City of Austin - JOB DESCRIPTION

Registered Nurse Senior

1. Interview patients and review records to ascertain medical history, current physical condition, symptoms of illness, etc
2. Obtain routine information such as height, weight, temperature, pulse, and blood pressure and provide basic physical assessment.
3. Assess physical condition of patient using observation, inspection, auscultation, palpation, and percussion.
4. Assess the physical, social, and emotional needs of patients and families in clinics or in their homes.
5. Develop a health care plan in cooperation with the patient/family, significant others, and members of the health care team.
6. Formulate, direct and/or execute plan of care and any needed interventions.
7. Provide nursing care, which may include immunizations, phlebotomy, collecting urine, hemotocrit tests, routine tests, specialized tests, vital signs, pregnancy tests, dipstick urinalysis, and prepare other specimens.
8. Counsel client and family concerning health assessment and care.
9. Teach and counsel patients, families, and groups on the prevention of disease, disability, hygiene, and health maintenance.
10. Refer patients and families to other services or for follow-up treatment based on assessment of health care needs.
11. Maintain complete and accurate records, logs, and statistics of patient status and care provided.
12. Monitor work to ensure quality assurance or other standards are met.
13. Prioritize the workload and referrals made to other co-workers/services.
14. Work in collaboration with management to develop and implement protocols, policies, and procedures
15. May identify patients/groups with potential high risk of physical and emotional illness through analysis of statistical records.
16. May conduct investigations and provide instructions in preventive measure of communicable diseases, immunization programs and casework.
17. May coordinate daily clerical activities including setting patient appointments and scheduling providers.
18. May maintain patient follow-up procedures, including broken appointment and abnormal lab follow-up procedures, immunization tickler/tracking system, abnormal laboratory results, and maintains patient tickler file.
19. May assist in developing and implementing a nursing quality improvement component to monitor the deliver of nursing triage services
20. May perform triage activities by telephone or in person by making referrals and providing appropriate medical advice and assistance as required

• May provide leadership, guidance, and technical support to others.

• Knowledge of the principles and practices of public health nursing.
• Knowledge of information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat injuries and diseases.
• Knowledge of related cultural, social, environmental and economic forces in family and group relationships.
• Knowledge of medicines and their application for treatments.
• Knowledge of holistic health care treatments.
• Knowledge of instruments and equipment used in providing routine and specialized patient care.
• Knowledge of current community resources available.
• Skill in providing nursing care, customer service, and personal services
• Skill in setting priorities and making judgments concerning health care.
• Skill in teaching and interviewing techniques.
• Skill in effectively instructing and directing the work of others.
• Skill in recording and reporting accurate information.
• Skill in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with patients, families, community groups and organizations, physicians, City employees, and the general public.
• Ability to communicate information and ideas.
• Ability to read and understand information and ideas presented.
• Ability to perceive pertinent details.
• Ability to record and report accurate information
• Ability to interpret symptoms and assess the patient's status

• Graduation from an accredited school of nursing plus two years of experience in clinic, hospital and/or public health nursing.

• License to practice nursing in the State of Texas.
• Must have current healthcare provider Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) course completion card and will be required to maintain a current certification during employment.