Wound Ostomy Continence Nurse - Ostomy

Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurse

The Wound, Ostomy, and Continence (WOC) Nurse provides comprehensive specialized nursing care across the full scope of WOC practice, including direct patient care, education, counseling, research, and administrative functions. The WOC Nurse promotes safe, evidence-based, and patient-centered care to optimize clinical outcomes, support appropriate resource utilization, and facilitate coordinated discharge planning. The WOC Nurse serves as a clinical expert and consultant for the management of patients with altered skin integrity and complex wounds, ostomies involving diversion of the urinary and/or gastrointestinal tract, and incontinence of the bowel or bladder.

Primary Responsibilities

1. Provides expert consultation to providers and staff for the assessment and management of patients with wounds, ostomies, or continence related issues, including recommendations for appropriate ostomy appliance needs, specialty surfaces, dressings, and offloading/positioning devices.
2. Assists nursing in utilization of case-finding strategies (e.g., unit rounds, electronic reports, chart reviews) to identify patients at risk for wounds, ostomies, or continence issues.
3. Identifies educational needs of the patient/significant other, clinical staff, and the community. Assists in the development and implementation of formal and informal educational offerings.
4. Supports the orientation and precepting of undergraduate and graduate nursing students, clinical associates, and RNs seeking WOC certification.
5. Contributes to the development, implementation, and evaluation of standards of care, policies/procedures, and clinical pathways related to patients with wounds, ostomies, fistulas, skin alterations, and incontinence.
6. Participates on relevant committees, such as Risk Management, Clinical Best Practice, Product Standards, etc. and Assumes leadership roles, per needs of specific facility.
7. Influences and supports research and quality improvement initiatives to enhance practice and outcomes (e.g., performance improvement projects, product evaluations), actively monitoring and analyzing quality metrics, per needs of specific facility.
8. Serves as community resource for related support groups as needed to promote continuity of care after discharge from the hospital.
9. Contributes to a positive patient experience as demonstrated by patient satisfaction and Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) scores, and through active participation in initiatives such as the No Pass Zone by responding promptly to call lights and bed exit alarms.
10. Ensures accurate and timely documentation of WOC assessments, interventions, and outcomes in the electronic health record, in accordance with hospital policy and regulatory standards.

Work Experience

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Nursing (BSN).
• Work Experience: Two (2) years' experience as an RN.
• Licensure: Registered Nurse (RN) licensure in the State of Florida or endorsement.
• Certification:

1. American Heart Association Basic Life Support (AHA BLS) Healthcare Provider Completion Card prior to start date and maintained.
2. Board Certifications in Wound, and Ostomy by the WOC Nursing Certification Board prior to start date and maintained.

• Skills/Knowledge/Abilities: Demonstrates advanced nursing knowledge and practice for patients with ostomies, draining wounds, fistulas, alterations of skin integrity and incontinence, including conservative sharp debridement.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certification: Board Certification Continence by the WOC Nursing Certification Board prior to start date and maintained.

Physical Requirements

• Physically agile; may require walking, standing, running, bending, stooping, kneeling, climbing, or crouching frequently.
• May occasionally include lifting or moving objects up to 50 pounds, with or without assistance.
• May require moving in different positions to accomplish tasks in various environments including tight and confined spaces, including reaching out and above shoulders, or overhead.
• May lift, turn, pull, push, or ambulate people and/or equipment with or without assistance up to 90% of the assigned shift.
• May be exposed to inside and outside environments with varied temperatures, air quality, lighting, and/or low to loud noise.
• May require working with biohazards such as blood/body fluids and airborne particles following OSHA and CDC guidelines.
• Communicating with others to exchange information.
• Visual acuity and hand-eye coordination to perform tasks.
• Workspace may vary from open to confined.
• May require travel to various facilities within and beyond county perimeter; may require use of personal vehicle.

Benefits

At Health First, diversity and inclusion are essential for our continued growth and evolution. Working together, we strive to build and nurture a culture that recognizes, encourages, and respects the diverse voices of our associates. We know through experience that different ideas, perspectives, and backgrounds create a stronger and more collaborative work environment that delivers better results. As an organization, it fuels our innovation and connects us closer to our associates, customers, and the communities we serve.

Schedule: Full-Time

Shift Times: 8:00am-4:30pm

Paygrade: PG-PG-PG-41