Educator/Wound Care Nurse

Overview

The Educator / Wound Care Nurse Coordinator is accountable to the Chief Nursing Officer. The Educator / Wound Care Nurse Coordinator's responsibility is to plan, provide and/or facilitate professional growth and development of hospital staff through the didactic process, role model and/or clinical education process. The Educator / Wound Care Nurse Coordinator 's responsibility is to support the delivery of safe patient care through the nursing process of assessment, nursing diagnosis, planning, implementation and evaluation based on established clinical nursing practice standards. Serves as a resource nurse, role model, and leader in health care administration. Supports the organizational vision and mission. Utilizes knowledge of patient's age and cultural diversity into the education process for both staff and patients. Contributes to the provision of quality of care through support of performance improvement processes that lead to positive outcomes in patient care.

This position provides support to the patient care services division in the prevention of hospital acquired pressure ulcers by assisting with the data collection needed for an advanced wound assessment, and by making wound care recommendations for patients as identified by registered nurses assigned to those patients, or in consultation with other skin and wound care team members.

The role of this individual is to support the standardized program for the care, teaching, management and rehabilitation of patients with or at risk for wound development. This program will encompass patients with wounds due to pressure, incontinence, surgery, trauma, burns, infections, venous insufficiency, arterial insufficiency, neuropathy, or other pathologies. This position will promote and support the standardized program for tracking the prevention and treatment of pressure ulcers as directed. This position interfaces with physicians and hospital, education, and skilled nursing staff for support of the guidelines established by the wound care department. This position works closely with Social Services and risk management, to ensure the safety of each patient.

This role requires good organizational, communication and leadership skills, and the ability to collect and report data. Educator / Wound Care Nurse Coordinator is responsible for providing input and feedback to Quality, Education, Nursing Leadership and Management Councils.

Responsibilities

Develop skin and wound care policies for the hospital to maintain the highest standard of care.

Consistently applies skin and wound care policies/practices.

Meets population/age specific competencies.

Ability to perform skin/wound assessment, reassessment and management for all patients

Knowledge of the anatomy and physiology and disorders of the gastrointestinal, genitourinary, and dermal systems.

Demonstrates ability to act as a clinical resource (e.g. participation in clinical education, initiating dissemination of clinical information etc.)

Evaluates and treats patients upon physician referral in the hospital.

Serves as a clinical wound specialist/consultant/mentor to staff through formal and informal training of the staff.

Manages data collection, participation in analyzing, action planning, and reporting performance improvement data for ALL stage wounds.

Assess skin and wound products under consideration for use for safety, efficacy, and cost effectiveness and makes recommendation accordingly.

Provides leadership and clear direction to all members of the healthcare team.

Provides for psycho-social, spiritual and cultural needs of the patients, family, and others.

Provides education for patients, family, and others on skin care, wound care and understands the importance of nutrition in wound healing and prevention.

Performs other duties as assigned.

Maintains current knowledge/certification.

Attends all required Safety Training programs and can describe responsibilities related to general safety, department/service safety and specific job-related hazards.

Follows the Hospital Exposure Control Plans/Bloodborne and Airborne Pathogens.

Demonstrates respect and regard for the dignity of all patients, families, visitors and fellow employees to ensure a professional, responsible and courteous environment.

Promotes effective working relations and works effectively as part of a department/unit team inter and intra departmentally to facilitate the department's/units ability to meet its goals and objectives.

Assumes all other duties and responsibilities as necessary.

• Collaborates with managers and staff to assess learning needs of staff.

• Designs programs and delivery systems in conjunction with specific needs of the department, staff and/or patients and management.

• Assesses learning needs of patients appropriate to home health care and department guideline for training.

• Assesses resources and addresses age specific differences, cultural diversity and spiritual needs as appropriate.

• Plans activities based on department and individual needs assessments.

• Takes part in education department annual goals and objectives for continuity of staff development.

• Plans, prepares and/or presents just in time in-service training programs specific to department needs for patient safety goals, core measure and survey preparedness.

• Develops a teaching for individual nurse, Utilizes nursing improvement process.

• Includes staff in patient education planning and training. Instructs staff in the patient education process as indicated.

• Prepares educational lesson plan for continuing education programs. Includes complete learning objectives for each BRN program as indicated.

• Plans, prepares individual learning packets of materials for patient teaching within specialty unit as appropriate.

• Prioritizes and organizes work in order to complete assigned tasks and meet department, staff and patient needs.

• Provides mandatory classes, audits, training or learning as required by accrediting agencies. (TJC, DHS, Title XXII, OSHA, etc.) Facilitates compliance.

• Maintains teaching material and education tools and files for department needs.

• Assists in the communication of revised procedures to patient care staff and new employees.

• Assists in the communication of revised procedures to patient care staff and new employees.

• Incorporates customer relations into all communication processes.

• Provides learning sessions to implement and inform the staff of new products and equipment as appropriate or requested by department directors.

• Utilizes new information research findings in developing and updating the content of programs and specific activities.

• Functions as a resource person for staff members; follow up promptly on question regarding further research or discussions.

• Regularly attends and contributes to various meeting assigned by education department director.

• Regularly evaluates personnel and learning processes and makes recommendations to nursing directors, departments and committees. Initiates change as appropriate.

• Consistently evaluates the effectiveness of teaching and learning of staff and patients to assure continuity of care and safety of patient. Documents learning of patients appropriately on patient medical record.

• Assists in the competency assessment and documentation process of staff as appropriate and requested by department director(s).

• Maintains personal competency levels for teaching and assessing staff according to specifics of department needs and technology updates with director approvals or recommendations.

• Consistently evaluates educational programs to update in content and technology.

• Attends staff development programs, meetings and conferences as assigned; demonstrates knowledge in hospital emergency procedures. Assists in drills as possible.

• Promotes an environment that offers a positive rapport, respect and culture awareness to patients, public, staff and physicians.

• Promotes and teaches components of quality improvement and evidence based practice. I.e.; patient safety goals and core measures, etc.

Qualifications

Minimum Education

• BSN preferred

Minimum Work Experience

• Extensive work experience in wound care setting (minimum 1 year) preferred

• Minimum two continuous years of acute care experience with adult patients preferred

Required Licenses/Certifications

• Current CA Registered Nurse license

• Current BLS-HCP card (through AHA) required

• Current wound care certification through the WOCNCB (CWOCN, CWON, CWCN), AAWM (CWS), or NAWC (WCC)

Hospital Description

Greater El Monte Hospital