Job Description

: Registered Nurse - Acute Care

About CHL / Company Profile

Canadian Health Labs (CHL) is a national healthcare solutions provider under contract to provide healthcare services for various public and private sector organisations throughout Canada. This is an opportunity to contribute to keeping Canadians safe and healthy while getting to explore new locations across our beautiful country.

Role Details

Role Title

Registered Nurse - Acute Care

Department

Health

Evening and Weekend availability may be required

Purpose

The Registered Nurse (RN), Acute Care is a member of the patient care team that determines patient status to actual or potential health problems, plans and performs interventions; and evaluates patient outcomes following standards, guidelines and scope of professional nursing practices with the intention of maintaining or regaining patient health.

Scope

• The RN, Acute Care is responsible for quality nursing care, under supervision, within their scope of practice as outlined by the professional licensing body, Registered Nurses of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut (RNANT/NU).
• Using evidenced based practice, the RN, Acute Care provides competent, independent nursing care while maintaining professional accountability. The RN, Acute Care coordinates by collaborating with other health care team members to ensure patients regain optimal functioning of well-being and quality of life as members of society within an appropriate time frame.
• This position directly impacts the delivery of acute care health needs to patients by assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating all services provided to patients within the ambulatory care setting.
• The RN, Acute Care must be cognizant of fiscal constraints and have the ability to work within these constraints.

Responsibilities

The RN, Acute Care is expected to have working knowledge of the following areas: Emergency, Maternal and Newborn; Paediatric; Psychiatry; Medicine; Surgery; Gerontology; Palliative: Infectious Disease Control and Employee health and wellness. The RN, Acute Care achieves its purpose by:

• Acting as patient and family advocate, the RN is responsible for providing safe, competent and quality nursing care while maintaining strict confidentiality.
• When providing total patient care, the RN is responsible to act within the guidelines outlined by RNANT/NU scope of practice, Code of Ethics by the Canadian Nurses Association, NEU collective agreement and Government of Nunavut policies.
• Participating in education opportunities offered by the Department of Health and, the RNANT/ NU, and other accredited schools or learning options to receive current information on new trends in nursing and medicine including, but not limited to: diagnostic testing, pharmaceutical advances, equipment updates, and evidenced based best practice guidelines for professional development to ensure quality patient care.
• Providing direct nursing care in a cross-cultural setting by applying the nursing process (assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating for all patients in the system including but not limited to):

• Triaging and prioritizing ALL emergency patients and/ or situations before physician involvement, including continuous assessment;
• Initiating medical emergency in the absence of a physician (i.e., cardiac arrest, respiratory arrest and anaphylactic shock) for infants, children, and adults;
• Identifying and dealing with psychiatric crisis;
• Appropriately triaging crisis situations and implementing appropriate interventions (for example- suicidal and homicidal threats);
• Providing patients with information regarding their medical condition, obtaining informed consent and appropriate teaching to facilitate return to optimal health and well-being;
• Providing continuous evaluation of treatment, diagnostics and medical regimes and adjusting accordingly;
• Performing independent health assessments and acting accordingly;
• Effectively and efficiently performing various nursing skills;
• Working as a team member in a multi-disciplinary practice including orientation of new staff (nursing and medical students, nurses and physicians and allied health care professionals);
• Continuous adaptability to fluctuations in the clinical setting (i.e., high physician, nursing and allied health care professional turnover);
• Providing allied health care professionals duties in their absence (i.e., physiotherapy and respiratory therapy);
• Being accountable for all nursing care provided to patients and families;
• Delegating proficiently to support staff (LPN\xe2\x80\x99s, interpreters, security, housekeeping);
• Adhering to policies and procedures using evidence based best practice guidelines;
• Maintaining professional conduct and confidentiality of all client-related information;
• Resolving conflicts involving patients, families and staff;
• Maintaining universal precautions to ensure safety for patients, families and staff;
• Participating in individual family case conferences with medical professional staff; i.e., LTC placement family meetings;
• Participating in the delivery of health services to satellite communities, where applicable, by telehealth visits or communication by radio or telephone consultations; and
• Adhering to established Unit protocols in the performance of regular maintenance checks of medical equipment and noting any environmental hazards at the worksite.
• In the absence of midwives, the RN is responsible for providing:

• Competent advanced labour practices;
• The entire labour and delivery process including progress of labour. The RN is required to take charge of precipitous deliveries in the absence of physician, ensuring well-being of the mother and the unborn neonate;
• Fetal monitoring, including interpretation of results;
• Identifying and acting appropriately with risk;
• Care of mother and newborn immediately following delivery; and
• Promoting breastfeeding.
• Collaboration with other health care team members to ensure patients receive optimal care by:

