Transplant Coordinator

At Houston Methodist, the Pre-Transplant Coordinator position a registered nurse, responsible for participating in department initiatives, facilitating, and coordinating all aspects of the transplant referral, evaluation, waiting period, and peri-operative phases of transplantation. This position demonstrates the ability to continuously progress in skill to care for increasingly complex patients, receiving coaching from experienced Transplant Coordinators and management, benefiting from their practice. The Pre-Transplant Coordinator position interacts with all members of interprofessional transplant team to ensure coordination of care for the pre-transplant patient. This position demonstrates clinical knowledge and competence when providing care, as appropriate, using technology, and managing emergencies, acting as a patient and family advocate to monitor and maintain patient rights. The Pre-Transplant Coordinator position communicates and collaborates with the physicians and interprofessional health care team to facilitate and maintain compassionate, efficient, quality care and achievement of desired treatment outcomes.

• Bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited School of Nursing

• Four years nursing experience or three years’ Oncology/BMT-specific experience for area of specialty
• Previous transplant acute care and/or ICU experience preferred

• RN - Registered Nurse - Texas State Licensure - Texas Board of Nursing_PSV Compact Licensure – Must obtain permanent Texas license within 60 days (if establishing Texas residency) and
• BLS - Basic Life Support or Instructor (AHA) - American Heart Association

• Demonstrates the skills and competencies necessary to safely perform the assigned job, determined through on-going skills, competency assessments, and performance evaluations
• Sufficient proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing the English language necessary to perform the essential functions of this job, especially with regard to activities impacting patient or employee safety or security
• Ability to effectively communicate with patients, physicians, family members and co-workers in a manner consistent with a customer service focus and application of positive language principles
• Strong assessment, organizational and problem-solving skill as evidenced by capacity to prioritize multiple tasks and role components
• Skilled at managing complex patient caseload and ability to prioritize/triage based on patient status
• Presents a professional image at work and all work-related events
• Knowledgeable of OPTN/UNOS/NMDP/CIBMTR/FACT policies and listing requirements, CMS Conditions of Participation
• Participates in department donor awareness events, educational opportunities, and community activities
• Ability to provide assistance to physicians in perioperative setting
• Working knowledge of Microsoft products

• Uses therapeutic communication in an active, positive, and effective manner with all transplant team members, patients, referring physicians, and other health care providers, reporting pertinent patient care and family data in a comprehensive and unbiased manner. Accurately communicates candidate’s status and evaluation outcome and maintains communication while candidate is on the waitlist.
• Identifies and responds to the clinical, psychosocial, and economic needs of the transplant patient/family/caregiver during evaluation, waiting, and pre-operative transplant phases
• Fosters teamwork approach in all interactions with peers and team members. Anticipates needs of other team members; proactively offering assistance. Contributes to meeting department score for employee engagement.

• Coordinates with interprofessional team the evaluation process for potential transplant candidate, including, but not limited to Medical/Surgical evaluation, Psychosocial evaluation, Educational assessment, laboratory evaluation including serologies, tissue typing, and antibodies per protocol, radiological evaluation, and nutritional evaluation.
• Establishes mutual educational goals with patient and family/caregivers their responsibility throughout the transplant process and provides education and appropriate resources regarding living donor options, Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network/United Network of Organ Sharing (OPTN/UNOS) or National Marrow Donor Programs/Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapy/Center of International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (NMDP/FACT/CIBMTR) regulations, where applicable.
• Recognizes potential problems, abnormal diagnostic findings, and/or significant changes during the waiting phase, coordinating required care. Collects and evaluates medical, psychosocial, and financial data for review by transplant team in the patient selection committee.
• Ensures patient and referring physician are informed in writing of transplant listing, denial, or postponement. Informs and educates patient/family/caregiver at time of listing waitlist process, Transplant Process, Risk/benefits, including utilization of expanded donors, high-risk donors, if applicable. Ensures antibody screen is obtained regularly per transplant center protocol. Maintains routine health maintenance and surveillance for malignancy during the waiting period. Identifies the need for candidate re-evaluation and initiates when appropriate.
• Participates in transplant event process according to transplant center protocol, as applicable. Contributes to meeting department and organ program targets for process and patient satisfaction measures.

• Identifies appropriate candidate upon referral and ascertains requirements for evaluation, including possible co-morbidities, absolute and relative contraindications to transplantation, communicating all findings with transplant team. Provides and maintains comprehensive documentation of evaluation process. Provides data to OPTN/UNOS/NMDP/CIBMTR/FACT for listing statistics, i.e., Candidate Registration Form/CIBMTR forms.
• Maintains and updates candidate listing status per OPTN/UNOS/NMDP regulations. Provides and maintains comprehensive documentation of candidate progress while on waitlist, and donor/recipient transplant information.
• Maintains and submits accurate data for hospital-based statistics and regulatory agencies, if applicable, such as OPTN/UNOS/CMS/NMDP/CIBMTR/FACT, and Medicaid to ensure compliance with all government reporting requirements, and proper quality outcomes monitoring. Contributes to meeting department and organ program targets for quality, compliance, and safety.

• Validates patient’s insurance authorization for applicable diagnostic testing, ensuring documentation of applicable clinical activities for department charge capture and proper department financial management.
• Utilizes time between heavy workloads efficiently and helps other team members. Contributes to meeting department and organ program financial measures.

• Offers innovative solutions through participation in performance improvement projects. Contributes to department initiatives for quality and process improvement.
• Participates in transplant-specific continuous learning and growth. Applies evidence-based practice to daily work, i.e., attending CMPI, reviewing the professional literature and attending professional meetings and sharing with colleagues. Identifies own learning needs and actively seeks educational opportunities, both formal and informal, to meet those needs. Ensures own career discussions occur with appropriate management. Completes and updates the My Development Plan on an on-going basis.

• Uniform: No
• Scrubs: Yes
• Business professional: Yes
• Other (department approved): No

• On Call* Yes

• May require travel within the Houston Metropolitan area No
• May require travel outside Houston Metropolitan area No

• Bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited School of Nursing

• Four years nursing experience or three years’ Oncology/BMT-specific experience for area of specialty
• Previous transplant acute care and/or ICU experience preferred

• RN - Registered Nurse - Texas State Licensure - Texas Board of Nursing_PSV Compact Licensure – Must obtain permanent Texas license within 60 days (if establishing Texas residency) and
• BLS - Basic Life Support or Instructor (AHA) - American Heart Association

Company Profile:

Houston Methodist Hospital is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the No. 1 hospital in Texas and one of America’s “Best Hospitals.” As a full-service, acute-care hospital located in the Texas Medical Center and the flagship hospital of Houston Methodist, it has evolved into one of the nation’s largest nonprofit teaching hospitals and a leader in innovative medical research with a comprehensive residency program. Two of Houston Methodist’s primary academic affiliates are among the nation’s leading health care organizations: Weill Cornell Medicine and New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Houston Methodist also has affiliations with Texas A&M University and the University of Houston. Houston Methodist Hospital offers unparalleled care for thousands of patients from around the world.

Houston Methodist is an Equal Opportunity Employer.