The Assistant Head Nurse (Assistant Unit Manager), is a professional Registered Nurse with solid clinical experience and demonstrated skill related to clinical and administrative nursing practice. The incumbent exercises administrative and clinical oversight to ensure optimal healthcare delivery to Veterans receiving care through Veteran Health Indiana. He/she is accountable for writing and adhering to established policies, standards of care, and standards of practice.

Duties

The Assistant Head Nurse serves as an assistant with line authority to the unit Nurse Manager in providing leadership, supervision, and direction to nursing staff. Performs delegated duties, i.e., develops time schedules, completes performance evaluations, and initiates or recommends disciplinary actions, responsible for performance improvement, customer service/patient satisfaction, patient and employee safety, 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, and influences care outcomes by collaborating with members of the interdisciplinary team. The incumbent demonstrates expert knowledge and active leadership in unit, program, and service level quality improvement processes and initiatives as well as customer service programs. Duties included but are not limited to: Leads/delegates group activities to solve problems or accomplish a specific task. Serves as a role model in the delivery of comprehensive patient/family care and the resolution of issues. Applies a collaborative team approach in identifying, analyzing and resolving patient flow issues. Promotes continuity of care through collaboration with patients, families and healthcare teams Applies problem-solving skills leading to resolution of barriers to patient flow. Evaluates staff performance and provides feedback as appropriate Implements an educational plan to meet changing program or service needs for self and others. Maintains knowledge of current techniques, trends and professional issues. Facilitates open exchange of ideas between peers, management, and staff; creatively responds to and evaluates suggestions for improvement. Participates in educational assessment of unit staff and recommends to the 4W Unit Manager priority of topics for staff development. Supports participation in professional organizations. As directed by the 4W Unit Manager, conducts staff meetings to facilitate communication, disseminate information /lead and promote interdisciplinary interaction and problem solving. Provides staff with ongoing feedback related to performance and assists the 4W Unit Manager with staff performance appraisals and Individual Development Plans. Demonstrates effective conflict resolution/management skills. Creates an atmosphere in which nurses build professional relationships with peers and colleagues in the interdisciplinary team. Provides opportunities for nurses to share knowledge through coaching and mentoring. Establishes/maintains effective collegial relationships within PCS Inpatient Medicine, between services, within administration and with other leaders in the health care community. Assures compliance with standards and regulations related to clinical practice through data collection, interpretation, and reporting of findings with appropriate recommendations including VANOD and other nurse sensitive data bases. Assures that customers are treated in a professional manner with tact, courtesy, and respect Work Schedule: Compressed Schedule, 12hr shifts, variable hours with weekend rotation Telework Eligible: No Virtual: No Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Designated and/or random drug testing required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination

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 the appropriate State-accrediting agency and accredited 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). 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: Mental Health Experience 2 years preferred Registered Nursing Experience 3-5 years preferred Case Management 1 year 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 year's of nursing practice/experience; OR a Master's degree in nursing or related field with a BSN and approximately 1-2 year's 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 year's of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree and approximately 2-3 year's of nursing practice/experience. 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: This position involves considerable amount of standing, walking, stooping, bending, reaching, lifting, and turning. It requires restraining confused clients, repositioning patients, assisting with transfers from wheelchairs/stretchers and transporting them to other departments or facilities. Mechanical devices are available and are required to be used for heavy or difficult to lift clients. The work may involve pushing or lifting in excess of 50 pounds and going up and down flights of stairs. The position requires visual and auditory acuity at a level to provide safe and effective nursing care. The position requires the nurse to work for periods of time with arms above shoulder level or with neck in a fully flexed or extended position and the ability to physically control or defend against emotionally ill clients. The position also requires ability to work on computers for extended periods of time.

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 Richard L Roudebush VA Medical Center 1481 West Tenth Street Indianapolis, IN 46202 US
• Name: Jade Smith
• Phone: 217-497-1757
• Email: [email protected]