (clinical ladder) to enhance professional development, provide a reward system for quality clinical performance, promote quality nursing, and improve job satisfaction for inpatient direct care nurses. Nurses approved for levels 3–6 must complete and submit five competencies annually to maintain their level.

• Level 1: No experience required. All graduate nurses with less than 12 months of experience enter at Level 1 with a diploma, ADN, BSN, or higher.
• Level 2: Meets requirements for previous level; one year of experience.
• Level 3: Meets requirements for previous levels; two years of experience plus one specialty certification (preferred but not required). Required competencies include regularly serving as charge nurse and/or precepting new staff or nursing students.
• Level 4: Available to those with a BSN or higher, or nurses with ADN/diploma with 5 years of experience; one specialty certification required. Required competencies include regularly serving as charge nurse and/or precepting, and participation in QI and/or shared governance at the unit level.
• Level 5: Available to those with an MSN or higher with 4 years of experience, or BSN with 4 years of experience and a health-related Master’s degree, or BSN with 5 years of experience; one specialty certification required. Required competencies include regularly serving as charge nurse and/or precepting, and participation in QI and shared governance at the organization level.
• Level 6: Available to those with an MSN or higher degree with 7+ years of experience (consideration given to other health-related advanced degrees assisting direct patient care); one specialty certification required. Required competencies include regularly serving as charge nurse and/or precepting, and participation in QI and shared governance at the system level.

Schedule

Night shift, 7:00 p.m.–7:00 a.m., every other weekend with potential for holidays. Scheduled weekly hours: 36. Position is non-exempt.

Employer: GMH Grant Memorial Hospital (Cost Center 13, GMH Medical Surgical 1), 117 Hospital Drive, Petersburg, West Virginia.