Registered Nurse - Nurse Manager Inpatient Acute Care (4K/3J B)

The Nurse Manager - Inpatient Acute Care position is within the Central Texas VA Health Care System in Temple, TX. This position serves as Nurse Manager over a medical surgical/telemetry unit and is responsible for performance measures, employee performance, process improvement, customer service/patient satisfaction, patient and employee safety, interviewing applicants, employee relations, standards of care and practice, the work environment, and accreditation and regulatory standards.

Qualifications:

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• English Language Proficiency: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English.
• Education: Graduate of a school of professional nursing approved 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). The approving official may authorize a waiver of the requirement for ACEN or CCNE accreditation of any degree in nursing provided the college or university has regional accreditation from an accrediting body recognized by the Department of Education at the time of the candidate's graduation and the composite qualifications of the applicant warrant such consideration. In cases of graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing, possession of current, full, active and unrestricted registration will meet the requirement of graduation from an approved school of professional nursing. OR
  • The completion of coursework equivalent to a nursing degree in a MSN Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration constitutes the completion of an approved course of study of professional nursing. Students should submit the certificate of professional nursing to sit for the NCLEX to the VA along with a copy of the MSN transcript. (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.
• License: 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.

Preferred Experience:

• Evidence of Belt/Systems Redesign training/experience/certification
• Coach/Mentor certification
• 1-2 years of Professional Governance participation
• 1 year of Project/Change Management experience/training (combination of experience and training is acceptable)
• 2 years of Evidence-Based Practice experience/training (combination of experience and training is acceptable)

Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates, and if appropriate, the level within a grade:

• Nurse I Level I - An Associate Degree (ADN) or Diploma in Nursing, with no additional nursing practice/experience required.
• Nurse I Level II - An ADN or Diploma in Nursing and approximately 1 year of nursing practice/experience; OR an ADN or Diploma in Nursing and a bachelor's degree in a related field with no additional nursing practice/experience; OR a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing (BSN) with no additional nursing practice/experience.
• Nurse I Level III - An ADN or Diploma in Nursing and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR an ADN or Diploma in Nursing and a Bachelor's degree in a related field and approximately 1-2 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a BSN with approximately 1-2 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Master's degree in nursing (MSN) or related field with a BSN and no additional nursing practice/experience.
• Nurse II - A BSN with approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR ADN or Diploma in Nursing and a Bachelor's degree in a related field and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Master's degree in nursing or related field with a BSN and approximately 1-2 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree in nursing or meets basic requirements for appointment and has doctoral degree in a related field with no additional nursing practice/experience required.
• Nurse III - Master's degree in nursing or related field with BSN and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience.

Note regarding MSN degrees: If your MSN was obtained via a Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration, a BSN is not required.

Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-6 Nurse Qualification Standard. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office.

Physical Requirements: Heavy lifting, 45 pounds and over; Moderate lifting, 15-44 pounds; Heavy carrying, 45 pounds and over; Moderate carrying, 15-44 pounds; Light carrying, under 15 pounds; Straight pulling (1-2 hours); Pushing (1 hour); Reaching above shoulder; Use of fingers; Walking (8-10 hours); Standing (8-10 hours); Repeated bending (0.5 hours); Both legs required; Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously; Near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4; Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other; Both eyes required; Depth perception; Ability to distinguish basic colors; Ability to distinguish shades of colors; Hearing (aid may be permitted); Sitting (8 hours); Simple grasping (2-4 hours); Fine manipulation (4-8 hours); Twisting (2 hours); Mental and emotional stability.

Responsibilities:

The Nurse Manager actively develops and manages collaborative partnerships with physicians and other clinicians. The patient population is primarily medical; however, other patients with complex medical needs may be admitted. The Manager executes position responsibilities that demonstrated leadership, professionalism experience, and creative approaches to the management of patient care for adult and geriatric patients.

• Serves as a Nurse Manager over a medical surgical/telemetry unit.
• Executes position responsibilities that demonstrated leadership, experience, and creative approaches to the management of patient care for adult and geriatric patients.
• Responsible for performance measures, performance, improvement, customer service/patient satisfaction, patient and employee safety, interviewing applicants, employee relations, standards of care and practice, the work environment, and accreditation and regulatory standards.
• Actively develops and manages collaborative partnerships with physicians and other clinicians.
• Responsible for staffing their units/areas on a continual basis (24/7), validating the nursing hours per patient day, and working with other Nurse Managers and Staffing Coordinator/Nurse on Duty to identify and share resources.
• Responsible for time scheduling of the unit, coaching staff, deals with employee conduct and performance issues, completes recurring reports, proficiencies and performance evaluations in a timely manner.
• Other duties and responsibilities include, but not limited to:
  • Leading and organizing deliver of education/care to assure continuity of care and peer accountability for practice.
  • Using advance clinical knowledge/judgement to promote staff involvement in planning, decision-making, and evaluating outcomes.
  • Functioning as an expert in areas related to the assigned roles and responsibilities.
  • Systematically evaluating current practice and formulating outcomes for groups of patients and /or organizational processes within an area of expertise.
  • Guiding, developing, and supporting staff from a leadership perspective.
  • Using professional standards of care, scientific evidence, and practice to evaluate programs and/or service activities.
  • Participates on service and medical center committees and task forces to improve nursing practice and patient care.
• The Nurse Manager has continuing responsibility for all the following functions:
  • Plans work to be accomplished by subordinates, setting priorities and preparing schedules for completion of work;
  • Assigning work to subordinates based on priorities, selective consideration of difficulty and the requirements of the assignments, and the capabilities of subordinates'
  • Evaluates the performance of subordinates;
  • Makes recommendations for appointments, advancements, or reassignments of subordinates;
  • Givings advice, counsel, or instruction to subordinate personnel on work and administrative matters;
  • Hears and resolves complaints of subordinates and referring more serious complaints not resolved to higher level supervisors;
  • Recommends and/or takes disciplinary action where appropriate;
  • Identifies developmental and training needs of subordinates and providing or making provision for such development and training and
  • Has an integral role in supporting and facilitating student nurse clinical experiences, as well as orienting new Nurse Managers/Assistant Nurse Managers and nursing staff. The Nurse Manager works in partnership with the union and adheres to EEO principles.

Work Schedule: Primarily Monday - Friday, Full-time, with 24/7 unit coverage. This position potentially requires flexibility in schedule and assignments,
as this is a 24/7 hospital. This position may require rotation of tours. Not all duties may be listed, so other duties may be assigned.
Telework: Not available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized
Bargaining Unit Status: This position is NOT part of the bargaining unit.


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
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Salary : $93,793 - $154,165