The Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) practices at VA Portland Healthcare System (VAPORHCS) in the Rehabilitation and Long Term Care Division in the Community Living Center (CLC). The CNS reports directly to the CLC Nursing Director and supports the mission, vision and objectives of the VAPORHCS. The CNS functions in an expanded scope of practice and provides specialized care to adults and the elderly in the area of Geriatrics and Rehabilitation.

Duties

The Clinical Nurse Specialist duties include but are not limited to the following: Functions in an expanded scope of practice and provides specialized care to adults and the elderly in the area of Geriatrics and Rehabilitation. Supervises nurses within the CLC as delegated by the Nursing Director. Use a population-health approach and incorporates concepts from public/community health. Serve as an expert clinician and consultant to nurses and works collaboratively with other interdisciplinary team members in providing quality care and evidenced-based education for patients with complex treatment needs. Serve as a consultant for system issues, outcome measurement, and product evaluation. Share in the development, evaluation, and communication of standards and plans of care as well as policies and procedures and informatics. Serve on designated committees and task forces, and participates in and promotes evidence-based research, research utilization, and program development. Serve on the Quality Action Team. Articulate the value of nursing care at the organizational, decision-making level, and influences system changes that facilitate improvement of quality and cost-effective patient outcomes. Work collaboratively with other interdisciplinary team members throughout the health care system to improve care quality. Serve as an expert clinician and consultant to other nurses, medical staff, and other health care providers to integrate the needs, preferences, and strengths of the patient and family into the plan of care to optimize health outcomes. Lead the integration, management, and evaluation of technology to promote safety, quality, efficiency, and optimal health outcomes. Facilitate change in response to organizational needs in a dynamic healthcare environment and evaluates outcomes based on the analysis of information from relevant sources. Serve on or lead designated committees and task forces and participates in research/promotion of evidence-based practices. 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; 7:30am-4:00pm Telework: Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

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. 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: Moderate lifting, 15-44 pounds Light; Straight Pulling (5 hours); Pushing (5 hours); Reaching above shoulder; Use of fingers; Both hands required; Walking (3 hours); Standing (3 hours); Kneeling (.25 hours); Repeated bending (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); Hearing without aid; Mental & Emotional stability required; Moderate lifting of 35lbs is intermittent for routine patient care repositioning and lifting tasks. Environmental Factors: Intermittent alarms for patient safety.

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 VA Portland Health Care System 3710 Southwest US Veterans Hospital Road Portland, OR 97239 US
• Name: Aaron Dorris
• Phone: (208) 422-1000 X7017
• Email: [email protected]