Registered Nurse (Emergency Department)

Summary

The Registered Nurse is responsible and accountable for all elements of the nursing process when providing and/or supervising direct patient care. Assesses, plans, implements, and evaluates care based on age specific components. Assumes responsibility for the coordination of care focused on patient education, self management, and customer satisfaction throughout the continuum of care. Administers medications and procedures per established policies and guidelines.

Duties

The Nurse Emergency Department (ED) Registered Nurse (RN) executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience, and creative approaches to management of complex patient care. Collaborates in the development, implementation, evaluation, and revision of policies, procedures, and/or guidelines. Provides urgent and emergent care to patients with acute and/or chronic medical, surgical, and psychiatric conditions. Nursing care ranges from basic nursing care to stabilization, resuscitation, and life support measures. Emergency nursing practice is independent and collaborative. The ED RN practice includes the roles of direct care provider, educator, administrator, researcher, consultant, leader, and advocate. Provides peers with formal or informal constructive feedback for improvement. Supports colleagues and other nurses through knowledge sharing to provide safe, quality nursing care. Fosters a safe and supportive environment conducive to the professional development of health care professionals. Evaluates outcomes of evidence-based decisions and practice changes for individuals, groups, and populations. Responsible for the documented outcomes at the program or service level. Program or service level outcomes must be broad and complex and can be demonstrated at any organizational level within a facility. The ED RN is responsible and accountable for all elements of the nursing process when providing care. They assess the patient by collecting pertinent data or information, including the triage of patients based on the five-level triage system to prioritize patients that require more immediate care. They use the assessment data to determine diagnoses, problems, or other concerns. They will identify expected outcomes to develop a collaborative and individualized plan for each patient. The ED RN will implement that plan, including care coordination, health teaching, and health promotion. They evaluate the progress toward achieving the expected goal and outcomes and adjusts the plan as necessary. The Registered Nurse is directly responsible to the Nurse Manager or the designee of the Emergency Department (ED). The ED provides acute medical care for patients without a scheduled appointment who are in need of immediate attention for an acute medical or mental health illness and/or minor injuries while collaborating with ancillary services to deliver efficient patient care. The ED staff RN is responsible and accountable for all elements of the nursing process when providing care, including the triage of patients based on acuity and the demonstrated ability to appropriately classify patients according to the number of resources needed to provide emergent care and expedites patient flow within the unit. The ED RN possess the knowledge and skill necessary to deliver patient care in accordance with VHA directives, polices, and procedures, as well as the Standards of Emergency Nursing Practice as defined by the Emergency Nurses Association, which include but are not limited to the following: (1) Initiates accurate and ongoing assessment of physical and psychosocial concerns of patients who need emergency care. (2) Analyzes assessment data to formulate nursing diagnoses and identify collaborative problems for each patient and/or family. (3) Identifies expected outcomes individualized to the emergency department patient based on assessment, nursing diagnoses, collaborative problems and/or medical diagnosis. (4) Formulates a plan of care with the emergency department patient and/or family based on: assessment, nursing diagnoses, collaborative problems, identified outcomes and/or medical diagnosis within the nurse's scope of practice. (5) Implements a plan of care based on assessment, nursing diagnoses and/or collaborative problems and outcome identification. (6) Evaluates and modifies the plan of care based observation of the patient responses and attainment of outcomes. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory Work Schedule: 12 hour shifts, alternating weekends, working 80 hours biweekly Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. Graduate of a school of professional nursing approved by the appropriate accrediting agency and accredited by one of the following accrediting bodies at the time the program was completed by the applicant: The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE); OR Individuals attending a master's level bridge program in nursing who have completed coursework equivalent to a bachelor's level degree in Nursing may have opportunity to become registered as a nurse with a state licensing board prior to completion of the bridge program. Upon achievement of a State license, the individual may be appointed on temporary basis and later converted to a permanent appointment upon successful completion and graduation from the bridge program. (Reference VA Handbook 5005, Appendix G6); OR In cases of graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing, possession of a current, full, active, and unrestricted registration will meet the requirement for graduation from an approved school of professional nursing to warrant an appointment as a Nurse who has completed an associated degree/entry level Nursing education program. Credit for foreign nursing education higher that associate degree/entry level requires a formal degree equivalency validation from a recognized equivalency evaluation accepted by VA such as International Consultants of Delaware (ICD). Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a State, Territory or Commonwealth (i.e., Puerto Rico) of the United States, or the District of Columbia. Graduate Nurse Technician (GNT) Exception: Candidates who otherwise meet the basic education requirements, but do not possess the required licensure, may be appointed at the entry step of the grade and level applicable to the completed nursing education as a GNT on a 120-day temporary appointment while actively pursuing licensure (may be extended up to two years on a case-by-case-basis.) NOTE: Grandfathering Provision - All persons currently employed in VHA in 0610 series and performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of the standard (1/29/2024) are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held including positive education and licensure/certification. Grade Determinations: The following Scope, Education and Dimension criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates, and if appr