Neonatal Feeding Specialist - 32 Hours/Week - Days

Neonatal Feeding Specialist

Why work for Nebraska Methodist Health System? At Nebraska Methodist Health System, we focus on providing exceptional care to the communities we serve and people we employ. We call it The Meaning of Care a culture that has and will continue to set us apart. It's helping families grow by making each delivery special, conveying a difficult diagnosis with a compassionate touch, going above and beyond for a patient's needs, or giving a high five when a patient beats a disease or conquers a personal health challenge. We offer competitive pay, excellent benefits and a great work environment where all employees are valued! Most importantly, our employees are part of a team that makes a real difference in the communities we live and work in.

Job Summary

Location: Methodist Women's Hospital
Address: 707 N. 190th Plaza - Elkhorn, NE
Schedule: 32 hours per week - Day shift
Provide a variety of services to premature and medically complex infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) or Newborn Nursery related to feeding difficulties. Assess and document baseline and changes including the family in regular updates and provide consultative advice to staff and families.

Essential Functions

1. Coordinate comprehensive infant feeding services to newborns, premature and convalescing infants.

• Utilize evidence based feeding practices of the infant.
• Facilitates the orientation of neonatal staff to feeding protocols and interventions.
• Provide ongoing education to neonatal staff based on most current evidence-based practices.
• Assist orienting staff to special needs of NICU patients.

2. Perform initial and ongoing feeding assessments on NICU patients and provide recommendations to multidisciplinary team.

• Identify and interpret the infant's feeding strengths, feeding functional level, thresholds and sensitivities.
• Provide recommendations for feeding changes.
• Provides education and guidance on feeding practices based on the unique needs of the patient.

3. Provide and maintain materials supportive of infant's feeding needs.

• Provide reference materials for family use based on feeding recommendations.
• Participate with marketing in developing printed materials.

4. Provide regular assessments and updates to family ensuring care plan is updated as needed.

• Ensure family has necessary information to facilitate ongoing feeding practices at discharge.
• Provide ongoing education and support to families.
• Participate in multidisciplinary rounds and discharge planning, anticipating the need for appropriate follow-up.
• Participate in daily rounds on a regular basis.

5. Provide leadership in the promotion of evidence based feeding practices with an emphasis on family participation blending individualized patient family needs with medical interventions.

• Ensure family centered care is used in all planning.
• Participate with NICU leadership in development of philosophy of care.
• Participate in ongoing process improvement activities related to feeding care and interventions.

6. Ensure that unit feeding practices are based on current care research and are integrated into related policies.

• Participate in interdisciplinary rounding, collaborating with other team members to develop and document feeding care plans for NICU and Newborn Nursery infants.
• Provide education to staff on policy updates to ensure transfer of knowledge.
• Assist in the development of NICU and newborn nursery policies.
• Review policies for relevance and the inclusion of Family Centered Care.

Job Requirements

Education

• Bachelor's degree in occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech language pathology or nursing required.
• Master's degree from an accredited university preferred.

Experience

• Minimum 5 years of clinical experience in respective field required. Minimum 2 years neonatal clinical experience required.

License/Certifications

• Current licensure as appropriate for specialty required; Occupational Therapist (OT), Physical Therapist (PT), Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) or Registered Nurse (RN).
• Current American Heart Association or American Red Cross Basic Life Support (BLS) strongly preferred at time of hire, required within 3 months of hire.
• Each discipline will obtain respective certification in neonatal care within 1 year of eligibility required.

Skills/Knowledge/Abilities

• Skill prioritizing, organizing and performing assigned duties.
• Skill accurately performing work.
• Skill with verbal and written communication.
• Knowledge of various teaching methods and adult learning styles.
• Knowledge of practices, methods and procedures of clinical discipline.
• Ability to establish effective working relationships with staff and patients.
• Ability to practice within standards of practice as outlined by professional organization and licensing body.
• Ability to work independently based on patient load.

Physical Requirements

Weight Demands

• Medium Light Work - Exerting up to 35 pounds of force.

Physical Activity

• Occasionally Performed (1%-33%):
• Balancing
• Climbing
• Carrying
• Crawling
• Crouching
• Distinguish colors
• Kneeling
• Lifting
• Pulling/Pushing
• Reaching
• Standing
• Stooping/bending
• Twisting
• Walking
• Frequently Performed (34%-66%):
• Hearing
• Repetitive Motions
• Seeing/Visual
• Speaking/talking
• Constantly Performed (67%-100%):
• Grasping
• Keyboarding/typing
• Sitting

Job Hazards

• Not Related:
• Biological agents (primary air born and blood born viruses) (Jobs with Patient contact) (BBF)
• Physical hazards (noise, temperature, lighting, wet floors, outdoors, sharps) (more than ordinary office environment)
• Equipment/Machinery/Tools
• Explosives (pressurized gas)
• Electrical Shock/Static
• Radiation Alpha, Beta and Gamma (particles such as X-ray, Cat Scan, Gamma Knife, etc)
• Radiation Non-Ionizing (Ultraviolet, visible light, infrared and microwaves that causes injuries to tissue or thermal or photochemical means)
• Rare (1-33%):
• Chemical agents (Toxic, Corrosive, Flammable, Latex)
• Mechanical moving parts/vibrations

About Methodist:

Nebraska Methodist Health System is made up of four hospitals in Nebraska and southwest Iowa, more than 30 clinic locations, a nursing and allied health college, and a medical supply distributorship and central laundry facility. From the day Methodist Hospital was chartered in 1891, service to our communities has been a top priority. Financial assistance, health education, outreach to our diverse communities and populations, and other community benefit activities have always been central to our mission.

Nebraska Methodist Health System is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other classification protected by Federal, state or local law.