Registered Nurse (RN) – Med Surg/IMC/Tele

Unit Type: Stepdown

Shift Length: 12 hours

Guaranteed Hours: 48 hours per week

Years of Experience Required: 1 year

Required Certifications

• BLS (AHA)
• NIHSS

Shift Information

Shift Time: 1900 to 0730. Requires every other weekend and holiday coverage.

Unit Details

• Beds: 28
• Nurse-Patient Ratios: Average 1:5 during day/evening shifts, 1:5-7 during night shifts (average of 6, must be comfortable with 7 patients).
• Common Diagnoses: Cardiac patients (up to 75%): pre/post catheterizations, pre-CABG, chest pain, NSTEMIs; general cases including CHF, COPD, pneumonia, diabetes, dialysis, altered mental status, nephrology, hematology, wounds, and overflow strokes.

Experience & Skill Requirements

• Must possess strong communication skills, teamwork, and work ethic.
• Experience in a heavy cardiac unit is required.
• Must have at least 1 year of Telemetry, IMC, or Stepdown nursing experience.
• Experience with drip therapies is essential.
• Previous travel nursing experience is preferred.

Additional Responsibilities

Registered Nurses are responsible for titrating drips, including Insulin, Heparin, Nitro, Diltiazem, and Lasix. Telemetry monitoring will be performed by external techs, although nurses will have access to monitors on the unit.

The charge nurse will have patient assignments but will not typically take a full assignment to serve as a resource for the nursing staff.

Nurse Aide Support

There are Nurse Aides on this unit with an average ratio of 1:9 during day/evening shifts and 1:14 overnight shifts when at full capacity.

Equipment

• We utilize Continuous CPAP & BiPAP, high flow oxygen, vapor thermal therapy, nebulizers, and chest physiotherapy. Ventilator support is not available.

Scheduling Information

Self-scheduling is not available; however, efforts will be made to accommodate block scheduling where possible. Staff may be scheduled in 4-hour blocks as needed based on staffing requirements. Weekend coverage is required every other weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). Holiday coverage is also required every other holiday.

Floating Requirements

Staff may be required to float to other medical/surgical floors, with rotations managed to ensure fairness. In addition, staff may need to float outside the med/surg cluster if a 1:1 patient observer is necessary. Relevant specialty experience will be considered for floating assignments.

Dress Code

Scrubs of any color are permitted, provided they are clean and professional.

Orientation

New staff will undergo one 12-hour day of unit orientation off the unit followed by one 12-hour shift of on-unit training.

Note: Previous employment within this organization must have an end date of at least 6 months prior to submission for re-employment consideration.