Staff Nurse Union, Rn - Floats

Staff Nurse

A staff nurse is a professional nurse who delegates and coordinates patient care, based upon a documented assessment of the patient’s needs. The staff nurse applies the nursing process of assessment, planning interventions, implementing the plan of care, and evaluating that care. The nurse is a patient advocate, who in conjunction with the other members of the healthcare team guides the patient safely through the hospital stay.

The staff nurse is responsible to the nurse unit manager, or in her/his absence, the supervisor. Staff R.N.s report to the charge nurse regarding patient care matters and understand chain of command.

Job duties include accurately communicating patient data to receiving provider at transitions of care, accurately providing and delegating patient care, collaborating with health care team members to complete hourly rounding, transcribing, observing, and coordinating physician orders, obtaining lab and radiology reports off computer, notifying physician of abnormal results in a timely manner, documenting in a complete, concise manner, utilizing patient plan of care format, participating in discharge planning with the coordination of the Clinical Nurse Leader, initiating, maintaining, administering, and documenting IV Therapy, assisting with orientation of new and current staff and students, coordinating patient/family teaching, checking emails and online learning assignments on a regular basis, and appropriately delegating patient care utilizing clinical judgment and maintaining accountability for patient care.

If designated charge nurse for the department, duties include assisting manager with staff evaluations through input, assisting with quality data collection, assisting supervisor/manager with shift staffing, assigning staff for patient care based on patient acuity, experience of nurses and mix of colleagues, assuring checking/care and documentation of equipment, leading Code Blue until the arrival of physician, responding quickly to Rapid Response Team alerts when assigned, understanding restraint/seclusion policy, procedure, assessments, time frames, criteria for discontinuation and documentation, understanding the development of the Individual Treatment Plan, treatment team meeting time frames, evaluation, and documentation, facilitating and participating in group therapy activities, providing hemodialysis under the supervision of a physician, and maintaining current BLS certification through American Heart Association.

Health caring standards/values include greeting customers, visitors, and Colleagues immediately with a smile, warm greeting, and introduction, always providing a comforting, timely, caring departure, or discharge, and always saying thanks for allowing us to serve. Age-appropriate care includes providing customer service and interacting with age groups as related to the department’s general client population, including use of appropriate interventions, communication, and skills to match the age and/or abilities of the patient/family.

Physical requirements include standing/walking for up to full scheduled shift per day, bending to reach items, reaching overhead, reaching over a bed far enough to give care and turn patients, pushing or pulling patients or necessary equipment, lifting 50 lbs. intermittently, unassisted, moving/transferring and ambulating patients unassisted and/or assisted as necessary using good body mechanics or appropriate techniques, wearing personal protective equipment for an extended period, turning and twisting as necessary, squatting, kneeling, or crawling as necessary, seeing clearly, hearing normal speaking voices, communicating verbally and over the telephone in clear speech, and writing clearly.