Hospice Registered Nurse

JOB DESCRIPTION SUMMARY

The position will be responsible for oversight and coordination of patient care for assigned hospice patients and for providing skilled palliative care to hospice patients. Applicants should have excellent observation, clinical and interpersonal skills and have good nursing judgment. Position will work closely with established hospice team to ensure appropriate patient care and outcomes. Applicant must have ability to communicate and interact with patients and family members and should be able to work independently and organize/prioritize schedule.

Position Summary Expanded:

Under the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana and Patient Protection Act, (“The Unity Bill”) this position is considered a “Safety-sensitive position. “Safety-sensitive” is defined to include “any job that includes tasks or duties that could affect the safety and health of the employee performing the task or others.” Employees working in “safety-sensitive” roles are subject to this exception and subject to disciplinary action in the event of a positive test for marijuana or its metabolites.

Primary Position Responsibilities

• Must be able to maintain concentration during frequent interruptions.
• Delivers service/ visits to assigned patients and performs direct care in various settings, ensuring all needs and goals are being addressed.
• Perform and execute the RN duties associated with hospice plan of cares.
• Perform admission visits, regular skilled nursing and supervisory visits, hospice evaluations, imminent visits as well as on-call and prn visits as assigned.
• Maintains and completes patient’s medical record in accordance with agency standards.
• Demonstrates strong teamwork characteristics and interpersonal skills and able to work with the interdisciplinary team without role blurring or conflict.
• Participate in case presentation during interdisciplinary team meetings.
• Participate in education programs to learn new treatments, procedures, developmental skills, etc., as assigned.
• Demonstrates understanding of the concept of Death and Dying; Pain and Symptom Management; Grief and loss.
• Perform supervisory visits to patients and re-evaluate patient’s nursing needs.
• May be assigned to perform home health aide supervisory visits.
• Performs monthly supervision of any LPN’s assigned to the designated team.
• Provide and/or participate in and support all levels of hospice care i.e. routine, respite, continuous, in-patient and imminent visits.
• Provide accurate, timely, complete, and acceptable documentation.
• Accurate –reflecting good nursing judgment, and as scheduled.
• Timely – All electronic documentation to be completed by 10:00 the following day. Weekend notes completed by 10:00 the following Monday.
• Complete – all blanks, narrative that is legible and understandable, confirmations as necessary. All initial documents completed and signed.
• Acceptable – meeting acceptable Medicare standards as explained and documented in the Cohesive Hospice Policy and Procedure Manual.
• Paints accurate picture of patient clinical presentation and documents need for ongoing hospice care and or clinical stability per Medicare requirements and initiates discharge meet expectations as defined by supervisor or management.
• Attends the Interdisciplinary meetings every 15 days.
• Attends case conferences and care coordination meetings with various healthcare partners including nursing homes, assisted living centers and hospitals to ensure avoidance of duplication of services and care coordinated to meet patient specific goals.
• As a case manager, be wholly responsible for patient hospice care and support the need to work irregular hours as needed to perform nursing and case management duties.
• Perform job in accordance and compliance with policies, procedures, supervisory expectations, and other directives as defined by leadership.
• Provide all documents for up-to-date personnel files in a timely manner as requested by the Agency in order to continue being scheduled for visits.
• Respond to emergencies and to standby until able to contact Supervisor / Manager.
• Reports pertinent observations and reactions regarding changes in patient’s condition to the appropriate team person promptly and provides follow up to assure resolution of any identified problem.
• Communicate effectively with care coordination team. E.g. facility staff, physicians, pharmacy, case team, supervisors, etc.
• Educate patients and caregivers on disease processes, goals, and rehabilitation as outlined by Medicare and defined by Cohesive Hospice’s policies and procedures.
• Initiate appropriate preventive and rehabilitative nursing procedures.
• May be required to rotate through as visit-on-call nurse and make visits on weekends and holidays.
• Teach other personnel hospice procedures.
• Attend meetings involving Cohesive Hospice when requested to do so.
• Assist in orientation of new personnel, when requested.
• Display ethical principles of acceptance and non-judgment mentality.
• Abide by laws, rules and regulations which govern hospice and work environments e.g. non-discriminatory work environment.

Functional Abilities

• Contact with a variety of housing conditions required.
• Must be able to maintain concentration during frequent interruptions.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Must be flexible to adjust to changing tasks frequently.
• Light to moderate degrees of stress incurred in daily employment.
• Able to communicate verbally and in writing to the extent required by the position.
• Able to physically perform the duties required by the position.
• Able to travel.

Physical Requirements

• Light to moderate physical activity required, including possible lifting to 50lbs, and turning of adult clients.
• Good color vision is essential to determine subtle changes in a patient’s skin color and to rapidly recognize medication and color-coded supplies.
• Requires good hearing to assess situations quickly and respond appropriately.

Position Qualifications:

• Currently licensed to practice as a Registered Nurse in the State of Oklahoma.
• At least 2 years hospice experience as an RN preferred.
• Certification in Hospice and Palliative Nursing a huge plus.
• Proficient in verbal, written, and electronic communication.
• Must be flexible to adjust to changing tasks frequently.
• Must have a valid driver’s license, reliable vehicle, maintain valid auto liability insurance, and be able to drive throughout service area under a variety of weather conditions.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Must be able to maintain concentration during frequent interruptions.

Education/Experience

• BSN and/or MSN
• Three to five years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Hospice experience preferred.

Certificates and Licenses

• Valid Driver’s License
• Current auto insurance verification
• CPR Certification
• Currently licensed to practice as a Registered Nurse in the State of Oklahoma

Patient Rights

Promotes and protects patients’ rights; treats patients with dignity and respect; reports suspected abuse or neglect.

Leadership

Demonstrates willingness to try new tasks; generates new ideas for change; evaluates and recognizes priorities; communicates and models organizational values; fosters high performance; recognizes need for and provides adequate resources.

Process Improvement

Applies process improvement methods and techniques; assists in data collection; identifies processes for improvement in daily work; and assists in education of new employees in the team process.

Environment Of Care

Demonstrates understanding of fire and emergency procedures; participates in fire and disaster drills; demonstrates understanding of safety and security procedures; applies safety and security precautions; demonstrates understanding of hazardous materials plan; demonstrates proper use of equipment.

Infection Control

Applies hand-washing principles during daily work; demonstrates understanding of isolation precautions; recognizes signs and symptoms of infection and complies with the employee health program; demonstrates understanding of the process for identifying and handling infectious waste; maintains personal hygiene; complies with OSHA standards in the workplace; and demonstrates understanding of cross-contamination.

Information Management

Enters or records data timely and accurately; protects confidentiality of patient information; protects data against loss or destruction; reports suspected violation of security/confidentiality issues.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

English is the primary language of the facility. Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of executives, managers, clients, customers, and the public.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions and decimals.

REASONING ABILITY

Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instruction furnished in written, oral and/or diagram form. Ability to define and solve problems, interpret data, establish facts and draw valid conclusions.

COMPUTER SKILLS

To perform this job successfully, an individual should have knowledge of word processing software and spreadsheet software as well as Point of Care systems. Must also have experience with internet and email systems.

WORKING ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The noise level is usually moderate.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision and ability to adjust focus. While performing duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, and use hands or fingers, handle or feel. The employee is occasionally required to reach with hands and arms, bend, kneel, crouch, or crawl.