House Supervisor

Description

PRN House Supervisor (Relief Nursing Supervisor) 

Department: Nursing Administration    Reports to: Chief Nursing Officer 

Supervises: All on-duty nursing and nursing support personnel for the assigned shift while serving in the House Supervisor role (functional shift authority; disciplinary authority rests with the CNO) 

License required: Current, unencumbered Louisiana Registered Nurse license 

Status: PRN / as needed. The employee maintains a primary staff assignment in the Emergency Department or the Medical/Swing Unit and serves in the House Supervisor role only when scheduled or called in to do so. 

FLSA status: Non-exempt~ 

Position Summary 

The PRN House Supervisor is a current Bunkie General Hospital nursing employee who has been selected, oriented, and approved by the Chief Nursing Officer to assume the full House Supervisor role when a House Supervisor is absent or when additional supervisory coverage is required. 

When working in this capacity, the employee carries the same authority, the same responsibilities, and the same accountability as the full-time House Supervisor. This is a leadership assignment, not coverage of an empty slot. The employee is expected to supervise, decide, document, and hold staff accountable, including staff who are peers in the employee’s regular role. 

Relationship to the House Supervisor job description. While assigned to a House Supervisor shift, the PRN House Supervisor performs all duties described in Sections 1 through 10 of the House Supervisor job description. That document is incorporated here by reference and is signed as a condition of this appointment. The responsibilities below are in addition to, not in place of, those duties.~ 

1. Role Transition and Dual-Role Expectations 

• Reports directly to the CNO, rather than to unit or charge staff, for the duration of any shift worked in the House Supervisor role. 
• Notifies the CNO when accepting, releasing, or being unable to fill a scheduled House Supervisor shift. 
• Does not carry a primary patient assignment while serving as House Supervisor, except as directed by the escalation triggers in the staffing matrix. 
• Receives handoff from the outgoing House Supervisor and gives handoff to the incoming House Supervisor: open items, pending admissions and transfers, staffing issues, active plans of correction, and anything requiring follow-up. 
• Completes the Supervisor Shift Log and LERN portal entry for every House Supervisor shift worked, to the same standard expected of the full-time House Supervisor. 
• Returns unresolved items to the House Supervisor and the CNO in writing at the end of the shift rather than leaving them undocumented for the next person to discover. 
• Resumes the regular staff role at the end of the assignment and does not carry supervisory authority, access, or decision-making into subsequent shifts. 

2. Cross-Unit Competency Maintenance 

• Maintains current, documented competency in the primary unit of assignment, validated within the preceding twelve months. 
• Works a minimum of four (4) hours per calendar month in the unit opposite the primary assignment — Emergency Department staff on the Medical/Swing Unit, Medical/Swing Unit staff in the Emergency Department — to maintain working familiarity with workflow, documentation, equipment, supply location, and staff. 
• Logs these hours and submits them to the CNO monthly. Hours not worked are made up in the following month; a repeated shortfall is grounds for suspension of the appointment. 
• Completes the same annual competency validations, skills days, and unit-specific education required of staff assigned to both units. 
• Maintains working knowledge of swing bed regulatory requirements, EMTALA requirements, LERN reporting, downtime procedures, and the OPCQ staffing tool. 

3. Confidentiality, Impartiality, and Peer Leadership 

• Maintains strict confidentiality of patient information, personnel matters, performance concerns, staffing decisions, investigations, disciplinary actions, and administrative discussions learned while serving in the House Supervisor role. This information is not shared with staff, including staff the employee works alongside in the regular assignment. 
• Does not discuss supervisory observations, decisions, or conversations after returning to the staff role, and does not disclose what was learned in the role to explain or justify a decision to peers. 
• Supervises and evaluates peers without regard to friendship, personal history, tenure, or social relationship. Policy is applied the same way to every employee. 
• Documents and reports performance concerns to the CNO promptly and accurately even when the employee involved is a peer, and does not soften, omit, or delay a report to avoid personal discomfort or workplace fallout. 
• Does not use the supervisory role to gain advantage, settle disputes, extend favors, or influence assignments, scheduling, or float decisions on a personal basis. 
• Discloses to the CNO, and is relieved of the decision in, any situation in which the employee cannot act impartially — a family member, a close personal relationship, or an active personal conflict with a staff member involved. 
• Does not participate in, encourage, or tolerate gossip, side conversations about staff performance, or discussion of hospital business in patient care areas or public spaces, in either role. 
• Does not use the title or authority of the position for personal status among peers. 
• Accepts that the role carries a degree of professional distance and maintains that distance without becoming unapproachable. 

