WOCN RN - Ostomy

Position Summary

To be fully engaged in providing Quality/No Harm, Customer Service and Stewardship by providing the full scope of WOC nursing practice, including education, counseling, research, and administration to promote safe and effective patient-centered care with improved outcomes, appropriate resource utilization, and supported discharge planning to ensure continuity of care for individuals with:

• Altered skin integrity and other wound care issues.
• Diversion of the urinary and /or gastrointestinal tract.
• Incontinence of the bowel and/or bladder.

Primary Accountabilities

• Provides expert consultation to providers and staff for the assessment and management of patients with wounds, ostomies, or continence related issues, including recommendations for appropriate ostomy appliance needs, specialty surfaces, dressings, and offloading/positioning devices.
• Assists nursing in utilization of case-finding strategies (e.g., unit rounds, electronic reports, chart reviews) to identify patients at risk for wounds, ostomies, or continence issues.
• Identifies educational needs of the patient/significant other, clinical staff, and the community. Assists in the development and implementation of formal and informal educational offerings.
• Supports the orientation and precepting of undergraduate and graduate nursing students, clinical associates, and RNs seeking WOC certification.
• Contributes to the development, implementation, and evaluation of standards of care, policies/procedures, and clinical pathways related to patients with wounds, ostomies, fistulas, skin alterations, and incontinence.
• Participates on relevant committees, such as Risk Management, Clinical Best Practice, Product Standards, etc. and assumes leadership roles, per needs of specific facility.
• Influences and supports research and quality improvement initiatives to enhance practice and outcomes (e.g., performance improvement projects, product evaluations), actively monitoring and analyzing quality metrics, per needs of specific facility.
• Serves as community resource for related support groups as needed to promote continuity of care after discharge from the hospital.
• Contributes to a positive patient experience as demonstrated by patient satisfaction and Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPs) scores, and through active participation in initiatives such as the No Pass Zone by responding promptly to call lights and bed exit alarms.
• Ensures accurate and timely documentation of WOC assessments, interventions, and outcomes in the electronic health record, in accordance with hospital policy and regulatory standards.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Nursing (BSN).
• Work Experience: Two (2) years' experience as an RN.
• Licensure: Registered Nurse (RN) licensure in the State of Florida or endorsement.
• Certification:
  • American Heart Association Basic Life Support (AHA BLS) Healthcare Provider Completion Card prior to start date and maintained.
  • Board Certifications in Wound, Ostomy, and Continence by the WOC Nursing Certification Board prior to start date and maintained.
• Skills/Knowledge/Abilities: Demonstrates advanced nursing knowledge and practice for patients with ostomies, draining wounds, fistulas, alterations of skin integrity and incontinence, including conservative sharp debridement.

Physical Requirements

• Physically agile; may require walking, standing running, bending, stooping, kneeling, climbing or crouching frequently.
• Medium work that may include lifting or moving objects up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, with or without assistance.
• May require moving self in different positions to accomplish tasks in various environments including tight and confined spaces, including reaching out and above shoulders or overhead.
• May lift, turn, pull, push, or ambulate people and/or equipment with or without assistance up to 90% of the assigned shift.
• May be exposed to inside and outside environments with varied temperatures, air quality, lighting, and/or low to loud noise.
• May require working with biohazards such as blood/body fluids and airborne particles following OSHA and CDC Guidelines.
• Communicating with others to exchange information.
• Visual acuity and hand-eye coordination to perform tasks.
• Workspace may vary from open to confined; on site or remote.
• May require travel to various facilities within and beyond county perimeter; may require use of personal vehicle.

Schedule

• Full-Time
• Shift Times: variable

Pay

• Paygrade: PG-PG-41