The Associate Chief Nurse (ACN) for Clinical Directorate of Medicine is assigned to the Office of the Chief Nurse Executive at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) in North Chicago, Illinois. FHCC is a VA and DoD dually integrated healthcare center providing care services to Veterans, Active-Duty Military Personnel, and their beneficiaries, including outpatient pediatric services.

Duties

The ACN is an EXPERT nurse who "no longer relies on an analytical principle (rule, guideline, maxim) to connect her/his understanding of the situation to an appropriate action. The expert nurse, with her/his enormous background of experience, has an intuitive grasp of the situation and zeros in on the accurate region of the problem without wasteful consideration of a large range of unfruitful possible problem situations" (Benner). The ACN for Clinical Directorate of Medicine will work effectively with other Associate Chief Nurses and Nurse Managers to ensure clinical oversight for nursing as well as providing essential support for planning and implementing appropriate resource utilization and distribution. The ACN will be available to support the ongoing nursing needs of patients and nursing staff across all services/service lines. The CAN provides executive leadership and direct supervision, to include but not limited to, the direct management team of the Specialty Care Clinics, Emergency Medicine department, and Home Base Primary Care (HBPC). The ACN is a direct liaison, consultant, and leader for all matters pertaining to outpatient medicine clinics and operations. Major Duties and Responsibilities Uses an analytical framework, such as the nursing process, to create an environment that facilitates the delivery of care. Coordinates and evaluates integrated programs or demonstrates clinical excellence in management of population groups. Involved in the policy decision-making with top management; responsible for completion of all necessary "staff work" leading to a final decision. Actions and decisions are supported and guided by Public Laws, VA Directives, OPM Regulations, Executive Orders, VA General Council and an extensive knowledge of the economic, legal, and professional standards and practices. Provides executive input in the strategic planning, budget, mission, operational planning, and policy development for local and network efforts. Utilizes current trends and relevant theories in an analytical framework to design/modify, implement, and measure integrated programs and activities to achieve clinical and administrative goals of the medical center and/or network. Evaluates outcomes against strategic priorities. Provides leadership in addressing ethical issues that impact clients and staff in or beyond the organization and the local health care community. Assumes a leadership role in resolving highly complex ethical issues that have an impact upon the health care delivery system and/or the consumer within the organization and/or the community. Provides leadership in the development of policies and systems to devise strategies that will enable the organization to successfully manage bioethical issues and protect patient and family rights. Promotes a practice environment that empowers nurses to provide compassionate and efficient nursing care. Designs, modifies, and implements systems compatible with professional standards and with mission and goals of the organization to improve the cost-effective use of resources. Aggregates data and participates in the budget process and management conservation of resources to plan for current, emerging, and future resource requirements (financial, human, materiel and/or informational). Provides leadership in determining allocation of resources (financial, human, material and/or informational) based on patient care systems that produce high quality outcomes. Manages the resources (financial, human, materiel and/or informational) of a complex program or service in a manner which applies professional standards of practice in the most effective, efficient method resulting in favorable 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: Monday-Friday, 7:00am to 3:30pm Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized. EDRP Authorized: Contact, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance at [email protected]. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required.

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. ACN Preferred Qualifications: Have at least a Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing with a Master Degree in Nursing or related health-care field; a Master of Science in Nursing via a Bridge Program (no BSN required); OR a Doctoral Degree in Nursing or related health-care field with a BSN and Master Degree in Nursing or a related health-care field. Have a minimum of four (4) years' experience in progressively responsible leadership assignments, with demonstrated supervisory/administrative competencies in directing change and effectively managing human resources. This may be demonstrated through experience as a Nurse Manager / Supervisor, Clinical Nurse Leader, or Assistant/Associate Chief Nurse (or equivalent) at a larger, more complex healthcare facility. Have written and spoken English language proficiency. Maintain current BLS certification. Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work independently as well as collaboratively with multiple service lines and disciplines. Proven ability to facilitate group problem solving, along with previous experience leading and/or facilitating performance improvement projects, teams, and groups. Demonstrated computer literacy and skill in the use of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, VISO and Excel. Excellent organizational, communication, writing, and time management skills. Demonstrated ability in data tracking, management, analysis, and feedback of results. Proven ability to utilize sound judgment in making performance management and continuous readiness decisions. Demonstrated ability to accurately implement policies, regulations, standards of care and standards of practice; and Ability to work variable and flexible tours to meet program demands. Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates, and if appropriate, the level within a grade: Nurse IV - Master's degree in nursing or related field with BSN and approximately 4-5 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree in nursing or related field and appropriate basic or advanced certification desired, and approximately 3-4 years of nursing practice/experience. Nurse V - Master's degree in nursing or related field with BSN (or a Bachelor's degree in a related field) and approximately 5-6 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree (preferred) in nursing or related field and appropriate basic or advanced certification desired, and approximately 4-5 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. Working Conditions: To perform in a fully successful manner, the individual must have the ability to perform job-related duties which require word processing, computer key board typing, computer screen viewing, working with data in Excel and Access, PowerPoint presentations, answering/placing telephone calls, filing, note taking and prolonged sitting up to 4-6 hours. A health examination must be successfully completed prior to this assignment and periodically thereafter as required by the Occupational Health Clinic policy. There will be intermittent exposure to blood and body fluids.

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/.

IMPORTANT: 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.

IMPORTANT: For foreign education equivalency the only certifying body the VA recognizes is CGFNS and its' subsidiary, International Consultants of Delaware (ICD). Without certification of BSN-equivalency, the VA can only consider the degree at the associates level and pay will be determined accordingly.

Contacts

• Address Captain James A Lovell Federal Health Care Center 3001 Green Bay Road North Chicago, IL 60064 US
• Name: Antionette Sneed-Clay
• Email: [email protected]