RN Infection Preventionist and Education Specialist

Job Description

Job Description

Cura of Long Prairie is looking for an RN Infection Preventionist and Education Specialist to join our leadership team! They will supervise the total care and all nursing services in the facility under direction of the Director of Nursing.  The Rn Infection Preventionist and Education Specialist will ensure the residents receive care within the guidelines of State and Federal Codes and in accordance with the facilities policies.  They will fulfill the duties of the Director of Nursing in his/her absence or vacancy. A mandated vulnerable adult reporter of maltreatment, neglect, and abuse of vulnerable residents/tenants.  Required to report any alleged maltreatment, neglect, or abuse to your supervisor and appropriate state agencies.

Requirements

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES  include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

• Developing and maintaining nursing services objectives, standards of nursing practice, nursing procedure manual, written job descriptions for each level of nursing personnel, and a written organization plan of the nursing service that delineates the functional structure of the nursing service and the lines of communication.
• Fulfill duties of DON in the event of position opening or long term absenses.
• Fill nursing floor shifts in the event of critical staffing shortages, including days, evenings, nights and weekends.
• Participate in On-Call Rotation with nursing leadership
• Complete Infection Control program requirements and heads Infection Control Committee and sets meeting times and established P/P.
• Education on MDS Process, serve as backup for MDS Coordinator
• Verify Competencies are completed by staff
• Coordinate Medicare certifications.
• Participating in planning, development, and implementation of written resident care policies, and bringing resident care problems requiring changes in policy to the QA committee.
• Maintaining effective working relationships with facility’s administration, and coordinating nursing services with other resident care services, such as physician, physical therapy, occupational therapy and dietary.
• Participating in the selection of prospective residents in terms of their nursing needs and the nursing competencies available.
• Assuring that a resident care plan is established for each resident and that the plan is reviewed quarterly and modified as necessary.
• Being accountable to the Director of Nursing with appropriate delegation of responsibility and requisite authority in writing, for the provision, direction and supervision of nursing care.
• Reviewing each admission to the facility, and assisting the attending physician in planning for the continuing care of each resident.
• Reporting all accidents and/or dereliction of duties.
• Responsible for recording and handling of narcotics and barbiturates.
• Ensuring that nursing notes are informative and descriptive of the nursing care rendered.
• Ensuring that the duties of nursing personnel shall be clearly defined and assigned to staff members consistent with the level of education, preparation, and licensing of each.
• Coordinating the Quality Assurance.
• In the absence of the Director of Nursing make decisions pertinent to the operation of the facility in accordance with the organizational chart.
• The Director of Nursing will be responsible for the day-to-day execution of patient care policies with input from the Assistant Director of Nursing.
• Must have thorough knowledge of Medicare A requirements.
• Adheres to Federal/State regulation and guidelines, including required in-services and enhancing residents’ Quality of Life through education of staff.
• Much have knowledge and ability to supervise and teach on an ongoing basis.
• Must be able to teach long-term care skills and concepts in accordance with the needs of the facility.
• Prepares orientation materials for pool staff, ensures that pool staff are orientated prior to working here.
• Develops annual in-service calendar and posts scheduled in-services in a timely manner plus maintains record of the annual in-service calendar.
• Arranges for mandated in-services per State and Federal requirements.
• Develops in-services in conjunction with identified needs of the QA Committee and participates in QA as directed by Administrator and QI.
• Report to DON staff that did not attend required in-services.
• Maintains record of hepatitis vaccinations for employees.
• Assist with pre-admission screening.
• Coordinate Medicare “denial” letters.
• Coordinate MDS schedule with other disciplines.
• Coordinate Medicare charting schedule.
• Assist with implementing policies/procedures with impact Medicare coverage.
• Other duties and responsibilities assigned by DON within the scope of Minnesota  Nurse Practice Act.
• Ability to monitor the overall operation of the nursing department with willingness and enthusiasm.
• Able to monitor the environment that enables the residents to have a safe, secure and dignified life.
• Has leadership ability with evidence of skills in creativity, integrity, and communication.
• Is able to display tact and good judgment in dealing with varying situations involving physicians, patients and their families, and visitors as well as management and staff.
• Must have basic computer skills or be able to acquire such skills.
• Is familiar with the organization and function of all departments’ policies, regulations, and procedures.
• Must be able to work well with others and maintains harmonious relationships with members of the health care team.
• Must be knowledgeable of standards of care, including but not limited to: restorative care, comprehensive assessment of residents, and the development of care plans.
• Must be available or assigned as a designee to be available at all times for emergencies.
• Follows instructions willingly, able to meet deadlines, organizational loyalty, honesty, punctual, and dependable.
• Abide by and ensure compliance with facility policies and procedures.
• Perform other related duties as directed by the Director of Nursing.

MARGINAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

• May be required to attend training or staff development activities.
• Performs any and all other duties as assigned.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Manages the RN’s, LPN’s and NAR’s
• Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with policies and applicable laws.  These responsibilities may include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.
• Must be able to organize and prioritize projects.
• Must be able to communicate well and process information accurately.
• Adheres to Federal/State regulations and guidelines, including Resident Rights.
• Has a pleasant manner and good grooming and hygiene.
• Must be able to display tact and good judgment in dealing with varying situations involving physicians, residents, residents’ families, visitors, management and staff.
• Must be able to work well with others and maintains harmonious relationships with co-workers.
• Must be able safely perform the essential job functions, with or without reasonable accommodations, without posing a direct threat to other employees, residents or self

QUALIFICATIONS  To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Thorough knowledge of professional nursing theory and practice.
• Thorough knowledge of nursing service administration.
• Thorough knowledge of restorative nursing.
• Considerable knowledge of psychiatric nursing and/or geriatric nursing.
• Must have thorough knowledge of Medicare A requirements.
• Ability to plan, assign, and supervise the work of others.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working and public relationships.
• Ability to maintain accurate and complete records and make clear and detailed reports.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• Graduation for an accredited school of nursing.
• Registration as a Registered Nurse in the State of Minnesota
• Training and/or experience in nursing in service administration.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

• Ability to read, analyze and interpret the most complex documents.  Ability to respond effectively to the most sensitive inquires or complaints.  Ability to write speeches and articles using original or innovative techniques or style.  Ability to make effective and persuasive speeches and presentations on controversial or complex topics to top management, public groups, and/or boards of directors.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

• Ability to work with mathematical concepts such as probability and statistical inference.  Ability to apply concepts such as fractions, percentages, ratios, and proportions to practical situations.

REASONING ABILITY

• Ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking to a wide range of intellectual and practical problems.  Ability to deal with nonverbal symbolism (formulas, scientific equations, graphs, musical notes, etc.,) in its most difficult phases.  Ability to deal with a variety of abstract and concrete variables.
• Must be able effectively with stress created by multiple tasks, noises, interruptions, and work cooperatively as part of the health care team while maintaining a pleasant demeanor. (Continuously)

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

• Graduation from an accredited school of nursing.
• Registration as a professional nurse in the State of Minnesota

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.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to:

• Stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; crouch; talk or hear; and taste or smell.
• Must be able to hear and distinguish normal sounds with background noise, ranging from conversational levels to high-pitched sounding alarms.  Must be able to distinguish sound via stethoscopes, respiratory status of residents, and must be able to interpret low voice levels.
• Handling, fingering, and feeling is required occasionally for palpation, operating and maintaining equipment, and providing medical treatments for abnormal conditions (e.g., wound care, resident care, and medication administration).
• Must be able to detect the smell of smoke, spoiled food, soiled linen, etc.

The employee must:

• Lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.     

Specific vision abilities required by this job include   

• Close vision, color vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

WORK 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.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to:

• Normal office environment conditions.

The noise level in the work environment is:

• Moderate to loud.

This Job Description is not an exhaustive list of all skills, responsibilities, or efforts associated with a job.  They reflect principal job elements essential for performing the job and evaluating performance.

Benefits

Health, dental & vision insurance

PTO & Sick Time Off

Holidays off

401K Match

Scholarship Program

HSA