Bilingual Licensed Practical Nurse

Job Description

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Hospice nurse plans, organizes and directs hospice care and is experienced in nursing, with emphasis on community health education / experience. The Hospice nurse plays a key role in easing physical and psychosocial symptoms, while initiating communication with the interdisciplinary team to establish a plan of care for each patient.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

• 1. Performs all duties and responsibilities in accordance with the Nurse Practice Act and in accordance with basic principles and guidelines of professional nurses.
• 2. Performs an initial, comprehensive, and ongoing comprehensive assessment of patient and family to determine hospice needs.
• 3. Provides a complete physical assessment and history, including symptom and pain management, of current and previous illnesses.
• 4. Responsible for initiating reviewing and revising each patient’s plan of care, as assigned.
• 5. Completes visit documentation in accordance with the Hospice Medicare Benefit guidelines and regulations.
• 6. Provides education regarding disease process, death and dying with each scheduled visit.
• 7. Contacts patient and / or family prior to visit to remind or schedule the visit.
• 9. Initiates appropriate preventive and rehabilitative nursing procedures.
• 10. Administers medications and treatments as prescribed by the physician in the physician’s plan of care.
• 11. Provides safety and emergency preparedness education at each visit.
• 12. Practices and teaches patients / families infection control precautions.
• 13. Responsible for ordering and re-ordering hospice covered medications.
• 14. Assesses and monitors the need for durable medical equipment and orders as needed.
• 15. Assists the patient with activities of daily living and facilitates the patient’s efforts toward self-sufficiency and optimal comfort care.
• 16. Coordinates patient care with interdisciplinary team that promotes continuity of care.
• 17. Responsible for direct supervision of hospice aides.
• 18. Attends Interdisciplinary team meetings and completes interdisciplinary notes prior to team meeting.
• 19. Takes evening and / or weekend On-Call if needed and as designated.
• 20. Responsible for working one major and one minor holiday on-call shift annually.
• 21. Responsible for attending deaths, pronouncing deaths and completion of all paperwork for coroner’s office, if county permits.
• 22. Practices collaboration of care with skilled nursing facilities, primary care physician, patient, and family with each visit or significant change in patient status.
• 23. Participates in agency safety, wound care, or infection control committee.
• 24. Completes re-certification note and LCD for each re-certification period.
• 25. Responsible for oversight of medication disposal upon death in accordance with state and federal regulations.
• 26. Completion of Hospice Aide competency at 90-days and annually, adhering to those items which must be demonstrated.
• 27. Assesses caregiver ability to care for patients and recommends residency setting changes.
• 28. Assesses patients for level of care change needs and collaborates with the hospice Medical Director.
• 29. Completes orders and all necessary documents for level of care changes.
• 30. Reports ethical situations for review and participates in Ethics Meetings.
• 31. Provides and documents supervisory visits of hospice aide every fourteen (14) days, ensuring Hospice Aide plan of care is conducive to patient needs and followed through.
• 32. Adheres to agency complaint process and provide in writing any complaints received by patients/families or external customers.
• 33. Assumes responsibility for personal growth and development and maintains and upgrades professional knowledge and practice skills through attendance and participation in continuing education and in-services.
• 34. Makes patient visits outside of assigned territory as assigned by Clinical Supervisor/Clinical Director.
• 35. Provides eight (8) hours of availability each work day to assist with admissions or additional patient visits.
• 36. Complies with all Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements in accordance with federal, state, and organizational policies.

REQUIRED SKILLS, ABILITIES AND KNOWLEDGE:

• 1. Assess, evaluate, and respond to patient situations quickuily, providing emergency care in crisis as quickly as possible.
• 2. Ability to work independently, while collaborating with other team members and managers..
• 3. Works with diverse social and economic situations without imposing own values on patient or family.
• 4. Maintains appropriate professional bounda