Discharge Unit RN 7a-7:30p part time

Frederick Health•Frederick, MD

7d•$36 - $55

About The Position

The Discharge Nurse is a centralized clinical resource who proactively identifies, tracks, coordinates, and escalates barriers that delay safe inpatient discharge. The RN works across inpatient nursing units and with providers, case management, pharmacy, ancillary services, transportation, and the Discharge Lounge to support reliable progression of medically ready patients through discharge. The role focuses on real-time discharge coordination, standardized barrier tracking, interdisciplinary communication, and hospital throughput. The Discharge RN supplements, but does not replace, the responsibilities of the primary inpatient nurse, provider, case manager, or other discipline. The position is part time, Monday through Friday, with two 12-hour shifts per week; holidays are assigned. The RN reports to the Department Manager and also receives supervision from the Director or Hospital Supervisor. The role involves bloodborne-pathogen exposure risk and exposure to infectious diseases, hazardous materials, and highly technical and heavy equipment. The position has medium-heavy physical demands, including infrequent lifting up to 100 pounds, carrying up to 50 pounds while walking, and pushing or pulling loads as described in the posting.

Requirements

Eligible for or currently licensed as a Registered Nurse in Maryland or a compact state.
Associate degree in Nursing required.
Certified in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).
BLS certification is required of all nurses within 90 days of hire.
Maintain current knowledge and skills to provide appropriate care or contact for the designated patient population, which may include neonates, infants, children, adolescents, adults, and geriatric patients.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor of Science in Nursing preferred, or willingness to obtain it within five years of employment.
Experience with patient flow, discharge coordination, care transitions, case management, or quality improvement preferred.

Responsibilities

Identify anticipated and medically ready discharges as early as possible and maintain real-time awareness of discharge status and outstanding requirements.
Use a standardized process to identify and track discharge barriers, including medications, transportation, follow-up arrangements, durable medical equipment, consults, diagnostics or procedures, placement or disposition needs, home coordination, and patient or family concerns.
Coordinate with providers regarding outstanding clinical requirements and completion of discharge orders when clinically appropriate.
Partner with case management, social work, care coordination, pharmacy, nursing units, ancillary departments, and transportation to address barriers within each discipline’s scope.
Facilitate timely communication between inpatient units and the Discharge Lounge and identify eligible patients for transfer based on established lounge criteria.
Prioritize coordination activities according to clinical readiness, anticipated discharge timing, unresolved barriers, transportation needs, and operational demand.
Escalate unresolved or time-sensitive barriers through established pathways to the appropriate discipline or leader.
Provide real-time problem solving and closed-loop follow-up on identified barriers until resolved, transferred to the responsible discipline, or appropriately escalated.
Communicate anticipated discharge volume, recurring barriers, and operational concerns to appropriate leaders and interdisciplinary teams.
Collaborate with transportation services and inpatient teams to support timely movement of discharge-ready patients from inpatient beds.
Document or track discharge barriers, interventions, escalation, and disposition in the designated electronic or operational system.
Participate in discharge-throughput and performance-improvement initiatives, including review of recurring barrier trends and opportunities for process redesign.
Maintain patient privacy and confidentiality and comply with hospital policies and applicable regulatory requirements.