Patient Navigator

Patient Navigator

The Patient Navigator reports to the Director Neurosurgery or his designee and is responsible for coordinating patient care activities for international and domestic patients with significant clinical condition. "Patient navigation" in neurosurgery refers to the assistance offered to healthcare consumers (patients, survivors, families, and caregivers) to help them access and then chart a course through the healthcare system and overcome any barriers to quality care. The patient navigator is a registered nurse who functions as the coordinator who will assist patients and their families move through the complexities of the healthcare system. In addition, patient navigator will assist department administration to further increase operational efficiency, develop and implement policies, and increase clinical integration with other departments and support services. Brown University Health employees are expected to successfully role model the organization's values of Compassion, Accountability, Respect, and Excellence as these values guide our everyday actions with patients, customers and one another. In addition to our values, all employees are expected to demonstrate the core Success Factors which tell us how we work together and how we get things done. The core Success Factors include: Instill Trust and Value Differences Patient and Community Focus and Collaborate.

Responsibilities:

• Assumes key role in assuring care on a continuum, coordinating patient care activities for individuals with neurosurgical conditions including but not limited to coordination of care, referring patients to other health professionals and support services as appropriate (interpretation services, physical therapy, imaging, rehabilitation, pharmacy, social workers, and the like).
• Ensures team is kept appraised of patient's condition.
• Participates in developing policies, procedures, and standards of patient care in conjunction with Clinical Manager and/or Director of Neurosurgery.
• Participates in developing specific patient care protocols, patient education materials.
• Provides for appropriate patient and family education and counseling regarding disease and treatment, potential complications, signs, and symptoms requiring immediate attention.
• Documents patient's progress, compliance, and other essential information in the medical record.
• Ensures patient's primary care and sub-specialty providers are provided timely information on patient's progress and additional needs.
• Participates in ongoing quality assurance activities by collecting and analyzing statistical data and auditing patient records.
• May assist in preparing proposals, writing program reports, and the like.
• Provides clinical and operational coverage for all neurosurgery practices, as requested.
• Works closely with the Clinical Manager to ensure resource allocation and staffing needs are addressed.
• Participates in ongoing education and networking regarding navigation of patients with complex conditions.
• Performs other related duties of professional nurse and other administrative duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Licensure as Registered Nurse in the State of Rhode Island by the Rhode Island Board of Nursing or licensure as a Registered Nurse in accordance with the Nurse Licensure Compact agreement of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing.
• Basic Knowledge: BSN
• Must have current license to practice as a Registered Nurse in the State of Rhode Island.
• Demonstrated knowledge and skills necessary to provide care to patients with consideration of aging processes, human development stages, and cultural patterns in each step of the care process.

Experience:

• Two to three years of nursing experience in inpatient, ambulatory, or community nursing required, with case management and neurosurgery experience preferred.
• Ability to communicate effectively with diverse audiences including professional staff, patients, community, and other service agencies.
• Professional and analytical skills in evaluating patients in order to plan and provide patient care and monitor the care management process and treatment plan for each patient.
• Interpersonal skills to allay anxiety, elicit cooperation, and provide for education of patients/families, and to effectively function as a member of the healthcare team to coordinate and discuss patient care activities.
• Advanced skill in assessment of physical and psychosocial health-illness status of individuals, history taking, and physical assessment.

Work Environment and Physical Requirements:

Normal patient care environment with exposure to infectious diseases. Hazards are minimized by adherence to established safety precautions.

Supervisory Responsibility:

None.

Brown University Health