Nurse Practitioner

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At Community Hospice & Health Services and its affiliates, Community Hospice & Health Services Foundation, and CHI Management, Inc. (herein referred to collectively as “CHHS”) you will find a family-based and compassionate work environment. Our goal is to provide a wonderful work experience that allows our employees to thrive by feeling engaged and fulfilled each day. CHHS is the largest and oldest nonprofit hospice, palliative care, and support services provider in the Central Valley.

We are proud to indicate that CHHS has been supporting and providing compassionate and quality services to our community since 1979. Our mission is to embrace individuals and families facing life-changing journeys, enhancing quality of life for all. CHHS is accredited by Community Health Accredited Program (CHAP).

REPORTS TO: Chief Clinical Officer (CCO)/Hospice Medical Director

SUMMARY: The Nurse Practitioner (NP) functions independently as an advanced nursing professional, assessing the patient to identify pain and palliative care needs, creates and modifies a plan of care, makes appropriate referrals, provides patient and family education, monitors patient status, and evaluates the effectiveness of the established plan of care. The NP serves as a resource for medical and nursing staff and works collaboratively to develop and implement quality care, that is cost effective and regulatory compliant.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Responsible for consultation with the patient’s primary care and/or attending physician regarding pain and symptom management related to the overall plan of care. Also responsible for prescribing appropriate medications as needed under the direction of the hospice Medical Director.
• Responsible to visit patients of all ages, (including the pediatric patient) in their homes, inpatient hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, residential care facilities, and at the Alexander Cohen Hospice House (ACHH) as needed to evaluate status of patients related to their plan of care.
• Responsible for patient visits to assist hospice Medical Director in determining patients’ eligibility for recertification for hospice care based upon continuing physical decline.
• Responsible for serving as a resource, providing education and consultation to the clinical teams as well as to those partners in referring organizations.
• Responsible to render the necessary medical management of the patient’s care related to the terminal illness to ensure development, updating, and implementation of the plan of care and that all services are provided in accordance with the plan of care and the patient’s needs at all times and in all settings. NP has employee/employer relationship with Community Hospice & Health Services and, as such, Community Hospice & Health Services retains the right to bill and retain payment for all appropriate billable visits.
• Responsible to serve on such committees and projects as assigned by the Medical Director and/or CCO to develop, implement, monitor, and improve the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of hospice services.
• Responsible for being available to participate in an NP on-call rotation, as assigned.
• Must maintain NP license in accordance with federal, state and local laws, and must act only within the scope of his or her state license. All personnel qualifications must be kept current at all times.
• Follows all Community Hospice & Health Services policies and procedures including, but not limited to, safety, infection control, privacy and confidentiality, and HIPAA.

SUCCESS FACTORS:

• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to communicate complex terms and abstract concepts to patients, their families, and hospice staff.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with patients, their families, hospice staff, community physicians, and other community medical providers.
• Ability to function as part of an interdisciplinary team with other professionals in medical, psychosocial, and spiritual care specialties.
• Ability to drive to hospice patients’ homes and to provide care for patients within their homes.
• Physical ability to read data visually from a CRT/VDT screen and a pager or other text messaging device, to operate a standard computer terminal, to operate a standard multi-line, desktop telephone unit, and to operate a wireless telephone.
• Demonstrates advanced clinical judgment and decision making based on expert knowledge and skill in the assessment, diagnosis, planning, and management of complex human responses to terminal illness.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Must be a NP currently licensed to work in the State of California.
• Specialization certification in Family Medicine, Pediatrics or Geriatric Medicine is preferred.
• Hands-on experience in hospice and palliative care is preferred.
• Knowledgeable with respect to the philosophy of hospice and the medical aspects of hospice care.
• Current BLS card, valid California driver’s license and current automobile insurance.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: The main environment for this position is in the patients' homes, which vary in levels of cleanliness, accessibility, and climate control. The employee may be exposed to virus, disease and infection from patients. The employee may experience situations, with emotionally disturbed, substance abuse, serious illness, and deceased patients. While performing the duties of this position, the employee will travel by automobile and is exposed to changing weather conditions.

WORK SCHEDULE: Full-time positions (30 – 40 hours per week) Part-time positions (20 – 31 hours per week) or per diem positions (up to 19 hours per week). Position may require on-call time (days/nights/weekends/holidays), rotating weekends and holidays.