Are you a highly motivated Registered Nurse interested in advancing your career and gaining leadership experience? UPMC Altoona is hiring a Clinician to help support our T12 Cardiology (Medical Progressive Care Unit)! This is a dayshift, Monday-Friday position (no weekends).

The qualified candidate will be placed into the appropriate job title (Sr. Clinician, Clinician, or Clinician Fellow) and salary grade based on years of experience and/or education

This position is eligible for a generous sign-on bonus! External candidates are eligible for $15,000 in exchange for a 2-year work commitment!

About the T12 Cardiology Unit:

T12 Cardiology (MPCU – Tower 12), is a fast paced 45 bed medical stepdown unit. We serve the adult population with acute diagnoses that are too unstable for a general medical floor, or who are newly transferred out of ICU. We provide care to a wide variety of patients – we are the unit of choice for cardiac dysrhythmias, heart failure, myocardial infarction, sepsis, multisystem organ failure and respiratory compromise requiring BiPAP and high flow oxygenation. We are ACLS certified and are trained to care for patients requiring cardiac drips and complex rhythm interpretation. We provide postop cardiac care to patients after pacemaker insertion, ablation, cardiac catherization, and watchman procedures.

What is a Clinician?

• A highly developed role model of professional nursing practice with focused expertise and accountabilities in one or more of the following: expert clinical practice, teaching/development, and/or evidence-based practice. This role partners with management in the achievement of a culture of excellence in professional nursing practice and patient care.

• Under the direction of the Unit Director or Department Manager, assists in the completion of employee evaluations, selection and hiring of staff, and performance management. This role has the authority, responsibility, and shift accountability for the delivery of nursing care through the use of the nursing process.

• Applies superior clinical knowledge and skills to achieve quality patient care outcomes.

• Responsible for providing service-based education and clinical expertise for staff including orientation and training, consultation on practice issues, and general coordination of clinical activities on a shift basis.

• Must demonstrate the knowledge and skills to provide care that is relevant to patients under their care, as well as apply principles of growth and development over the life span.

• Must possess the ability to assess and interpret patient data needed to identify each patient's requirements relative to his or her age-specific needs.

Responsibilities:

• Develops and maintains productive working relationships internally and externally by building teams and relationships through mentoring and modeling uplifting and positive communication.

• Coaches colleagues on cultural diversity and addresses workplace horizontal violence and impairment.

• Demonstrates accountability to self and others for safe work hours, time management, and healthy lifestyles.

• Demonstrates knowledge of performance improvement tools and techniques.

• Continuously improves the quality of care and the work environment of outcomes and the integration of research and best practices into daily work.

• Shares learning from improvements with other units and/or spreads across the business unit or system.

• Demonstrates interest in the development of others and positively impacts the lives of patients/families, peers, and members of the healthcare team through mentoring education, and knowledge sharing.

• Actively participates in the role of preceptor for student nurses, nurse interns, graduate, and experienced nurses and assists with the development of new preceptors in their role.

• Seeks opportunities to share expertise with other members of the healthcare team within and beyond the clinical unit/department.

• Incorporates national professional organization as well as business unit and health system's goals to improve patient safety, quality, and satisfaction of the patient experience in daily work.

• Creates a caring and compassionate patient-focused experience by building healing relationships with patients, families, and colleagues. Disseminates new knowledge and innovations through presentations, posters, and publications.

• Applies nursing knowledge and skills within the framework of Relationship Based Care, using the nursing process to meet the clinical, psychosocial, and spiritual needs of the patient and family.

• Demonstrates critical thinking in the analysis of clinical, social, safety, psychological and spiritual issues for the patient care within an episode of care.

• Practices solid verbal and written communication skills and can articulate and translate the patient's condition to other care providers and negotiate and make recommendations for changes in patient care and unit practices.

• Ensures patient documentation is comprehensive and promotes communication between caregivers.

• Assumes formal leadership responsibilities for one or more of the following: quality improvement, evidence-based practice, GN, or new hire onboarding.

• Completes and/or assists with staff performance evaluations for direct reports as applicable.

Clinician Fellow Requirements:

• Minimum 2 years' experience.

• If BSN not at the time of hire must be enrolled in a program within one year of hire/transfer date and completed within three years of enrollment (i.e. public health, informational technology, administration, etc.).

Clinician Requirements:

• Minimum 3 years of nursing experience

• A master's degree is preferred. BS/BSN required.

• If a BS degree is not in nursing, a master's or higher degree in Nursing is required.

Sr. Clinician Requirements:

· Four years of nursing experience required.

· Prior progressive leadership experience strongly preferred for external hires.

· BS/BSN required.

· Master’s degree in nursing required if BS degree not in nursing or Master's degree in a related field if BSN is held.

· Employees with a BSN may substitute a master’s degree with a UPMC approved nursing certification required within 1 year of hire/transfer and must be maintained.

• Ability to establish and maintain positive, caring relationships with executives, managers, physicians, non-physician providers, ancillary and support staff, other departments, and patients/families. Ability to work productively and effectively within a complex environment, handle multiple/changing priorities and specialized equipment.

• Exemplary clinical judgment with critical thinking, analytical and problem solving abilities required as related to various aspects of patient care. Critical thinking skills necessary to exercise and to lead others in application of the nursing process.

• Mobility and visual manual dexterity. Physical stamina for frequent walking, standing, lifting and positioning of patients.

• Demonstrated competence as a Professional Staff Nurse. The individual must be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care and/or interact appropriately to the ages of the patients served by his/her assigned unit as specified below. They must also demonstrate knowledge of the principles of growth and development over the life span and possess the ability to assess data reflective of the patient's status and interpret the appropriate information needed to identify each patient's requirements relative to his/her age-specific needs and to provide the care needs as described in the department policy and procedures.

Licensure, Certifications, and Clearances:

• Current Pennsylvania licensure as a Registered Professional Nurse.

• UPMC approved nursing certification required within 1 year of hire/transfer and must be maintained.

• CPR required based on AHA standards that include both a didactic and skills demonstration component within 30 days of hire.

• Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)

• Basic Life Support (BLS) OR Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)

• Certified Progressive Care Nurse

• National Institute of Health Stroke Scale Certification

• Registered Nurse (RN)

• Act 34

*Current licensure either in the state where the facility is located or, if the facility is in a state covered by the multistate Nursing Licensure Compact (NLC) agreement, a multistate license issued by a participating NLC state. Hires and current employees working on an out-of-state NLC license who later change their residency to the state where the facility is also located will have 60 days upon changing their residency to apply for licensure within that state.

UPMC is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Disability/Veteran