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Required Skills

• CLINICAL JUDGEMENT – Clinical reasoning, which includes decision-making, critical thinking, and a global grasp of the situation, coupled with nursing skills acquired through a process of integrating formal and informal experiential knowledge and evidence-based guidelines.
• Demonstrates the ability to assess the full scope of patient needs, using the nursing process on a continuous basis.
• Utilizes past nursing experience to anticipate problems while seeking out multi-disciplinary collaboration with comfort, when necessary.
• Recognizes patterns and trends that may predict the direction of illness.
• CARING PRACTICES:  Nursing activity that create a compassionate, supportive, and therapeutic environment for patients/families and staff.  Working on another’s behalf and representing the concerns of the patient/family and nursing staff; serving as a moral agent in identifying and helping to resolve ethical and clinical concerns within and outside the clinical setting.
• Promotes safety throughout patient’s and family’s transitions along the healthcare continuum.
• Actively anticipates and monitors patient and family changes, responds appropriately.
• Effectively resolves patient complaints.
• Engages all patients in a personalized, compassionate manner.
• COLLABORATION/SYSTEMS THINKING – Working with others (e.g., patients, families, healthcare providers) in a way that promotes/encourages each person’s contribution toward achieving optimal/realistic patient/family goals.  Involves intra-and inter- disciplinary work with colleagues and community.  Body of knowledge and tools that allow the nurse to manage whatever Environmental and system resources exist for the patient/family and staff, within or across healthcare and non-healthcare systems.
• Consults and coordinates with team members to assess, plan, implement and evaluate patient care plans.
• Actively utilizes evidence-based practice and customer service data to improve caring practices.
• Effectively plans and communicates patient care plans.
• Facilitates active involvement of others in team meetings regarding patient care and/or practice issues.
• Seeks out opportunities to be taught, coached, and mentored.
• Recruits diverse resources when appropriate to optimize patient outcomes.
• Serves as a resource to department and patient/family.
• RESPONSE TO DIVERSITY – The sensitivity to recognize, appreciate and incorporate differences into the provision of care.  Differences may include, but are not limited to, cultural differences, personalities, spiritual beliefs, gender, race, ethnicity, lifestyle, socioeconomic status, age, and values.
• Integrates cultural differences into patient/family care; incorporates appropriate alternative therapies.
• Tailors healthcare culture to meet the diverse needs and strengths of each patient/family. 
• FACILITATION OF LEARNING – The ability to facilitate learning for patients/families, nursing staff, other members of the healthcare team, and community.  Include both formal and informal facilitation of learning.
• Develops and modifies patient/family education programs throughout delivery of care, collaborating and incorporating all healthcare providers’ and educational plans.
• Provides individualized care.
• Evaluates patient’s understanding by observing behavior changes throughout plan of care.
• Sets patient-driven goals for education.
• Work toward achieving Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.
• CLINICAL INQUIRY (INNOVATOR/EVALUATOR) – The ongoing process of questioning and evaluating practice and providing informed practice.  Creating practice changes through research utilization and experimental learning.
• Adapts standards of care to serve particular patient populations.
• Seeks out advice to improve patient care.
• Evaluates current practices based on patient responses, analysis of literature, research, and education.
• Incorporates evidence based practice into care delivery.
• Actively pursues continuing educational opportunities.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Skills

Key Responsibilities:

• Deliver urgent and critical care following emergency protocols and best practices.
• Perform rapid patient assessments, stabilize conditions and manage acute medical issues.
• Ensure accurate documentation of treatments, medications and patient responses.
• Maintain compliance with hospital policies, regulatory standards and safety guidelines.
• Coordinate with team members during trauma activations and resuscitation efforts.
• Engage in ongoing training, certification and professional development programs.

Location:

This position is based at Decatur Memorial Hospital in Decatur, IL, part of Memorial Health’s network of care.

