The Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center is currently recruiting for a Registered Nurse for the Intensive Care Unit.

Duties

The duties for the Registered Nurse ICU/PCU position include but not limited to the following:-Knowledge in recalling arrhythmia events in both ICU/Telemetry, establishing and/or changing alarm parameters, and obtaining a rhythm strip each shift to be scanned into the electronic chart.- Troubleshoots when signals are not coming in properly. Patients will be provided education on reasons, purpose and restrictions associated with cardiac monitoring and telemetry.- Is responsible for providing nursing care to medical and surgical patients who require continuous and concentrated monitoring. Has knowledge and expertise in:- Arrhythmia interpretation- Invasive hemodynamic monitoring- Cardioversion - Cardiac resuscitation- Pacemakers, external and travenous- Acute MI protocol- IV thrombolytic- Volume expanders- Chest tube- Mechanical ventilation- Post anesthesia patients- IV pain management- Rx of GI and renal patients- Rx of pulmonary edema- Rx of severe respiratory patients & CO2 monitoring- Overdose protocols- Immediate post-op care of vascular patients, abdominal surgery, neuro-surgery, orthopedic surgery, pacemaker surgery- Rx of patients with epidural catheters- Education of patients and significant others in their treatment in ICU/telemetry- Conscious sedation- Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) bundles: Ventilator Associated Pneumonia (VAP)/Central Venous Line (CVL)- IV vasoactive and inotropic medication- Provides care to Telemetry patients.- Maintains Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) and Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) certification.- Provides care to acute stroke victims and patients with altered level of consciousness.- Is knowledgeable in caring for psychiatric patients with acute medical illness including, but not limited to, patients on Suicide, Violence, Eloper (SVE) precautions.- Is able to assess care for patients with Congestive Heart Failure (CHF), Pulmonary Edema, Sepsis, and Respiratory Distress Syndromes.- Assesses patients need on admission with respect to developmental stage, age, sex, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and illness.- Assists Physician/Hospitalist with a variety of bedside procedures such as intubation, thoracentesis, CVL insertion, paracentesis, bone marrow aspiration.- Provides Patient Health Education (PHE) to patients and families with regard to current treatment, health issues, and patient/family concerns in accordance with educational level of patient/family.- Acts as a member of Code Blue, Code White, and Rapid Response Teams (RRT).- Provides assistance to other areas such as Emergency Department (ED), Triage, 4 East, Ward 9, Community Living Center (CLC). VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Work Schedule: 12 pm (noon) -12 am, Three 12 hour shifts per week and one 8 hour tour per pay period with rotating weekends and holidays. Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required 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 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

Requirements

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. 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. 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: Previous ICU experience preferred. 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 (up to 50 pounds); heavy carrying (up to 50 pounds); straight pulling (2-4 hours); pushing (2-4 hours); reaching above shoulders (1-2 hours); use of fingers; both hands required; walking (4-6 hours); standing (4-6 hours); repeated bending (2-4 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 20/40 in the other; both eyes required; ability to distinguish basic colors and shades of color; hear (aid permitted); mental and emotional stability.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center 1111 East End Boulevard Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711 US
• Name: Beverly Gurdock
• Phone: (570) 824-3521 X24174
• Email: [email protected]