Health Unit Assistant

Incumbent works under the direction of the Assistant Director of Nursing or designee, performing clerical and resident support duties and focusing on resident engagement.

• Perform clerical duties (e.g. maintaining records, sending records for scanning, completing assignment sheets, new admittance documents, preparing reports, filing 15-minute check sheets, answering phones).

• Establish and maintain effective work relationships with clients, supervisors, County employees, elected officials, attorneys, law enforcement, judges, other agencies, and the public.

• Comply with Civil Service policies and regulations, collective bargaining agreements, County policies, department policies and laws to create a cooperative, safe, respectful and quality work environment.

• Coordinate and assist with Food Service resident meal choices.

• Collaborate with Unit Nurse for resident admissions, transfers, or discharges.

• Maintain supplies (e.g. ordering, stocking, preparing work orders).

• Provide resident support and engagement (e.g. delivering newspaper, scheduling beauty salon services, providing snacks, coordinating pet visits and birthday celebrations).

• Label resident and facility property.

• Schedule/accompany residents to appointments.

• Perform bed inspections and quarterly safety inspections.

• Escort (e.g. wheelchair) and assist residents with recreational outings and participation in activities.

• Assist in facility areas (e.g. gift shop, fitness area).

• Assist residents/families (e.g. welcome new residents/families, guide to rooms, assist with room moves) and family visitations.

• Participate in orienting new staff.

• Champion facility processes and best practice implementations.

• Report unsafe conditions and promote resident safety measures.

• Report to supervisor immediately any suspicion/allegation of resident abuse/neglect.

• Maintain confidential and sensitive information (e.g. resident, department).

• Participate in meetings/projects (e.g. in-service programs).

• Distribute resident mail on assigned unit.

• Report to work with regular, consistent attendance.

• Perform other duties as assigned and directed.

• High school diploma or equivalent required.*

• Two (2) years of customer service and/or clerical experience required.*

• Basic life support/cardiopulmonary resuscitation (BLS/CPR) certification within 60 days of hire date and maintained throughout employment required.

• Completion of a pre-employment criminal record check, conditional offer drug screen and physical assessment required.

• *Equivalent combination of work experience and education may be substituted for requirements on a year-for-year basis

• The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Work is generally performed in a long-term health care facility. Noise level is usually moderate to loud. Work hours are typically assigned shifts; however, schedule may vary (e.g. days, hours, weekends, overtime/extra hours, holidays, emergency call-in). Work involves potential exposure to biohazards and risk of injury from distraught residents. Work may be stressful when dealing with time constraints, multiple/changing priorities, limited resources, emergencies and uncooperative/irate individuals.

• Work requires some physical activity, including extended periods of sitting, frequent reaching, and occasional standing, walking, bending, kneeling, climbing, stooping, crouching, balancing. Work also requires the ability to frequently lift/carry objects weighing up to 10 pounds and occasionally up to 40 pounds.

• Required sensory abilities include vision, hearing and touch. Visual abilities, correctable to normal ranges include close, distance, color, and peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. Communication abilities include the ability to talk and hear within normal ranges. Incumbent must possess the hand-eye coordination and manual dexterity necessary to operate computers and other equipment.