Registered Nurse - Clinical Decision Unit

Registered Nurse Observation Unit/ Clinical Decision Unit

TriHealth is committed to supporting nurses in delivering exceptional, patient-centered care grounded in teamwork, clinical excellence, and compassion. In the Observation Unit (also known as CDU), you will care for patients requiring short-term monitoring and evaluation. As a Registered Nurse, you'll apply the full nursing process, collaborate with providers, and help guide patients and their families through fast-paced clinical decisions. Your role directly influences patient flow, safety, and outcomes.

Stepping into the Clinical Decision Unit (CDU) at Bethesda North Hospital, you will find a dedicated team that provides thoughtful, high-quality care for adult and geriatric patients, adhering to Medicare guidelines. This 35-bed unit is a hub for patients requiring further diagnostic testing and treatments, including medical, pre/post-surgical, and cardiac interventions. Every moment counts here, as the team focuses on efficient care delivery, seamless teamwork, and close monitoring of each patient's progress. For nurses joining the CDU, the journey begins with a warm welcome and a comprehensive orientation experience. Your first week includes corporate orientation, followed by personalized one-on-one onboarding with the Nurse Manager or Educator. This ensures every new team member feels supported and ready to start hands-on training with a preceptor. Unit orientation is tailored to individual experience levels, spanning 4-8 weeks of in-depth, competency-based training. Nurses gain expertise through NIHSS certifications, ACLS/BLS training, ECG/telemetry skills, SIM code readiness exercises, and immersive shadowing opportunities. Whether you're a new graduate or an experienced RN, the CDU fosters professional growth through robust support, teamwork, and continuous learning. The unit operates on a 6-week scheduling cycle, including every third weekend and holiday rotations (A, B, C). Flexible options like weekend programs and PRN/Optional scheduling provide a supportive work-life balance. Nurses and Acute Care Technicians (ACTs) collaborate closely, ensuring compassionate, safe, and attentive care for every patient. What makes the CDU truly unique? It's the culture of collaboration, the shared commitment to excellence, and the opportunity to make a difference every dayone patient at a time.

Why You'll Love Working Here

• Collaborative, collegial environment with strong nurse-physician partnerships.
• Opportunity to sharpen rapid assessment and decision-making skills in a fast-moving CDU setting.
• Autonomy to apply holistic, evidence-based nursing care across diverse patient populations.
• Support for professional development, including BSN attainment and specialty certification.
• A culture that prioritizes patient dignity, safety, and the voices of frontline nurses.

Key Responsibilities

• Perform initial and ongoing patient and family assessments; document per unit and TriHealth standards.
• Develop and update individualized plans of care, including both short- and long-term goals.
• Provide safe, therapeutic, culturally sensitive patient care while protecting autonomy and dignity.
• Recognize and respond appropriately to emergency or rapidly evolving clinical situations.
• Complete all assigned patient care and documentation within scheduled timeframes.
• Communicate effectively with physicians, interdisciplinary team members, patients, and families.
• Serve as a resource to staff by sharing specialty knowledge and supporting clinical learning.

Qualifications

Required

• Associate's Degree or Diploma in Nursing.
• New hires must obtain BSN within 5 years of hire.
• Active Registered Nurse license.
• BLS/CPR (Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers).
• Strong nursing knowledge built from biological, physical, behavioral, social, and nursing sciences.

Preferred

• Experience working full-time (1+ year) or part-time (2+ years) in acute care settings.
• Membership in a related professional nursing organization.
• Specialty certification (e.g., med-surg, emergency nursing).

Schedule & Work Location

• FTE: Part-Time - 24 Hours Weekly
• Shift: days 6:30am-7:00pm
• Hospital: Bethesda North Hospital (Observation / CDU)
• Work Arrangement: On-site, inpatient observation unit

Benefits Snapshot

TriHealth offers a comprehensive benefits suite including medical, dental, vision, retirement contributions, paid time off, tuition assistance, and wellness resources.

Hourly Incentives & Bonus

$1hr Weekend Incentive

$2,500 Sign on Bonus

Acute Care Incentive Pay- Hourly Pay Based on Previous RN Experience

Job Overview

This position applies the nursing process in providing direct and indirect holistic care to patients and their families. The position also collaborates, in a collegial manner, with physicians and other health care team members in meeting the patient's needs. This position may delegate certain aspects of care to those under their direct supervision, within the scope of nursing practice.

Job Requirements

Associate's Degree or Diploma in Nursing

New hires required to obtain BSN within 5 years of hire.

BLS/CPR (Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers)

Registered Nurse

Knowledge, judgment, and skills derived from the principles of biological, physical, behavioral, social, and nursing sciences to meet complex health care needs at various stages of the life cycle

Preferred membership in related professional organization

RNs with more than 1 year full-time or 2 years part-time acute care experience

Preferred certification in specialty

Job Responsibilities

Performs initial and ongoing assessment of patient and family. Completes initial assessment tool. Documents ongoing assessment per unit/TriHealth guidelines. Communicates assessment findings to other health care providers as appropriate. Includes health counseling and health teaching needs in assessment.

Plans care for patient and family based on assessment, standards of care, and optimal specific outcomes. Initiates and individualizes appropriate patient care guidelines/plan of care or clinical pathways. Updates current plan of care as needed based on patient/family input and healthcare needs. Develops both short- and long-term goals with patient/family and healthcare team including discharge planning. Communicates plan of care to others.

Provides a safe, therapeutic environment, maintains patient's autonomy, dignity, and rights, and is sensitive to patient diversity. Seeks resources to help formulate ethical decisions. Balances priorities of the patient's needs and those of the unit/facility. Recognizes emergency situations and takes appropriate action. Completes patient assignment including documentation within scheduled timeframe. Bases interventions on clinical data and desired outcomes and documents accordingly. Trains/educates other staff and acts an expert resource in specialty area through abilities in existing and newer knowledge and skills. Effectively communicates and understands/executes physician orders.

Evaluates the plan of care for patient based on optimal specific patient outcomes. Documents the patient/family response to care including teaching. Collaborates with the patient/family and with other members of the health care team, including physicians, to revise plan of care as needed. Supervises the care that was delegated to other health care team members.

Performs technical skills according to policy and procedure and accepted standards within their area of practice. Safely administers medications/treatments and monitors their effects. Uses all equipment in a safe, appropriate manner.

Demonstrates organizations responsibilities: Identifies areas for self-improvement, functions in relief charge / resource role as requested, completes assignments within scheduled timeframes, cooperates with instructor to facilitate effective learning experiences for students, maintains current knowledge in area of practice, demonstrates knowledge of organizational and department changes.

Other Job-Related Information

The TriHealth Nursing Vision, Mission, and Philosophy speaks to professional development, collaboration, and our nursing culture. To achieve excellence in nursing care, TriHealth encourages: pursuit of improved knowledge through continuing education classes, formal education leading to advancement of degrees, and the attainment of specialty certification; nurse membership in local, regional, and national nursing organizations related to the appropriate nurse specialty; involvement in activities that better the health of our community; nursing research activities and use of evidence-based practice, and all nurses to foster, support and personally model collaborative relationships amongst nurses, physicians, and other caregivers for the betterment of patient care.

Working Conditions

Bending - Frequently

Climb