Recruiter:

Jessica Brown, Senior Talent Acquisition Partner

brown.jessica@mhsil.com 

Required Skills

1. Leadership

• Personal and professional growth
• Demonstrates responsibility for own personal and professional growth as reflected in ongoing education and projects.
• Seeks opportunities to improve efficiency and effectiveness of individual and unit performance.
• Empowers self and staff to enhance quality patient outcomes as reflected in customer satisfaction and quality indicators.
• Acts as a role model of professional behaviors and teamwork within the department.
• Fosters an environment which focuses on values, autonomy and accountability where staff and management see each other as partners in the decision making process. Creates and supports programs/initiatives that promote retention and satisfaction of staff.
• Promotes and collaborates with staff to provide a climate which demonstrates appreciation and recognition of achievements

1. Clinical knowledge

• Maintains basic knowledge/skills needed to provide perioperative patient care services and performs patient care as needed to keep clinical knowledge current.
• Maintains a sound knowledge-base of current trends and developments in perioperative nursing in order to lead changes to improve patient care delivery

1. Communication skills

• Encourages and facilitates a work climate conducive to open, honest communication and incorporates an effective feedback mechanism.
• Demonstrates a communication style which is supportive, receptive and non-threatening, thus providing an environment that allows for open immediate expression of ideas and problem solving
• Speaks openly and freely across organizational lines to obtain and disseminate necessary information for effective department performance

1. Coordination of Orientation/Education for Surgery Department

• Coordinates orientation programs for new employees within the Surgery Department.
• Prepares the orientation content and schedules and discusses with appropriate Nurse Manager, Specialty Resource Person, and preceptors.
• Collaborates with Nurse Manager, Specialty Resource Person, and preceptors for assistance as indicated.
• Plans with the learner to determine his/her knowledge background and encourages attendance at all appropriate classes.
• Maintains records and reports of orientation programs.
• Evaluates the achievement of program goals/skill requirements by each orientee in accordance with specified criteria and stated objectives.
• Develops process for ongoing evaluation and revision of orientation programs.
• Coordinates preceptor program and provides ongoing development opportunities to enable preceptors to maintain skills.
• Is accountable for performance monitoring and feedback for orientees.
• Acts as a primary resource for orientees assisting with conflict resolution and implementing solutions to problems.

• Identifies ongoing learning needs of the staff and assumes a leadership role in planning inservice programs for the department to ensure ongoing staff competency/skills validation.
• Supports a climate conducive to learning and growth.
• Provides leadership for the development of ongoing educational programs for staff and management personnel.
• Ensures a process is in place to appropriately document staff competencies.
• Conducts learning needs assessments and uses the results to plan or revise learning activities.
• Promotes effective working relationships to allow exchange of information to assist in identifying and meeting learning needs.
• Provides assistance and supervision to clinical staff as they assist in providing components of educational program.
• Supervises staff scheduling to assure clinical experiences meet individual training needs
• Encourages staff to identify personal and professional growth needs and facilitates appropriate opportunities for that growth
• Interacts with members of other hospital departments is planning and implementing educational programs.

• Provides educational assistance to other departments as appropriate.

1. Embodies the Memorial Health System Performance Excellence Standards of Safety, Courtesy, Quality, and Efficiency that support our mission, vision and values:

• SAFETY: Prevent Harm – I put safety first in everything I do.  I take action to ensure the safety of others.
• COURTESY: Serve Others – I treat others with dignity and respect.  I project a professional image and positive attitude.
• QUALITY: Improve Outcomes – I continually advance my knowledge, skills and performance.  I work with others to achieve superior results.
• EFFICIENCY: Reduce Waste – I use time and resources wisely.  I prevent defects and delays.

1. Performs other related work as required or requested.

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the major duties and responsibilities performed by incumbents of this job.  Incumbents may be requested to perform tasks other than those specifically presented in this description.

Required Skills

Essential Functions and Job Duties

• Performs assessment (chest auscultation, need for therapy, ABG results) on assigned patients as ordered by a physician; demonstrates accurate assessment skills in relation to age of patient.

• Establishes priorities and plan of care based on assessment.

• Provides care according to respiratory standards of practice.

• Documents tolerance to treatments and patient variances; revises plan of care to achieve optimal patient outcomes.

• Completes all annual educational requirements; demonstrates competency in respiratory areas, including assessment, 02 administration, patient ventilators, treatment, medications, etc.

• Documents care; completes CQI projects.

