Nurse Practitioner / Physician Assistant - Progressive Care Unit (PCU)

Seeking Breakthrough Makers

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) offers countless ways to change lives. Our diverse community of more than 20,000 Breakthrough Makers will inspire you to pursue passions, develop expertise, and drive innovation.

At CHOP, your experience is valued; your voice is heard; and your contributions make a difference for patients and families. Join us as we build on our promise to advance pediatric careand your career.

CHOP is committed to building an inclusive culture where employees feel a sense of belonging, connection, and community within their workplace. We are a team dedicated to fostering an environment that allows for all to be their authentic selves. We are focused on attracting, cultivating, and retaining diverse talent who can help us deliver on our mission to be a world leader in the advancement of healthcare for children.

We strongly encourage all candidates of diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply.

A Brief Overview

The Progressive Care Unit is a 24 bed Critical Care unit that is dedicated to managing patients who are medically fragile and dependent on respiratory technologies. The PCU focuses on preparing patients and their families for transition out of the hospital once they are medically ready through training caregivers or to transitional care centers. At CHOP, patients who have tracheostomies and have airway issues and/or are ventilator dependent are managed only in one of the ICUs or the PCU. Consequently, respiratory technology dependent patients without ICU needs are admitted to the PCU for inpatient evaluation and management of acute or subacute issues.

Providers who are new-to-practice will receive a robust 16-20 week training inclusive of clinical-, didactic-, and simulation-based education as part of the Advanced Practice Clinical Immersion Program.

In collaboration with an attending physician, the Hospital Provider Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant is responsible for the direct care and follow-up of a population of patients that matches his/her delineation of privileges and skill set. This care is delivered in defined inpatient and hospital-outpatient areas. The components of the role include clinical practice, consultation, professional development, education, and research.

What You Will Do

• Assesses the complex acute, critical and chronically ill patient for urgent and emergent conditions. Uses relevant data to evaluate for physiologic instability. Utilizes the data to formulate a plan of care.
• Performs therapeutic interventions to stabilize acute and critical health problems. Specific interventions are listed in the Scope of Practice Document and approved as a part of the credentialing/privileging process.
• Analyzes the indications, contraindications, risk of complications and cost-benefits of therapeutic interventions.
• Manages the plan of care through evaluation, modification and documentation according to the patient's response to therapy. Manages changes in condition with a focus on optimizing the patient outcomes.
• Incorporates health promotion, health protection and injury prevention measures into the plan of care within the context of the complex acute, critical and chronic illness.
• Facilitates the patient's transitions between and within health care settings.
• Serves as an educational resource to the patient/family, nursing staff, and provider team. Acts as a consultant to multidisciplinary health care team members.
• Participates in scholarly activities including research and education. Participates in own professional development by maintaining required competencies, identifying learning needs and seeking appropriate educational offerings. Participates in the professional development of others. Acts as a preceptor and mentor to support the development of nurses, nurse practitioners, students, and other health care providers.
• Demonstrates a commitment to patient safety by speaking up about safety issues and changing practice to enhance safety. Shares errors or potential errors through system reporting mechanisms. Demonstrates shared accountability for safe practice.

Education Qualifications

• Master's Degree Nursing - Required
• Bachelor's Degree Physician Assistant - Required
• Master's Degree Physician Assistant - Preferred

Skills and Abilities

• Ability to work in an inter-professional team setting with multiple responsibilities.
• Ability to use computer and electronic medical records effectively.
• Refer to Scope of Practice Document and Clinical Responsibilities Checklist for specific requirements of role.
• Computer Competency
• Basic use of a computer (mouse, keyboard, printer, USB ports).
• Basic use of Microsoft Office (Word processing, spreadsheets, presentations and Skype).
• Web browsing, intranet search, document access.
• Use of shared network file space.
• Basic use of patient facing technology. (e.g. IV pumps, point of care devices, CR monitors).
• Navigation and use of clinical communication systems.
• Information Literacy
• Determines the nature and extent of clinical information needed and uses the appropriate technology to access it.
• Accesses needed information effectively and efficiently.
• Evaluates information and its sources critically and appropriately incorporates it into clinical practice.
• Evaluates outcomes of the use of information.
• Information Management Literacy
• Navigation of the electronic health record system.
• Ability to locate and review specific patient data in various clinical information systems.
• Effectively uses clinical decision support tools.
• Understands policies and procedures, confidentiality, security, and privacy regulations regarding the use of clinical information systems.
• Ability to collect clinical data using quality improvement tools.

Licenses and Certifications

• Prescriptive Authority - Pennsylvania State Licensing Board Required within 3 months of hire
• Specialty Certification - in area of education/subspecialty. Required certification must match scope of practice for that practice area. Required upon hire
• Registered Nurse - Pennsylvania State Licensing Board Required upon hire
• Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner (CRNP) - Pennsylvania State Licensing Board Required upon hire
• OR
• Certified Physician Assistant (PA-C) - Pennsylvania State Licensing Board Required upon hire
• Certified Physician Assistant (PA-C) - National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants Required upon hire

To carry out its mission, CHOP is committed to supporting the health of our patients, families, workforce, and global community. As a condition of employment, CHOP employees who work in patient care buildings or who have patient facing responsibilities must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and receive an annual influenza vaccine. Learn more.

Employees may request exemptions for valid religious and medical reasons. Start dates may be delayed until candidates are immunized or exemption requests are reviewed.

Salary Range:

$117,900.00 - $156,300.00 Annually

Salary ranges are shown for full-time jobs. If you're working part-time, your pay will be adjusted accordingly.

This job is eligible for an incentive program.

At CHOP, we are committed to fair and transparent pay practices. Factors such as skills and experience could result in an offer above the salary range noted in this job posting. Click here for more information regarding CHOP's Compensation and Benefits.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia