Registered Nurse (Short Stay Unit)

Summary

The Registered Nurse provides care and counseling of persons or in the promotion and maintenance of health and prevention of illness and injury based upon the nursing process which includes systematic data gathering, assessment, appropriate nursing judgment, and evaluation of human responses to actual or potential health problems through such services as case finding, health teaching, health counseling; provision of care supportive to or restorative of life and well-being.

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Duties

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The Short Stay Unit (SSU) Registered Nurse (RN) is responsible and accountable for all elements of the nursing process when providing and/or supervising direct patient care. Assumes responsibility for the coordination of care focused on patient education, self-management, and customer satisfaction throughout the continuum of care. Administers medications and procedures per established policies and guidelines. Influences care outcomes by collaborating with members of the interdisciplinary team. Core elements of performance include knowledge and active participation in the unit/program level quality improvement process and initiatives as well as customer service programs.

The Short Stay Unit (SSU) Registered Nurse (RN), provides pre and post operative/procedural care, including (but not limited to) the nursing assessment of patients, consent, and H&P validations, the starting of intravenous fluids including venipuncture, assuring all lab work and other pre-operative/procedural testing is completed and communicated to team members, confirms surgical sites are prepared and marked, and the administration of medications as ordered. Provides clear and concise preoperative teaching and reviews discharge instructions to patients and families with written and verbal communication. The SSU RN monitors post-operative patient's level of consciousness after the recovery of anesthesia/sedation. Closely observes signs of side effect of post residual anesthesia medications. The SSU RN maintains knowledge of current American Society of Peri anesthesia Nurses (ASPAN) standards, VHA Directive and service level standard operating procedures. The Ambulatory RN is responsible for ensuring comprehensive documentation of all phases of care and is timely, complete, and accurate in the electronic health record.

-Leads the provision of nursing care to patients with complex care needs utilizing the nursing process in alignment with the ANA Standards of Nursing Practice.

- Applies clinical knowledge/judgment to lead staff involvement in planning, decision making, and evaluating outcomes within the immediate practice setting.

-Effectively functions as a leader, with demonstrated outcomes, for the immediate practice setting.

-Improves Veteran/patient driven care by resolving experience issues such as coordination of care, timeliness or process issues, common themes of dissatisfaction, or environment of care concerns for the immediate practice setting.

-Applies patient, family, and caregiver knowledge, values, and beliefs into care delivery without judgement or discrimination.

-Serves as an advocate for patients, families, and caregivers, improving outcomes for the immediate practice setting.

-Serves as a resource for patients, caregivers, and staff to address and resolve ethical issues in the immediate practice setting.

-Leads the implementation of high reliability principles and I CARE values to increase consistency of care delivered and improve patient outcomes.

-Applies evidence-based practice/research resulting in improved outcomes in the immediate practice setting.

- Assesses the immediate practice setting to identify efficient, cost-effective care delivery.

-Leads patient care improvement through monitoring, analyzing, and evaluating care outcomes in the immediate practice setting.

-Leads initiatives for expanding best techniques to identify and apply patient preferences to shared care delivery decisions in the immediate practice settings.

-Demonstrates the ability to improve the effectiveness of communications and interactions with others, to inspire their cooperation and confidence to ensure safe and effective outcomes in the current practice setting.

-Leads teams, contributes to team conferences, and actively collaborates in all phases of patient care planning. Successfully integrates objectives, opportunities, and resources.

-Considers alternative courses of action. Respects the opinions, abilities, and contributions of others. Encourages individual growth and development.

-Effectively sets group goals and keeps self and team informed of the latest trends and developments. Inspires the cooperation and confidence of others. Demonstrates a high level of expertise.

Preferred Experience:

BSN

Med/Surg, ICU, PACU and/or Day Surgery experience preferred

CCRN, CPAN, or CAPA strongly considered

Work Schedule: M-F, 7:30am-6:00pm (10 hour shifts). Tour subject to change depending on the needs of facility.

