Nurse Navigator - Oral Surgery

At Duke Health, we're driven by a commitment to compassionate care that changes the lives of patients, their loved ones, and the greater community. No matter where your talents lie, join us and discover how we can advance health together.

About Duke University Hospital

Pursue your passion for caring with Duke University Hospital in Durham, North Carolina, which is consistently ranked among the best in the United States. The largest of the four Duke Healthhospitals with 1062 patient beds, it features comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic facilities, including a regional emergency/trauma center, an endo-surgery center, and more.

Duke Oral Surgery Clinic, 1F is seeking a Nurse Navigator who will embrace our mission of Advancing Health Together.
 

Clinic Summary:

Oral and Maxillofacial Trauma Surgery provides treatment of patients who are both physician and self-referred for evaluation and treatment of facial trauma, tooth extractions, soft and hard tissue lesions requiring further evaluation and/or biopsy, obstructive sleep apnea and chronic snoring, cleft palate reconstruction, TMJ issues or orthognathic surgery evaluation.

Dental Services provides treatment of patients with complex disease processes who are physician and self-referred for evaluation and treatment of the following: tooth extractions, fillings, consults, x-rays, biopsies, sealants, and fluoride treatments.

Job Summary:

The Nurse Navigator (NN) is a professional RN with service line specific clinical knowledge who offers individualized assistance across the care continuum to patients, families, and caregivers to expedite and coordinate care, and address health system barriers. The NN assumes responsibility for the coordination of patient care through interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary collaboration to achieve optimal patient outcomes with a focus on high-risk patients or those with complex care needs (including multidisciplinary care). The NN has a particular focus on improving transitions in care and adherence to care. Additionally, the NN functions as a clinical advocate and educator for patients. The NN assists to build and maintain community relationships to provide expedient and reliable access to quality care. The NN identifies and alleviates stressors during transitions and barriers to care with the aim to deliver a seamless model of care that benefits patients, family members, providers, and the healthcare team.

Work Performed

• Assess and facilitate coordination of multidisciplinary care across the care continuum.
• Provide communication, advocacy, and education in a culturally competent manner.
• Ability to clinically triage new patient referrals efficiently on a daily basis, to ensure timely access to care.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary care team and expedite sequence of patient's workup, active treatment, survivorship, and end of life care.
• Provide communication and reinforcement of clinical information and serve as a conduit between patient and providers/clinicians to address needs of patients.
• Targeted symptom assessment and management for identified patient population.
• Assess health literacy and educational needs of patient.
• Provide clinical education about diagnosis, treatment, side effects, and post- treatment care.
• Assess and document patient's needs, goals, and preferences and work to ensure such are integrated into treatment and care delivery.
• Bridge gaps in care, and assess/troubleshoot care transitions and barriers to care.
• Facilitate advanced care planning and transition of active treatment to palliative or end-of-life care.
• Document all patient encounters in EPIC.
• Enhance access to therapeutic clinical trials and optimize communication with patients, families and investigators regarding therapeutic clinical trials, including patient-specific education about clinical trials.
• Encourage and empower patients to actively participate in decision- making about their treatment and care. Possess leadership skills including staff education, preceptorship, patient education, and participate in process improvement initiatives.
• Practice according to professional and legal standards.
• Maintain navigation services documentation according to program standards.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Excellent written, oral, and conversational communication skills to effectively work with diverse groups.
• Ability to analyze, evaluate multiple solutions and solve complex problems using well developed critical & analytical thinking skills.
• Excellent time management skills needed to prioritize among many competing priorities. Attention to detail needed to operate accurately and effectively.
• Mastery of Microsoft Office, especially Word and Excel, and use of health record for documentation and/or reporting.
• Ability to promote programs and services to community Extensive understanding of patient care Proficient in review of medical records and other patient care information.
• Demonstrated skills in verbal and written communication.
• Ability to maintain strict confidentiality.
• Ability to promote and build teamwork and multidisciplinary care concept.

Minimum Qualifications

Education

• BSN required.
• Specialty certification and/or MSN preferred.

Experience

• Experience in Trauma, Neurotrauma or Traumatic Brain Injury and Rehabilitation is strongly preferred.
• Experience in nurse navigation preferred.
• Completion of national nurse navigation training preferred
• Metric tracking skills

Degrees, Licensures, Certifications

• Must have current or compact RN licensure in the state of North Carolina. BLS required.