Clinical Nurse Improvement Coach - Pediatric Neonatology (50%)

UIOWA•Iowa City, IA

11d

About The Position

The Clinical Nurse Improvement Coach serves as a part-time, 50% FTE neonatal nurse consultant to nurses and providers across Iowa as part of the Statewide Perinatal Care Team. Housed within Pediatrics Neonatology, the role conducts statewide neonatal case reviews, visits Iowa birthing hospitals in person and occasionally virtually, and develops and presents educational programs on neonatal topics. In partnership with a neonatal physician consultant, the coach reviews adverse neonatal outcomes to assess alignment with national, state, and facility standards, with particular attention to resuscitation and stabilization, neonatal transport, and normal newborn standards of practice that affect outcomes. The role identifies systems-level improvement opportunities and provides education, written summaries, and relevant references to support clinical recommendations. The coach provides expert consultation and technical assistance to hospital leaders, clinicians, and multidisciplinary teams on evidence-based neonatal care, regulatory requirements, clinical standards, staff education, and best-practice implementation. The position supports hospitals’ quality and safety work, including statewide quality-improvement initiatives, and assists with developing and operationalizing neonatal policies, procedures, protocols, and competency frameworks. It also assesses educational needs and delivers coaching, continuing education, and requested lectures to clinical teams. The coach provides statewide nursing leadership for neonatal level-of-care verification, guiding facilities through preparation and verification, reviewing submitted documentation, and conducting onsite verification visits. Additional duties include maintaining current professional and educational resources, collaborating on newborn standards of care, attending relevant regional and national meetings, contributing to the annual Iowa Conference on Perinatal Medicine, maintaining required nursing competencies and BLS certification, and maintaining instructor status for NRP and S.T.A.B.L.E. courses. The position requires travel throughout Iowa, including overnight travel.

Requirements

Master’s degree in nursing or equivalent.
Current license to practice nursing in Iowa.
Demonstrated expertise in neonatal nursing.
Ability to travel throughout Iowa for hospital visits, including overnight travel.
Nursing leadership experience, such as unit manager, educator, or equivalent.
Experience leading quality-improvement initiatives.

Nice To Haves

Five or more years of clinical experience in neonatal nursing, with emphasis on tertiary neonatal intensive care.
Experience teaching in a clinical setting.
Experience and comfort with classroom teaching and/or public speaking.

Responsibilities

Conduct statewide neonatal case reviews and visit Iowa birthing hospitals, in person and occasionally virtually, with the perinatal team.
Partner with the neonatal physician consultant to review adverse neonatal outcomes and assess alignment with relevant standards, focusing on resuscitation and stabilization, neonatal transport, and normal newborn care.
Identify systems-level opportunities for neonatal care improvement.
Provide educational programs based on chart-review findings, including current standards, care-improvement suggestions, and supporting documentation; prepare written summaries and relevant references.
Provide expert neonatal nursing consultation and technical assistance to hospital leaders, clinicians, and multidisciplinary teams.
Review professional literature and maintain current reference files and educational materials, including resources for professional and patient education.
Collaborate with UI Health Care and Iowa health professionals to develop and review standards of care for newborn patients.
Attend regional and national neonatal meetings and communicate relevant information to health care providers.
Participate in planning and developing the annual Iowa Conference on Perinatal Medicine.
Maintain nursing competencies required by Children and Women’s Services at UI Health Care, including BLS certification, and pursue professional development.
Maintain membership in national organizations such as NANN/IANN to influence patient-care decisions.
Maintain instructor status for NRP and S.T.A.B.L.E. and deliver courses to Iowa birthing hospital staff when requested and scheduling permits.
Support implementation of evidence-based neonatal care standards and continuous quality improvement.
Help hospitals identify improvement areas and develop, revise, and implement neonatal policies, procedures, protocols, and competency frameworks reflecting evidence, national guidelines, and quality priorities.
Provide virtual, in-person, and email consultation to Iowa birthing hospital staff in support of institutional quality and safety activities and statewide QI initiatives delivered by the IPQCC.
Assess educational needs and provide coaching and continuing education to strengthen clinical competency and adoption of evidence-based neonatal practices.
Present formal lectures on neonatal nursing topics when requested.
Guide hospitals through neonatal level-of-care verification preparation and the verification process.
Review facility documents and conduct onsite verification to evaluate and determine neonatal level-of-care designation.