Registered Nurse – Service Lead OR General Surgery/Trauma

Job Profile Summary 

​This role focuses on providing professional and nonprofessional nursing care services in accordance with physician orders.  In addition, this role focuses on performing the following Clinical Nurse duties: Assesses, plans, implements, and evaluates the care needs of a designated group of patients or provides nursing care and identified clinical support tasks within the scope of practice for achievement of the patient’s plan of care as directed.  Provides professional nursing care to patients. Requires a nursing license.   A professional individual contributor role that may direct the work of other lower level professionals or manage processes and programs.  The majority of time is spent overseeing the design, implementation or delivery of processes, programs and policies using specialized knowledge and skills typically acquired through advanced education.   A senior level role that requires advanced knowledge of job area typically obtained through advanced education and work experience.  Typically responsible for: managing projects / processes, working independently with limited supervision, coaching and reviewing the work of lower level professionals, resolving difficult and sometimes complex problems. 

Job Overview 

This position is responsible for the development of nursing staff within a specified area of practice and for impacting patient outcomes through consultation on patient care issues in addition to perioperative registered nursing (RN) duties. This role encompasses the following areas: clinical practice, professional development, collaboration/consultation, staff development, leadership and evidence based practice. 

Job Description 

Minimum Qualifications: 

1. Bachelors Degree in Nursing. 

2. Basic Life Support (BLS) certification. 

3. Registered Nurse (RN) license. 

4. Two (2) years of nursing experience with one year in clinical specialty. 

5. Certifications (i.e. ACLS, PALS) relevant to the department and type of care being provided may be required.

Preferred Qualifications: 

1. Three (3) years of nursing experience with one year in clinical specialty 

Duties and Responsibilities: The duties and responsibilities listed below are intended to describe the general nature of work and are not intended to be an all-inclusive list.  Other duties and responsibilities may be assigned. 

1. Interprets, supports, and practices the mission and philosophy of hospital and the Operating Room. 

2. Serves as a clinical resource, consultant and role model for nursing staff providing support in the practice of perioperative nursing.  

3. Provides support and expertise to the Department of Surgery in the care and education of staff, physicians and patients within area of specialty. 

4. Integrates knowledge, research findings and experience to enhance nursing practice and to promote excellence in patient care.  

5. Maintain flexibility and adapts to a variety of workload assignments.  

6. Uses expert clinical skills to provide ongoing assessment and evaluation of nursing care. 

7. Develops, monitors, and evaluates QI projects on a unit and hospital level using quality outcome indicators. Plans one QA project per year, related to service area. 

8. Serves on a committee at the unit, surgical services or hospital level. 

9. Validates and benchmarks nursing practice within specialty area. 

10. Responds to service related needs for new products and equipment, and following established processes for acquisition of these. 

11. Responsible for service related resource materials, including preference cards and nursing help manuals. 

12. Maintains competency in organizational, departmental, and outside agency safety standards relative to job requirements. Meets all hospital/ operating room mandatory requirements. 

13. Promotes clinical expertise using various methods such as networking, professional development and literature review. 

14. Networks with management, other hospitals, physicians, peers, and Manager of Quality Outcomes for role development. 

15. Serves as a clinical role model. 

16. Collaborates and coordinates resources to facilitate patients’ plan of care; provides direct and/or indirect care to patients including scrubbing and circulating. 

17. Collaborates/consults with other affiliates in the value analysis of supplies and equipment and evaluates the impact of supply and equipment changes on the environment of care. 

18. Consults with other members of the unit based management team on patient care, staff development and practice issues. 

19. Collaborates on an interdisciplinary basis to develop protocols, policies and procedures and practice guidelines. 

20. Collaborates with nurses and other members of the health care team related to the patient plan of care. 

21.Collaborates with the management team and staff in the development, facilitation, and evaluation of orientation framework for the specialty area. 

22. Helps develop, implement, and evaluate unit based / specialty based competencies in partnership with the quality outcomes staff. 

23. Assesses learning needs of staff and provides formal and informal educational opportunities to increase knowledge and improve clinical care.  

24. Trains staff or arrange education on new products and/or service related equipment and monitors compliance and ongoing competency. 

25. Assists in mandatory education activities. Gives at least one service-related educational presentation per year. 

26. Evaluates current practice in service area using national bench marking. 

27. Facilitates an empowered environment that recognizes and responds to psychosocial, developmental, and professional practice issues through mentoring, group support, personal consultation, resource identification and team building. 

28. Demonstrates a commitment to addressing ongoing cost effectiveness of patient care delivery, a skill set in financial management, to include cost management for service area. 

29. Accountable for providing clinically sound and evidence-based information. Helps write policies based on AORN standards and other outside agency requirements, such as the Joint Commission and FDA. 

30. Participates in research activities. 

31. Incorporates cultural and age appropriate care in all aspects of patient care and interactions with physicians, management, peers, and visitors in the OR, and anyone who will be greeted as a customer of the hospital. Has the skills and knowledge to provide care to the age groups of the population served including: Knowledge of growth and development; Ability to interpret age specific data and response to care; and Provide age appropriate communication. 

Physical Requirements:  

1. Prolonged, extensive, or considerable standing/walking. 

2. Lifts, positions, pushes and/or transfer patients and equipment. 

3. Considerable reaching, stooping, bending, kneeling, crouching. 

4. Frequent exposure to hazardous chemicals, sick patients, bodily substances, noise and possible exposure to radiation, lasers, electric shock, etc. 

5. Regularly exposed to the risk of bloodborne diseases and other transmissible infections. 

6. Contact with patients under wide variety of circumstances. 

7. Subject to varying and unpredictable situations. 

8. Handle emergency and crisis situations. 

9. Subjected to irregular hours. 

10. May have contact with hazardous materials. 

Skills & Abilities: 

1. Effective written and verbal communication skills. Can communicate with a wide variety of audiences. 

2. Able to work independently and utilize time management concepts to maximize time efficiency.