Registered Nurse; RN Inpatient Rehab

The rehabilitation staff nurse works in an inpatient setting in the Rehab unit of the facility.

General responsibilities of the rehabilitation staff nurse

• Possesses the specialized knowledge and clinical skills necessary to provide care for people with physical disability and chronic illness
• Coordinates educational activities and uses appropriate resources to develop and implement an individualized teaching and discharge plan with clients and their families
• Performs hands-on nursing care by utilizing the nursing process to achieve quality outcomes for clients
• Provides direction and supervision of ancillary nursing personnel, demonstrates professional judgment, uses problem solving techniques and time-management principles, and delegates appropriately
• Coordinates nursing care activities in collaboration with other members of the interdisciplinary rehabilitation team to facilitate achievement of overall goals
• Coordinates a holistic approach to meeting patient's medical, vocational, educational, and environmental needs
• Demonstrates effective oral and written communication skills to develop a rapport with clients, their families, and health team members and to ensure the fulfilment of requirements for legal documentation and reimbursement
• Acts as a resource and a role model for nursing staff and students and participates in activities such as nursing committees and professional organizations that promote the improvement of nursing care and the advancement of professional rehabilitation nursing
• Encourages others to become CRRN certified, obtain advance degrees, participate on committees, and/or join professional organizations
• Facilitates community education regarding acceptance of people with disabilities
• Actively engages in legislative Initiatives affecting the practice of rehabilitation nursing or the people in their care
• Applies nursing research to clinical practice and participates in nursing research studies

Roles and functions of the rehabilitation staff nurse

Teacher

• Shares information about the disease processes underlying disabilities and teaches nursing techniques to help clients and their families develop the self-care skills necessary to move toward wellness on the illness-wellness continuum
• Prepares clients and their families for future self-management and decision-making responsibilities by fostering clients' independence and goal achievement
• Reinforces the teaching done by specialists in rehabilitation and other healthcare disciplines, provides resource materials for clients' changing needs, and provides on-going patient education after discharge
• Provides in-service education for healthcare team members and members of the community regarding the prevention of disabilities

Caregiver

• Assesses the physical, psychological, sociocultural, and spiritual dimensions of clients and their families, as well as their educational and discharge needs in order to formulate nursing diagnoses
• Plans nursing care while acknowledging that rehabilitation nursing is practiced within a dynamic, therapeutic, and supportive relationship that is constantly changing, as nurses and clients influence one another
• Implements a plan of care by providing nursing care and education directly or through ancillary personnel, as needed, to maintain and restore function and prevent complications and further loss
• Evaluates the nursing care that is being provided and modifies the plan, as needed, to achieve measurable goals and objectives

Collaborator

• Develops goals, in collaboration with clients, their families, and the rehabilitation team, that are oriented to wellness behavior and are reality based and that encourage socialization with others, and promote maximal independence for patients with disabilities or chronic disabling conditions
• Participates in the interdisciplinary team process at team conferences and other team meetings and offers input into team decision making
• Intervenes with team members and other healthcare professionals to ensure that the optimal opportunity for recovery is made available to the client, the most significant member of the rehabilitation team
• Collaborates with team members to achieve cost-effective care by…