4. Communication, Critical Thinking, and Chain of Command 

• Communicates clearly, directly, and professionally with patients, families, staff, providers, EMS, and outside agencies, adjusting approach to the audience and to the urgency of the situation. 
• Uses therapeutic communication with patients and families, including during grief, agitation, intoxication, behavioral crisis, and the delivery of difficult news. 
• Applies verbal de-escalation as the first-line response to escalating patients, families, or visitors. Restraint, security involvement, and law enforcement are used only after less restrictive measures have failed or when safety is immediately threatened. 
• Follows and models the established chain of command, both in escalating issues and in receiving direction. 
• Escalates to the CNO promptly when a situation exceeds the authority of the role, rather than deferring it to the next shift or holding it until the regular House Supervisor returns. 
• Demonstrates sound critical thinking and independent judgment: anticipates problems, prioritizes under competing demands, acts decisively within scope and authority, and recognizes the limits of that authority. 
• Represents hospital and leadership decisions accurately and supportively to staff, raising disagreement through the chain of command rather than in front of the team. 
• Addresses conflict directly with the individual involved and escalates to the CNO rather than discussing concerns with uninvolved staff. 
• Gives and receives feedback constructively, in private, and in a manner that preserves the dignity of the employee. 
• Maintains professional composure and demeanor under pressure, during conflict, and when personally in disagreement with a decision.~ 

Qualifications 

Required 

• Current, unencumbered Louisiana RN license. 
• Current employment with Bunkie General Hospital in the Emergency Department or the Medical/Swing Unit. 
• Minimum twelve months of employment at Bunkie General Hospital, or equivalent experience accepted at the discretion of the CNO. 
• BLS, ACLS, PALS, and TNCC or trauma training equivalent — all certifications obtained within three months of appointment. 
• Documented proficient competency in the primary unit of assignment, validated within the preceding twelve months. 
• Willingness and ability to complete a minimum of four hours per calendar month in the opposite unit, and agreement to maintain competency in both the inpatient/swing bed unit and the Emergency Department. 
• No active disciplinary action or performance improvement plan within the preceding twelve months. 
• Demonstrated ability to maintain confidentiality regarding patient, personnel, and administrative matters. 
• Demonstrated fair, impartial, and consistent leadership in a peer environment. 
• Demonstrated professional and therapeutic communication skills and verbal de-escalation technique. 
• Demonstrated adherence to the chain of command. 
• Demonstrated critical thinking and independent clinical judgment under pressure. 
• Recommendation and written approval of the Chief Nursing Officer. 

Preferred 

• BSN. 
• Prior charge nurse or comparable shift-leadership experience. 
• NRP, ENPC, stroke scale certification. 
• Formal crisis prevention and de-escalation training (CPI, MOAB, or equivalent). 
• Swing bed or skilled nursing experience. 

Appointment, Orientation, and Review 

• Completes the full House Supervisor orientation curriculum, including the regulatory, staffing matrix, OPCQ, EMTALA, LERN, and downtime components. 
• Works a minimum of three precepted shifts alongside a House Supervisor before being released to independent assignment. 
• Signs both the House Supervisor job description and this PRN addendum prior to the first independent shift. 
• Works a minimum number of House Supervisor shifts per quarter, as set by the CNO, to maintain the appointment. 
• Appointment is reviewed annually by the CNO and may be suspended or rescinded at any time, for any reason, without affecting the employee’s primary position.~ 

Performance Expectations 

Expectation 

Target 

Supervisor Shift Log and LERN portal completed and submitted 

100% of House Supervisor shifts worked 

Cross-unit hours completed and logged 

Minimum 4 hours per calendar month 

Competency validation current for primary unit 

100% 

Required certifications current 

100% 

Confidentiality and professional conduct 

No substantiated breach 

Verbal de-escalation attempted and documented prior to restraint, when safety permits 

100% of applicable events 

Safe staffing and patient assignments 

100% of House Supervisor shifts 

House Supervisor shifts worked to maintain appointment 

Minimum set by CNO, per quarter 

Employee Signature: ______________________________________    

Printed Name: _______________________________ 

CNO Signature: _________________________________________     

Printed Name: _______________________________ 

Date of Appointment: ____________________        Date of Annual Review: ____________________ 

This job description reflects the general nature and level of work performed and is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required. Bunkie General Hospital reserves the right to amend this description at any time.