Nurse Clinician IV - OR CLC

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s in Nursing.

• Four (4) years of clinical operating room RN experience and approved specialty certification.

 

LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS OR CERTIFICATIONS

Required:

• Registered Nurse (RN). Must possess and maintain a current RN license or valid temporary permit to practice in Texas.

• Current BLS.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Proficient Clinician. Possesses knowledge and skill to meet standards for competent professional nursing practice as specified in the Texas Nurse Practice Act. Practice is characterized by a balance of interdependent/independent decision-making and a consistent holistic approach to patient care. Proficiently functions with the interdisciplinary team; initiates team action to address patient care problems. Provides proficient intraoperative patient care. Actively impart knowledge and skills specific to patients undergoing a surgical procedure. Practice strong patient advocacy role and diligence in the preoperative review of documents and verification of surgical procedure, site and other critical safety checks prior to surgery. Competently circulate in emergent and urgent surgical cases and collaborate with physicians and other members of the surgical team during surgical time outs and debriefing procedures. Enforces aseptic and sterile techniques to all aspects of patient care. Competently and safely operate highly specialize OR equipment Serves as a strong clinical leader on the unit. Directs others in responding to emergent or unusual situations. Takes the lead in developing, implementing and evaluating evidencebased standards of practice for specialty area. Provides patient care through nursing practices based upon the American Nurses Association Standards of Practice and UTMB’s two domains for competency and advancement: Professional Practice, Professional Performance and Association of Perioperative Nurses' (AORN) Standards. Values specialty unit, nursing, and institutional strategic initiatives and health system goals.

 

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

Professional Practice

Nursing Process:

• Using specialized knowledge and skills, proficiently assesses patients and identifies actual and

potential nursing diagnoses/patient care needs.

• Proficiently identifies patient care needs, formulates appropriate nursing diagnoses, develops,

and individualizes care plan, and revises plan of care as needed.

• Proficiently executes healthcare provider orders for all assigned patients including preference

card review for each procedure. Administers medications and treatments and delivers culturally

congruent and specialty appropriate competent nursing care in accordance with UTMB's policies,

procedures, and standards in a caring and compassionate manner.

• Proficiently performs routine and complex technical procedures/skills in assigned specialty area.

• Observes and enforces strict standards of asepsis.

• Document accurately all surgical procedures, documentation, supplies and implants.

• Observes, checks and monitors all equipment used during surgery to confirm they are running

smoothly.

• Assists in positioning, responding to comfort/safety of patient.

• Performs surgical counts (Initial, Closing and Final) and reconcile incorrect counts per policy.

• Provides for accurate care, handling, and documentation of surgical specimens.

• Consults and coordinates with health care team members to assess, plan, implement and evaluate patient care plans.

Patient/Family Teaching & Health Promotion:

• Provides complex patient/family instruction and healthcare teaching based on identified learning needs (patient values, beliefs, barriers, and readiness to learn)

• Identifies potential impact of family dynamics on the teaching plan.

• Utilizes evidence-based resources to provide patient/family education, adhering to patient/family education policy 09.03.04.

• Proficiently uses Teach-Back or other strategies to determine effectiveness and modifies

strategies as needed.

• Analyzes, selects, and utilizes individualized educational support material for patients and families (i.e., Elsevier).

• Coaches others in strategies for patient/family inclusion and serves as a resource to others for

patients/families with complex learning needs

Care Coordination & Delegation:

• Proficiently and independently plans, coordinates, and prioritizes patient care activities according to skill level and work complexity.

• Consults and coordinates with health care team members to assess, plan, implement and evaluate patient care plans.

• Maintains safety and continuity of care using methods such as: handoff tools/processes; role

models and coaches others to utilize these methods.

• Participate actively in surgical time out and debriefing.

• Ensures that operating on correct patient and the correct procedure is being performed.

• Support the surgical technologist during the case effectively.

• Evaluates processes and outcomes of specialty area practices/methods.

• Demonstrates flexibility in time management to manage changing patient priorities; coaches and supports others to plan, coordinate and prioritize.

• Proactively initiates local efforts to improve planning, coordination, and prioritization of patient

care.

• Demonstrates proficient use of technology in the delivery of patient care and serves as a

 resource and provides trouble shooting support to others; participates in education of others in

implementation of new technology/processes. Delegates appropriately; may seek guidance or

clarification of non-routinely delegated tasks; coaches others to optimize safe & effective

delegation.

Professional Performance

Ethics (legal/regulatory), Advocacy & Culturally Congruent Care:

• Identifies ethical situations and initiates appropriate communication/consultation to address;

recognizes situations in which personal bias may influence actions; facilitates communication

with and provides support to team members to address.

• Delivers culturally sensitive care using available resources to meet the needs of patient/family;

recognizes situations in which personal bias may influence; Role models culturally sensitive care

to less experienced clinicians.

• Actively serves as a patient/family advocate, consistently focuses on patient/family rights and

meeting their individual needs; serves as a role model/coach to other staff who may need

assistance with patient advocacy.

• Diligent in the preoperative review of documents and verification of surgical procedure, site and other critical safety checks prior to surgery.

