Community Health Nurse II

County of Thurston•Olympia, WA

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Thurston County Public Health & Social Services (PHSS) is recruiting for a Community Health Nurse II for our Disease Control & Prevention (DCP) Division. As a Community Health Nurse II, you will play a pivotal role in protecting and improving the health of the communities you serve. You’ll apply your clinical expertise and compassionate care to investigate and manage cases of communicable diseases – focusing on sexually transmitted infection (STI), general communicable disease (GCD), and tuberculosis (TB) control and prevention programs. Working collaboratively with your team, you will coordinate and provide disease control and prevention services to patients, case contacts, health care providers, institutions, organizations, public health partners, and the community. This is a unique opportunity to create meaningful, lasting change in the community by working on the front lines of public health. If you’re driven by a passion for improving community health and making a difference in people’s lives, we would love to hear from you!

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in nursing with coursework in community or public nursing.
Completion of a BSN program within six (6) months of hire may be considered.
Two (2) years of experience as a community health nurse or relevant experience in a hospital, medical clinic, public health, or related service.
Any equivalent combination of experience and education that provides the applicant with the desired knowledge, skills, and ability required to perform the work will be considered.
Currently licensed as a Washington State Registered Nurse.
A valid Washington State Driver’s License or an appropriate accommodation.

Nice To Haves

Experience independently conducting field investigations in a wide range of settings delivering client-centered care that respects individuals from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds
Experience applying tools and strategies to control the spread of infectious diseases
Experience with case management of communicable diseases including contract tracing and outbreak response
Experience presenting public health messages to the public and community stakeholders
Experience interpreting and communicating laws, rules, and regulations as they apply to the problems of disease control
Ability to establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with governmental, voluntary and private organizations, and groups concerned with public health services
Knowledge of epidemiological principles and practices, microbiology and pathophysiology
Strong knowledge of infectious disease processes including transmission, incubation, and prevention strategies
Familiarity with public health surveillance systems and electronic health records (EHRs)
Respect and Organizational Culture Create an environment where employees and partners can safely express needs or concerns and where employees can make and correct mistakes
Effectively interact with sensitivity while working with persons from diverse cultural, socioeconomic, educational, racial, ethnic, and professional backgrounds, and persons of all ages, gender identities, sexual orientations, and lifestyles
Thrive in a fast-paced, robust organization maintaining a positive work environment
Communication Serve the public in a timely, complete, accurate, and professional manner while ensuring that written and verbal communication is clearly understood by others
Maintain cultural competency to support diverse perspectives in developing, implementing, and evaluating policies, programs, and services that affect the health of the community
Strong oral communication for networking and interpersonal relationships
Excellent written communication including the ability to craft correspondence, reports, and articles or web postings with minimal grammatical and syntax errors
Goal Setting and Accomplishment Use strategic thinking and planning for goal setting and evaluation
Effectively plan, organize, and manage competing priorities and challenges under pressure
Create a sense of mission by articulating and modeling confidentiality, professional values, and ethics with honesty and integrity
Operate with a high degree of flexibility, initiative, attention to detail, and commitment
Delegate and use persuasion and negotiating skills for shared responsibility and acceptance of change

Responsibilities

Use public health knowledge to serve clients in need of disease control & prevention services such as (but not limited to) TB services, STI services, Perinatal & Hepatitis B program, and general communicable disease management
Investigate, respond to, and report conditions of public health importance
Provide a client-centered approach while performing direct observation therapy or video observation therapy to support clients in meeting their highest potential
Assess and monitor client medication and symptom management
Develop and implement action plans in collaboration with clients to include alternatives to attain desired outcomes
Develop job aids such as presentations, social media content, and educational material for operational improvement projects
Provide clients with education and resources to a variety of vital community services
Collaborate with providers for care coordination and case reviews
Maintain working relationships with organizations, divisions, and community partners to gain insights into challenges and needs within the community
Comply with local, state, and federal laws and clinic policies related to mandatory reporting
Enter investigation data into web-based electronic database
Identify most up-to-date evidence-based practice based on identified health issues
Respond to phone and email inquiries from the public and health care providers
Assist in managing vaccination clinics, with the potential for other additional public health clinic services in the future
Perform other work as required or assigned, including, but not limited to, a 24/7 response during public health emergency situations and disease outbreak investigations