Clinical Nurse - PACU

Navajo Preference Employment Act

In accordance with Navajo Nation and federal law, TCRHCC has implemented an Affirmative Action Plan pursuant to the Navajo Preference in Employment Act.  Pursuant to this Plan and corresponding TCRHCC Policy, applicants who meet the necessary qualifications for this position and (1) are enrolled members of the Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, or San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe will be given preference in hiring and employment for this position, (2) are legally married to enrolled members of the Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, or San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe and meet residency requirements will be given secondary preference, and (3) are enrolled members of other federally-recognized American Indian Tribes will be given tertiary preference.
Overview

POSITION SUMMARY

Responsible for providing nursing care to pre-operative and post-operative patients involving standardized procedures requiring knowledge and consideration of specific patient conditions and treatments.  Provides nursing care in the various clinical areas, which require the full range of professional nursing proficiency from admission through discharge planning.  This includes assessing the needs of patients with a wide variety of illnesses, administering medication, operating special equipment, and responding appropriately to emergency situations.  Follows guidelines that include doctor’s orders, standards of care, nursing policies and procedures manuals, and hospital policies.

Qualifications

NECESSARY QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

Associate or Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing

Licensure/Certification:

• A valid, current, full and unrestricted Professional Nursing License to practice nursing in any state of the United States of America, The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States
• Must have and maintain a current valid certification of the following throughout employment:
  • Basic Life Support (BLS) from the American Heart Association
  • Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) from the American Heart Association
  • Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) from the American Heart Association
  • Trauma Nurse Core Courses (TNCC) within 2 years of hire

Experience:

Minimum of one (1) year of experience within a critical care setting (PACU, ICU, or ED)

Other Skills and Abilities:

A record of satisfactory performance in all prior and current employment as evidenced by positive employment references from previous and current employers.  All employment references must address and indicate success in each one of the following areas:

• Positive working relationships with others
• Possession of high ethical standards and no history of complaints
• Reliable and dependable; reports to work as scheduled without excessive absences
• Knowledge of normal growth, development and life cycle changes. This also includes knowledge of the physical, psychosocial and behavioral characteristics of the group for which care is provided.
• Knowledge of infection control procedures and safety precautions
• Knowledge of disease entities in order to recognize complications and therapeutic interventions required
• Knowledge of assessment practices related to pain management and various treatment modalities of pain relief
• Knowledge of pharmaceuticals in order to recognize the desired effects, side effects and complications on their use, with emphasis on vasopressors and emergency medications titration of these medications
• Possess and employs an ability to communicate with patients and families during time of emotional and physical stress
• Complete Patient Sitter Competency Training (upon hire)
• Successful completion of and positive results from all background and reference checks, including positive employment references from authorized representatives of past and current employers demonstrating to the satisfaction of TCRHCC a record of satisfactory performance and that the applicant can perform the essential functions of the job.
• Successful completion of fingerprint clearance requirements, physical examinations, and other screening indicating that the applicant is qualified to be employed by TCRHCC and demonstrating to the satisfaction of TCRHCC that the applicant can perform the essential functions of the job.
• Submission of all required employment-related documents, application, resumes, references, and other required information free of false, misleading or incomplete information, as determined by TCRHCC.

 

MENTAL AND PHYSICAL EFFORT

The physical and mental demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an   employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Physical:

Work requires prolonged periods of standing; walking; talking or hearing; sitting watching, observing, concentrating on computer monitors and equipment; use of hands to finger, handle, feel; bending, stooping, kneeling, crouching; reaching with hands and arms; and taste or smell. Agility and the ability to lift, pull and bend are required to move patients to and from beds, wheelchairs, stretchers, et cetera, and in moving equipment and medical supplies. Must be able to lift to 50 lbs. frequently through entire shift. Must be able to move, pull/push, lift, maneuver more than 100 lbs. when caring for patients and must be able to use proper body mechanics and lifting equipment when available. Must be able to discern when working with over a hundred pounds when, how, and who to ask for assistance to protect and prevent self-injury. Must have the ability to hear and recognize alarms on equipment; client calls; instructions from physicians/department staff; and, hear overhead pages through loudspeaker. This position requires vision required to see close; distant; colored; peripheral; and depth perception. Must be able to adjust visual focus as needed. to ask for assistance. This position requires the ability to perform repetitive motion actions in both feet; and, hands including prolonged grasping of simple/light action; intermittent grasping of firm/heavy action; and prolonged ability of fine dexterity. 

Mental:

Contacts often require tact and sensitivity as those related to stressful situation such as death, dying, and catastrophic illnesses. Must be able to prioritize and use good judgment. Must be able to coordinate a variety of issues while being frequently interrupted. Must be able to work with the attitude of team building with other staff; collaborate with multiple departments and job positions. Must be willing to assist when able and as needed with other team players. 

Environmental: 

Required to work prolong periods of time in an environment of toxic or caustic chemicals. Will be working occasionally around the following environmental conditions: wet, humid conditions (non-weather); work near moving mechanical parts; toxic or caustic chemicals; outdoor weather condition; extreme cold (non-weather); extreme heat (non-weather); risk of electrical shock; risk of radiation; vibration; and, risk of electric shock. Typical environmental noise level is moderate. As with any area of a Health care setting, must be able to work around and with infectious diseases. 

Responsibilities

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

1. Interviews, assesses, and observes surgery patients during post-operative phase.
2. Initiates treatments, medications, emergency and resuscitative measures based on appropriate utilization of physicians' pre- and post-op orders, standing orders and post anesthesia protocol.
3. Monitors patients having surgical procedure under local anesthesia by assessing cardiopulmonary, respiratory and hemodynamic status and pain levels. Responsible for independent management of patients undergoing local anesthesia.
4. Records observations, nursing interventions, therapeutic measures, and other data relevant to surgical patients.
5. Develops individualized patient care plans or participates in patient care planning which involves the assessment and evaluation of patient needs, a determination of the nursing procedures and practices to be included; and periodic evaluation of plans to ensure that intended results are being achieved.
6. Carries out treatments and emergency or other procedures required; administers medications; observes and documents patient’s conditions, changes and reactions to medications and medical treatment.
7. Utilizes the AORN Standards of Care to develop, implement, evaluate nursing plan of care for the post-operative patient.
8. Maintains professional knowledge and proficiency in nursing through continuing education, staff meetings, workshops and serving on nursing committees.
9. Provides counseling and teaching to patients and families or surrogates on preventive, curative and rehabilitative measures involved in health care.
10. Knowledge of normal growth, development and life cycle changes. This also includes knowledge of the physical, psychosocial and behavioral characteristics of the group for which care is provided.
11. Knowledge of assessment practices related to pain management and various treatment modalities of pain relief.
12. Knowledge of pharmaceuticals in order to recognize the desired effects, side effects and complications on their use.
13. Ability to recognize adverse signs and symptoms which are not always apparent and to react promptly in emergency situations including the implementation of life saving procedures.
14. Knowledge of human behavior during stressful situations in order to exercise emotional control, tact, patience and reliability in carrying out patient care.
15. Responsible for electronic health records data entry pertinent to patient service role.
16. Ensure proper PPE is always worn while on duty including but not limited to, face mask, gloves, gown, isolation gown, NIOSH-approved N95 filtering facepiece respirator or higher, if available), and eye or face shield.
17. Complete all donning and doffing tasks in a safe acceptable method and discard of used PPE accordingly. (see CDC website for most current updates)
18. Complete task training for all routine cleaning and decontamination processes for all surfaces contaminated by a communicable disease to ensure a high level of patient, visitor, employee and external customer satisfaction.
19. Performs other duties as assigned.