Nurse Practitioner Surgical Intensive Care Unit; SICU

Job Requirements

The Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) is a 24-bed unit. Our patient population spans several surgical services including transplant, vascular, oral maxillary facial, emergency, orthopedic, oncology, gynecologic, and thoracic surgery. The SICU Advanced Practice Provider (APP) team consists of 11 APPs. In collaboration with and under the direction of the attending physician and the Department Director, the Advance Practice Provider (APP) provides day-to-day organizational and clinical direction of the healthcare provider team serving surgical intensive care unit patients to ensure continuity of patient care by facilitating and coordinating communication between the health care team, patients, families, and the coordination of care to ensure quality, cost effectiveness;

appropriate length of stay; and patient safety. The APP participates in the development and advancement of evidence-based best practices and supports formal and informal educational programs for other members of the health care team.

• Demonstrates competence in clinical assessment and decision making including diagnostic reasoning and problem solving.
• Performs comprehensive history and physical assessment for patients admitted/scheduled to service/practice setting.
• Orders, obtains and interprets appropriate diagnostic tests.
• Establishes medical diagnosis based on history, assessment, and diagnostic findings.
• Designs, orders and documents appropriate treatment plans/plans of care including prescriptions of medications based on a comprehensive review of HPI and diagnostic results.
• Initiates protocols/clinical pathways, evaluates the plan of care ensuring timely intervention.
• Performs invasive procedures: central, arterial, hemodialysis, pulmonary artery catheter line insertion, removal of chest tubes, thoracentesis.
• Collaborates with attending physicians and clinicians regarding admission, discharge and transfer decisions.
• Presents patients in the Advanced Practice Provider’s caseload on rounds.
• Communicates plan of care with the interdisciplinary team.
• Incorporates the patient and family into their healthcare plan; communicates plan of care with the patients and family members. Provides patient and family instruction related to the plan of care, disease process, new treatment plans, and medication regimens.
• Counsels and educates patients and family members in disease process, health maintenance, and health promotion activities. Provides primary, secondary, and tertiary preventive care services.
• Initiates appropriate referrals and specialty consultations or other agency involvement as needed.
• Facilitates patient flow. Collaborates with the multidisciplinary team including case management ensuring appropriate and timely discharge.
• Provides specialty consultation.
• Advocates for patients ensuring patient/family participation in care, knowledge of treatment options, and understanding of patient rights.
• Considers the holistic needs of patients and orchestrates resources (i.e. pain service, palliative care).
• Demonstrates ethical decision-making incorporating other healthcare team members as appropriate.
• Uses evidence-based interventions and best practice guidelines in planning patient care.
• Provides safe patient care through compliance with National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG).
• Serves as a role model and educator for nurses and other healthcare personnel.
• Collects and completes STS documentation of clinical variables in a complete, accurate and timely manner.

• Promotes understanding of disease processes in area of specialty/program.
• Functions as a clinical resource for other team members including but not limited to interns, residents, fellows, nurses, and medical students.
• Assists with providing community education, health promotion and outreach, as requested. Acts as a community health resource for specialty disease entity.
• Participates in educational strategies that help APPs improve clinical outcomes.
• Participates in educational development in the following:
  • Staff development
  • Health-related community service activity
  • Orientation of new employees
  • Orientation of house staff rotating…