General Physician Assistant-ELM-12270-002
About The Position
Under the direct supervision of Acute Pain Service (APS) attending physicians, the Physician Assistant provides diagnostic, therapeutic, and consultative pain-management services to inpatients at Elmhurst Hospital Center. As a core clinical member of the APS, the PA manages the daily consult service, continuous peripheral nerve and epidural catheter infusions, patient-controlled analgesia (PCA), and multimodal analgesia protocols across surgical and medical services. The PA works closely with the APS attending, pharmacy, nursing, and primary teams to provide protocol-driven acute pain care and support opioid-stewardship and Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) initiatives. The role also includes supporting pain procedures, documentation and care coordination, development of clinical protocols and quality initiatives, and instruction of residents, students, and nursing staff. Depending on departmental staffing needs, the PA may also support outpatient pain management clinic, preoperative anesthesiology assessments, and postoperative patient management in coordination with Anesthesiology Attendings.
Requirements
- Graduate of an accredited Physician Assistant program at the bachelor's or master's level.
- At least one year of clinical experience.
- Current New York State PA license and registration.
- NCCPA certification.
- DEA registration.
- NPI number.
- ACLS and BLS certification.
- Infection Control Certificate.
- Proficiency with Epic, including SmartPhrases, SmartLists, and Epic messaging, and intermediate proficiency with the MS Office Suite.
- Relevant clinical competence in acute pain management; new PA graduates must demonstrate current knowledge of clinical processes and their application.
- Ability to maintain effective interpersonal relationships and communicate clearly with patients, families, and multidisciplinary teams.
- Ability to work as part of a team and demonstrate effective communication and critical thinking under time pressure.
- Visual, physical, auditory, and cognitive ability to assess patient status, including that of acutely ill patients with a broad variety of diagnoses.
- Ability to walk, stand, and respond quickly across inpatient units, PACU, and procedural areas for extended periods.
- Proficiency with data-entry and retrieval systems and electronic medical record documentation.
Nice To Haves
- Experience in acute pain management, anesthesiology, or another acute-care inpatient setting.
Responsibilities
- Respond to inpatient consults for acute and complex pain management, including postoperative, trauma, and medically complex cases.
- Perform focused pain-related histories and physical examinations and review relevant laboratory results, imaging, and medication histories.
- Develop and present multimodal analgesia plans with the APS attending and place or adjust orders within scope of practice.
- Round daily on active APS patients, including those with catheters, PCAs, or complex consults, and communicate plans to primary teams and nursing.
- Triage and prioritize new consults and urgent pain issues, recognizing complications that require escalation to an attending.
- Evaluate perioperative pain patients upon arrival in the PACU.
- Coordinate logistics for peripheral nerve and epidural catheter infusions, including pharmacy orders, pump and tubing setup, and PACU sign-out.
- Round daily on indwelling catheters, renew medication orders, replace infusion bags, reprogram pumps, and document wasted volume with nursing according to protocol.
- Confirm active intralipid orders and equipment availability on the patient's floor for the duration of infusions.
- Coordinate catheter discontinuation with primary teams and nursing, including applicable anticoagulation holds, and ensure equipment is returned and cleaned according to protocol.
- Maintain the shared Epidural/Peripheral Nerve Catheter patient list and update it promptly when catheters are discontinued.
- Review and adjust PCA orders for opioid-naive and opioid-tolerant patients using standardized APS parameters.
- Monitor PCA patients for efficacy, side effects, and safety using the Pasero Opioid-Induced Sedation Scale and departmental protocol.
- Help pharmacy and nursing troubleshoot PCA orders, pump programming, and formulary questions.
- Assist the APS attending with PACU- and floor-based pain procedures, including peripheral nerve blocks and catheter placements, as well as patient preparation, timeouts, and post-procedure monitoring.
- Participate in procedural scheduling and coordination with PACU nursing and scheduling staff.
- Assist with outpatient pain management clinic and interventional procedures.
- Maintain complete, accurate, and timely documentation using departmental Epic SmartPhrases and dot-phrase templates.
- Document wasted controlled-substance volume, complications, and sign-off communications in accordance with hospital and DEA requirements.
- Coordinate care as a liaison among the APS, primary services, pharmacy, and nursing.
- Support the development of APS clinical protocols, order sets, and quality/outcomes tracking.
- Assist with instruction of residents, students, and nursing staff rotating through or working with the APS.
- Participate in quality improvement activities related to consult volume, opioid utilization, and length of stay.
- As departmental staffing needs require, participate in other Pain Management and Anesthesiology care areas, which may include outpatient pain management clinic, preoperative anesthesiology assessments, and postoperative patient management in coordination with Anesthesiology Attendings.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