• Participates in continuing education and development of department staff by providing inservices and acting as a resource to staff in a specific specialty area of respiratory care (i.e. ventilator management)

• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Skills

• Performs age appropriate assessments.
• Analyzes data to identify nursing problems.
• Provides direct patient care, develops individualized plan of care in partnership with patients & families. Evaluates patient progress toward attainment of goals, revising plan of care when indicated.
• Delegates patient care tasks to LPNs and unlicensed assistive personnel based on job description and patient needs.
• Appropriately supervises performance of LPNs and unlicensed assistive personnel.
• Builds teamwork when supervising and delegating to others.
• Documents patient care according to policies and procedures.
• Ensures appropriate implementation of physician’s orders

Required Skills

• Performs age appropriate assessments.
• Analyzes data to identify nursing problems.
• Provides direct patient care, develops individualized plan of care in partnership with patients & families. Evaluates patient progress toward attainment of goals, revising plan of care when indicated.
• Delegates patient care tasks to LPNs and unlicensed assistive personnel based on job description and patient needs.
• Appropriately supervises performance of LPNs and unlicensed assistive personnel.
• Builds teamwork when supervising and delegating to others.
• Documents patient care according to policies and procedures.
• Ensures appropriate implementation of physician’s orders

Required Skills

Responsibility for delegation, supervision and provision of the nursing care of a designated group of patients through utilization of the nursing process.  Provides age-appropriate care.  Participates in research when appropriate and incorporates research findings into evidence-based clinical practice.  Contributes to quality improvement processes.  Adheres to MHS Mission, Vision, and Values, the MHS Nursing Division Mission, Vision and Philosophy, the ANA Code of Ethics and the Illinois Nursing Act. 

Recruiter:

Sandy Dunn, Senior Talent Acquisition Partner

Dunn.Sandy@mhsil.com 

Required Skills

1. Maintains appropriate documentation
   • Assesses and evaluates patients’ ability to provide self care; develops discharge plan and goals of care with patient and involved caregivers.
   • Assists with making referrals to related agencies taking into consideration freedom of choice.
   • Provides information to social service/discharge planners to facilitate discharge planning process.
   • Participates in multidisciplinary rounding and care conferences with other departments.
   • Serves as a resource person to physicians and hospital staff in the appropriate use of health care resources.
   • Serves as a liaison with nursing and medical staff and community agencies to facilitate problem solving and to coordinate services.
2. Assesses and develops plan early upon admission and revises as needed depending on needs of the patient.
3. Accepts on-call as scheduled and responds as needed.
4. Takes responsibility for upgrading professional skills and knowledge.
5. Prepares and completes reports; participates in special projects.
6. Demonstrates clinical competency by completing BLS CPR assigned by Education and ACMA Compass training modules for new employees assigned by Director of Case Management.
7. Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Skills

1. Care Coordination:

• Leads efforts with the interdisciplinary care team to develop, implement, and evaluate an individualized plan of care to achieve optimal patient outcomes for each assigned patient.

• Ensures that patient safety risks are assessed, and prevention measures are implemented and communicated to all members of the interdisciplinary care team.

• Routinely reviews the plan of care with the patient and family to assist them in understanding goals of care and movement toward these goals.

• Assures timely communication of patient’s response to care, clinical data, and diagnostic test results to appropriate physicians, care team members, and patient/family.

• Makes referrals to other disciplines as necessary to meet patient care needs (social work, therapy, etc.).

• Conducts daily “huddles” with care team to ensure plan of care is being implemented and progress toward established goals is being achieved.

• Provides timely communication of changes in the plan of care to all care team members and patient/family.

• Leads patient/family care conferences on appropriate patients based on LOS and complexity of care.
• Collaborates with physicians and Utilization Management staff to ensure resource utilization remains within covered benefits
• Monitors each patient’s treatment plan for testing/treatment not related to current hospitalization and interfaces with physician to identify alternatives to address needs.

1. Discharge Planning:

• Writes plan for post-discharge services and collaborates with Discharge Specialist to ensure services are scheduled with appropriate entities, which could include home health, home infusion, hospice care, durable medical equipment, medical supplies, and outpatient services.

• Ensures appropriate discharge education is provided to patient/family/caregiver.

• Interacts with patient/family/caregiver to ensure discharge plan meets patient needs.

• Collaborates with Discharge Specialist to update patient/family and interdisciplinary care team of changes in the discharge plan.

1. Quality Management:

• Identifies problems and/or opportunities for improvement in clinical outcomes, patient safety, and/or resource utilization.

• Leads efforts to resolve ongoing patient and/or systems problems.

• Participates in department goal setting, program development, clinical and system process improvement, and achievement of desired department outcomes.

• Implements strategies to reduce resource utilization and length of stay for assigned patients.

1. Leadership:

• Participates in local and national professional nursing organizations.

