Lead Nurse

Position Overview:

We are seeking an experienced Nursing Team Leader to provide clinical oversight, staff education, and leadership within a nationally recognized 30-bed Acute Care Orthopedic Medical-Surgical unit
. This unit delivers post-surgical care to patients recovering from complex orthopedic procedures, including joint replacements (knee, hip, ankle, shoulder), total joint revisions, spinal surgeries, fracture repairs, and wound management.

Operating within a Joint Commission-certified Joint Replacement Program environment, the Nursing Team Leader works alongside an interdisciplinary team of physicians, physician assistants, physical/occupational therapists, case managers, and pharmacists to promote exceptional patient outcomes.

• Leadership & Staff Oversight:
• Serves as the shift Team Leader, providing daily oversight, guidance, and clinical expertise to assigned nursing staff.
• Models best practices, provides ongoing performance feedback, and assists management with hiring, goal-setting, retention strategies, and performance evaluations.
• Promotes an environment prioritizing diversity, open communication, teamwork, and high-quality service.
• Education & Professional Development:
• Coordinates, designs, and implements educational initiatives, orientation programs, and competency validations for nursing staff, students, patients, and families.
• Serves as a clinical specialty consultant for unit-based learning, in-services, and educational materials.
• Clinical Care & Implementation:
• Role-models clinical expertise in the orthopedic med-surg population and facilitates interdisciplinary care planning.
• Ensures appropriate clinical care delivery, performs bedside point-of-care testing as required, and anticipates patient/family discharge and learning needs.
• Assessment & Evaluation:
• Synthesizes complex clinical assessment data to set care priorities, evaluate patient progress, and revise care plans accordingly.
• Acts as a patient and family advocate, maintaining high standards of care aligned with facility policies and procedures.
• Planning & Operational Efficiency:
• Ensures adequate staffing levels and appropriate skill mix for assigned and upcoming shifts.
• Collaborates with management to meet budgetary goals, manage supplies and equipment efficiently, and maintain regulatory standards.
• Research & Quality Improvement:
• Leads and supports performance improvement initiatives focused on quality of care and patient safety.
• Integrates research-based best practice standards into clinical workflows and shares knowledge through presentations or internal publications.

• Education: Graduate of an accredited nursing program.
  Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) required.
• Licensure: Active Registered Nurse (RN) License.
• Certifications:
• Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) required.
• Professional certification relevant to the practice area (on the ANCC Magnet-approved list) required within the probationary employment period.
• Experience: Minimum of one (1) year of clinical experience as a licensed RN.

• Clinical & Communication
  
  Skills:
  
  Ability to analyze clinical data, maintain accurate documentation, and effectively communicate with patients, families, physicians, and multidisciplinary staff.
• Analytical & Critical Thinking: Strong reasoning skills to define complex clinical problems, establish facts, interpret technical instructions, and draw valid conclusions.
• Basic Practical Math: Competency in applying concepts such as ratios, percentages, fractions, and proportions to clinical situations.