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements :

• English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English.
• U.S. Citizenship ; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Graduate of a school of professional nursing approved by the appropriate accrediting agency and accredited by one of the following accrediting bodies at the time the program was completed by the applicant: The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE); OR Individuals attending a master's level bridge program in nursing who have completed coursework equivalent to a bachelor's level degree in Nursing may have opportunity to become registered as a nurse with a state licensing board prior to completion of the bridge program. Upon achievement of a State license, the individual may be appointed on temporary basis and later converted to a permanent appointment upon successful completion and graduation from the bridge program. (Reference VA Handbook 5005, Appendix G6); OR In cases of graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing, possession of a current, full, active, and unrestricted registration will meet the requirement for graduation from an approved school of professional nursing to warrant an appointment as a Nurse who has completed an associated degree/entry level Nursing education program. Credit for foreign nursing education higher that associate degree/entry level requires a formal degree equivalency validation from a recognized equivalency evaluation accepted by VA such as International Consultants of Delaware (ICD).
• Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a State, Territory or Commonwealth (i.e., Puerto Rico) of the United States, or the District of Columbia. Graduate Nurse Technician (GNT) Exception: Candidates who otherwise meet the basic education requirements, but do not possess the required licensure, may be appointed at the entry step of the grade and level applicable to the completed nursing education as a GNT on a 120-day temporary appointment while actively pursuing licensure (may be extended up to two years on a case-by-case-basis.)

NOTE: Grandfathering Provision - All persons currently employed in VHA in 0610 series and performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of the standard (1/29/2024) are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held including positive education and licensure/certification.

Grade Determinations: The following Scope, Education and Dimension criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates, and if appropriate, the level within a grade. The Dimension requirements (Practice, Veteran/Patient Driven Care, Leadership, Professional Development and Evidence-Based Practice/Research) are detailed for each grade and level within the online assessment:

Grade/Level

Scope

Education

Nurse I, Level I

Delivers fundamental, knowledge-based care to assigned clients while developing technical competencies.

An Associate Degree (ADN) or Diploma in Nursing, with no additional professional nursing required.

Nurse I, Level II

Demonstrates integration of biopsychosocial concepts, cognitive skills and technically competent practice in providing care to clients with basic or complex.

An ADN or Diploma in Nursing AND 1 year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse I, Level 1 ; OR a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) with no additional professional nursing experience required.

Nurse I, Level III

Demonstrates proficiency in practice based on conscious and deliberate planning. Self-directed in goal setting for managing complex client situations.

An ADN or Diploma in Nursing AND 2 years of professional nursing experience in which one year is equivalent to Nurse I, Level 2; OR a BSN and 1 year of professional nursing experience equivalent to the Nurse I, Level 2; OR a Master's degree in nursing (MSN) and no additional professional nursing experience; OR a Master's degree in a *related field with a BSN and no additional professional nursing experience.

Nurse II

Demonstrates leadership in delivering and improving holistic care through collaborative strategies with others.

A BSN with 2 years of professional nursing equivalent to Nurse I, Level 3; OR an MSN with one year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse I, Level 3; OR a Master's degree in a *related field with a BSN and one year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse I, Level 3; OR a Doctoral degree in Nursing with no professional nursing experience; OR a Doctoral degree in a *related field with a BSN with no additional professional nursing experience.

Nurse III

Executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience and creative approaches to management of complex client care beyond the immediate practice setting.

MSN and 2 years of specialized nursing experience, one of which is equivalent to Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III; OR a Master's degree in *related field with BSN and two years of specialized nursing experience, one of which is equivalent to Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III; OR a Doctoral degree in Nursing with and one year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III; OR a Doctoral degree in a *related field with a BSN and one year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III.

* Note: Foreign education programs/degrees are not creditable as related degrees.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

Physical Requirements: Heavy Lifting (45 lbs. and over); Moderate Carrying (15-44 lbs.); Pushing; Straight pulling; Pulling hand over hand; Reaching above shoulder; Use of fingers; Both hands required; Walking (up to 6 hours); Standing (up to 6 hours); Kneeling (Intermittent);Repeated bending (up to 6 hours); Both legs required; Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously; Near vision correctable at 13 " to 16"; Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 an to 20/40 in the other; Ability to distinguish shades of colors; Hearing (aid permitted); Emotional and Mental Stability.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards

Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA

Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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