• Identifies areas for professional growth and demonstrates ongoing activities necessary to meet professional goals and changing needs of organization.

• Promotes implementation of evidence-based nursing practice.

Required Skills

1. Direct Clinical Services
   • Conduct assessments of patient, including completion of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) depression scale and General Anxiety Screening (GAD-7).
   • Develop initial comprehensive assessment data including patient presenting problems, mental status, relevant psychiatric, medical and developmental histories to make decisions regarding diagnosis (per DSM-V), treatment objectives and ongoing treatment plans and/or to provide information and make appropriate referrals to other treatment resources in the community.
   • Provide 25 hours of billable services per week to patients.
   • Consult with patient and primary care provider about treatment options and preferences; coordinate initiation of treatment plan.
   • Monitor patient closely for changes in severity of symptoms and medication side effects. Educate patients about medication and side effects as needed. Encourage treatment adherence.
   • Use behavioral activation techniques with patient as an adjunct to other treatments.
   • Provide evidence-based, brief structured psychotherapy (PST-PC).
   • Participate in regular caseload supervision with treatment team, focusing on patients improving adequately (e.g., less than 50% reduction in symptoms after 8-12 weeks in treatment).
   • Coordinate communication between patient and primary care physician and consulting psychiatrist; provide recommendations for change in treatment plan.
   • Document all encounters according to policies and procedures.
   • Implement crisis or pre-crisis intervention procedures with potentially suicidal, homicidal, or severely disabled patients. Where appropriate referrals will be made to consulting psychiatrists or inpatient psychiatric facilities to prevent further destabilization.
   • Interview collateral contacts, previous and current treatment professionals, and significant others, to further establish a database for assessment and ongoing treatment plan as needed.
   • Clarify priority problems, goals for change, and session limits according to agency policy to assist patients in developing appropriate expectations for treatment in relationship to the agency. Use a variety of psychotherapeutic treatment approaches and interventions to change targeted behaviors and stabilize adaptive behaviors with individuals, couples and families.
   • Manage the termination process and discharge planning to enhance patients’ abilities to retain treatment changes and/or use other available support services.
   • May organize, plan and participate in therapy groups for patients and/or their families, as assigned.

1. Patient Information System
   • Establish appropriate professional files, including: comprehensive assessments, progress notes, treatment objectives and plans, previous treatment records, patients’ consent to current treatment and for exchange of information.
   • Complete required administrative forms. Collect necessary information for billing and fee collection for both community mental health and private pay patients.
   • Provide necessary patient information to other agencies or health care providers to coordinate services to identified patients.
   • May prepare necessary documents/reports for DCFS as needed.

1. Training Activities/Professional Growth
   • Supervisor and employee mutually identify professional goals that will enhance job related skills.
   • Participate in ongoing agency meetings, committees and special projects to enhance professional expertise.
   • Complete mandatory education requirements by specified deadlines.
   • Participate in required staff meetings and in-services to keep abreast of agency policy and administrative procedures, meet requirements for continuing education, and upgrade professional knowledge.

1. Consultation/Networking
   • Engage in appropriate team work functions (such as mutual support, clarification of office responsibilities and procedures) according to best professional judgment and agency policy to provide a professional working environment and effective service delivery.
   • Develop cooperative relationships outside the agency with family, physicians, public officials or interested agencies to provide for the development of mental health services in the community.

1. Embodies the Memorial Health System Performance Excellence Standards of Safety, Courtesy, Quality, and Efficiency that support our mission, vision and values:

• SAFETY: Prevent Harm – I put safety first in everything I do.  I take action to ensure the safety of others.
• COURTESY: Serve Others – I treat others with dignity and respect.  I project a professional image and positive attitude.
• QUALITY: Improve Outcomes – I continually advance my knowledge, skills and performance.  I work with others to achieve superior results.
• EFFICIENCY: Reduce Waste – I use time and resources wisely.  I prevent defects and delays.

1. Job Relationships

• • Demonstrate through initiative and apparent effort involvement in clinical supervision.
  • Communicate directly with supervisor for clarification of administrative policy, program evaluation to promote a professional working environment and effective service delivery system.
  • Adhere to MHS/MBH Behavioral Standards

1. Other Job Responsibilities

• • Ability to accommodate evening/weekend hours.
  • Perform other duties as required by agency needs.

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the major duties and responsibilities performed by incumbents of this job.  Incumbents may be requested to perform tasks other than those specifically presented in this description.