• Communicating and consulting with other health care professionals in the hospital;
• Utilizing external services available, including public health, homecare, social services, mental health services, homeless shelter, women\xe2\x80\x99s shelter, RCMP, crisis and suicide prevention, critical incident stress debriefing, adult and children\xe2\x80\x99s group homes, elders facility, Kivalliq Inuit Services where applicable, youth services, medivac services, medical boarding home where applicable; and
• Participating in total quality management programs (quality assurance, and risk management) including various hospital committees and working groups.
• Participate in orientation and development of self and other staff members to ensure consistency of patient/ family care by:

• Providing orientation to new health care professionals within the hospital;
• Working closely with nursing students and graduate nurses;
• Providing training opportunities for co-workers including all staff involvement in direct patient care; and
• Attending and actively participating in staff meetings to exchange information to assist in ongoing program planning, implementation and evaluation.
• Supervision of support staff and supervision of units in the absence of unit managers.
• Assist with mentorship of new nurses or new-to-Unit nurses, on a case-to-case basis, as per the directive of senior management.

Performs other duties as required.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Comprehensive Knowledge:

• Knowledge of the nursing process, conceptual frameworks of nursing, and the theories and principles of nursing practice; and
• Knowledge of core competencies that includes customer service, communication, team work, initiative/self management and accountability, and flexibility/adaptability.
• Skills/Abilities:

• Ability to complete clinical risk assessment;
• Ability to competently use computers and software applications as required;
• Well-developed interpersonal skills and customer service orientation;
• Ability to work both independently and in a team environment, with minimal supervision;
• Effective communication and presentation skills both verbal and written;
• Ability to effectively manage multiple and competing priorities and timelines;
• Effective problem-solving and conflict management skills;
• Ability to work in cross-cultural setting; and
• Ability and willingness to complete ACLS/PALS/TNCC/BLS (in/or outside of territory via Professional development funding).
• The above knowledge, skills and abilities are typically acquired through;

• A Bachelor of Nursing (BN) or diploma in Nursing;
• Two years of relevant experience in an Acute Care setting;
• Current CPR C certification; and
• The successful candidates will be required to register with Registered Nurses of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut (RNANT/NU) prior to the start date of appointment.
• Assets:

Possession of one or more for the following would be considered an asset:

Basic Trauma Life Support, Neonatal Resuscitation, EKG interpretation, Non-Violent Crisis Intervention, Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, Inuktitut, Cross Cultural Training, ACLS/PALS/TNCC/BLS, Specialized nursing certifications, (ER, Maternal Child, Mental Health, Pediatrics, critical care); and The ability to communicate in more than one of Nunavut\xe2\x80\x99s official languages is an asset.

This is a highly sensitive position, Criminal Record and Vulnerable Sector checks are required.

Working Condition

• Physical Demands

• Long hours of work (12 hour shifts and sometimes extended due to patient/ staffing needs and extreme weather conditions)
• Lifting heavy patients and equipment daily
• Standing for extended periods of time
• Maintaining awkward positions during life saving measures
• Working with hazardous materials
• Registered Nurses are considered essential services whereby they are required to attend work during extreme weather conditions
• Possible exposure to contaminated bodily fluids
• Maintaining patient safety by decreasing risk of nosocomial infections
• Frequent exposure to violent and abusive behaviours from patients and families
• Often required to work alone in an unsafe environment (for example, security routinely leaves the building to perform property checks).
• Environmental Conditions

• Constant exposure to infectious diseases.
• Constant exposure to illness, death and dying.
• Required to travel in extreme weather conditions to report to duty (essential employees).
• Sensory Demands

• Continuous use of all senses to make judgements about patients demands.
• Possible exposure to interpretation of bodily fluids.
• Mental Demands

• Constant exposure to sickness, illness, death and dying.
• Required to perform post-mortem care including collections of specimens, preparations for family viewing and identification of body.
• Required to work long hours in extremely stressful situations.
• Required to be on-call after normal working hours.
• Limited social support for staff.
• Exposure to physical and verbal abuse.
• Constant exposure to the unknown (i.e. \xe2\x80\x93 how many, or conditions of patients as they enter the system).
• Expected to stay current with limited education opportunities through taking online courses, webinars, teleconferences, attending out of territory conferences/courses/programs via professional development funding (PDI)

\xe2\x80\x9cThe above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by the incumbent of this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and activities required of this position\xe2\x80\x9d.

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