Communication & Collaboration:

• Supports healthy work environment by demonstrating respectful verbal and non-verbal

communication with all members of the healthcare team; may seek support with challenging

communication issues; addresses behavior that does not support respectful environment.

• Recognizes colleagues when they go above and beyond in demonstrating UTMB’s core values.

• Proficiently plans, coordinates, and prioritizes patient care activities in

collaboration/communication with inter-professional team, including consult recommendations.

• Actively invests and engages in improving or maintaining staff morale and satisfaction.

• Able to take call status and respond to the emergencies per policy, “stay days” and work long and unpredictable hours.

• Thrives and maintains collegiality and professionalism during high-stress situations.

• Support the surgical technologist during the case effectively.

Leadership:

• Actively facilitates communication with informal and formal unit/hospital leaders and can educate colleagues regarding unit/hospital leadership.

• Actively leads area professional governance, unit meetings, or a unit initiative. AND

• Actively participates in hospital-level professorial governance, groups, or initiatives, and

encourages colleague participation.

• Completes one Professional Leadership Activity annually.

• Recognizes informal and formal unit/hospital leaders and can educate colleagues regarding

unit/hospital leadership.

• Monitors unit, nursing, and institutional strategic initiatives and health system goals.

• Recognizes the importance of financial responsibility to promote fiscal health for the patient, unit and organization.

• Demonstrates openness to change by actively seeking knowledge and needed information; uses

positive role modeling to promote understanding of change to colleagues; actively addresses

colleagues demonstrating resistance to change by positive communication, education or other

appropriate method.

• Incorporates methods/strategies to facilitate change behaviors with colleagues.

• Exemplifies appropriate level of engagement when advocating and influencing patients, families, colleagues, other members of the healthcare team.

• Actively supports implementation and dissemination of processes/standards at the unit level.

• Functions as a skilled leader, providing direction and assistance to team members.

• Actively involved in the training and orientation of new employees, students, residents, and

guests of our department.

• Identifies development needs of self and others; sets challenging and realistic goals and assists

others with the development of challenging and realistic goals.

• Collaborate with the OR management in maintaining and updating surgeon’s preference cards.

• Identifies learning needs of self and others; sets challenging and realistic goals and develops

learning opportunities to meet goals.

Education, Evidence-Based Practice & Research:

• Validates specialized perioperative nursing knowledge.

• Indicates attainment of current perioperative nursing practice standards.

• Actively participates in unit meetings/activities and supports the philosophy and goals of the

unit/department and UTMB.

• Actively participates in presentations, professional development activities; encourages

attendance/participation of colleagues.

• Participates in one journal club annually.

• Shares educational findings, experiences, and ideas with colleagues through professional

governance meetings, presentations, professional development activities.

• Serves as a role model; coaches colleagues to utilize evidence-based resources; identifies needs

for additional resources.

• Demonstrates commitment to lifelong learning, as evidenced by advanced degree, certification in specialty care area, utilization/dissemination of evidence-based resources, etc.

• Demonstrates knowledge and utilization of evidence-based resources to guide patient care;

serves as a role model and coaches colleagues to utilize evidence-based resources and identifies

need for additional resources.

• Incorporates evidence-based resources into provision of care; provides feedback to others and

uses findings to assess unit/department trends.

Quality, Resources & Safety:

• Actively participates in unit-based quality improvement activities; encourages colleagues’

participation.

• Identifies patient safety concerns, and reports appropriately; addresses immediate safety

concerns appropriately; serves as a resource to assist colleagues to safely and effectively address

patient or unit safety concerns.

• Coaches others in understanding unit and hospital quality metrics/outcomes data and

improvement activities; actively engages in discussion, activities related to unit goals;

participates in systematic processes to achieve quality outcomes.

• Identifies area safety trends and leads problem-solving activities.

• Actively participates in the development and/or promotion of mechanisms/processes for unit or

hospital related improvement initiatives.

• Partners with unit leaders to implement safety solutions.

• Demonstrates self-care through practices that support personal well-being, personal safety and

injury prevention.

General Requirements

• Completes required specialty specific Competency Based Orientation (CBO) tools by the initial

performance evaluation due date for placement in employee file.

• Actively participates in the initial and ongoing evaluation of competency using competency-based orientation (CBO) tools and e-performance nursing evaluation.

• Completes the annual self-evaluation on time for competency and performance evaluation.

• Performs and reports point of care testing (POCT) as ordered if working in OR holding area.

• Prioritizes and organizes work so that required assignments are completed within a specified time frame.

• Proficiently assists with activities for assigned area embodying UTMB’s core values.

• Provides and maintains a clean, safe environment and performs and/or assists others to perform

proper aseptic technique, isolation procedures and infection control measures.

• Promotes and demonstrates acceptable productivity and practices cost containment for nursing

practice and patient care.

• Proficiently and consistently completes accurate, concise, and legible documentation on all

patient, unit and hospital records (including care delivery and telephone patient related

interactions)

• Proficiently utilizes electronic forms of communication and documentation.

• Participates in the development and implementation of mechanisms/processes that promote

optimal use of documentation systems.

• Meets periodic UTMB and unit specific compliance requirements for health screening, training,

attendance, safety and CPR.

Marginal or Periodic Functions:

• Adheres to internal controls and reporting structure.

• Performs related duties as required.