Hospice Registered Nurse

Gentiva Hospice • Southaven, MS

5d • Onsite

About The Position

The Hospice Registered Nurse (RN)/RN Case Manager provides personalized hospice and palliative nursing care to patients with life-limiting illnesses and supports their families. The RN serves as a primary contact, delivering and documenting skilled care in patients’ homes, assisted-living settings, or other places they call home. The role includes assessing patients, managing symptoms, developing and updating individualized plans of care, educating patients and caregivers, coordinating with an interdisciplinary team, and supporting continuity of care and transitions between care settings. The RN also participates in on-call and patient-support activities as applicable and contributes to quality, scheduling, compliance, and team collaboration initiatives.

The position involves work in patients’ homes and/or institutional settings and in an automobile. Potential exposures include infections, communicable diseases, odors, blood, excreta, and hazardous materials. The employee must maintain transportation for work and be able to use nursing assessment tools, computers, fax equipment, a copier, and a cell phone or beeper.

Requirements

• Registered Nurse education and qualification.
• At least one year of RN experience in acute-care hospital, oncology, long-term care, hospice, or home health; school internships and clinical hours may be considered in individual cases.
• Current license to practice nursing in the state of employment.
• CPR certification.
• Current automobile insurance and a valid driver’s license.
• Knowledge of terminally ill patients and their families and of hospice care and the special needs of hospice patients and families.
• Knowledge of the roles of disciplines providing hospice services and of community resources.
• Excellent patient assessment skills and knowledge of general nursing practice.
• Good oral and written communication skills, documentation skills, and program-management knowledge.
• Knowledge of managed-care principles and regulatory guidelines, including Medicare, Medicaid, and ACHC.
• Ability to support people facing life-and-death issues and crises, communicate effectively across socioeconomic backgrounds, and deal tactfully with patients, families, coworkers, and hospice team members.
• Flexibility to perform varied tasks while maintaining efficiency and composure; maturity, cooperation, and responsible workplace conduct.
• Ability to operate nursing assessment tools, computers, fax equipment, a copier, and a cell phone or beeper.
• Must have and maintain transportation for work.
• Must meet minimum requirements to be eligible for benefits and, where applicable, state-specific requirements.

Nice To Haves

• Hospice or palliative-care experience.

Responsibilities

• Perform comprehensive initial and ongoing patient assessments and reassessments, including in-person and telephonic assessments or screenings.
• Deliver skilled nursing interventions and symptom management consistent with goals of care and each patient’s individualized plan of care.
• Develop and update individualized plans of care, including visit frequency, based on patient needs and identified risks.
• Coordinate care with interdisciplinary team members and consult with physicians and nurse practitioners.
• Educate patients, families, and caregivers about disease processes, self-care, end-of-life care, medications, nutrition, and dietary needs.
• Communicate changes in condition and signs or symptoms of decline to the appropriate provider.
• Support continuity of care by recognizing and supporting home health, palliative care, and hospice referrals and transitions in levels of care.
• Maintain timely and accurate clinical records, including assessment findings, physician orders, progress notes, and care plans.
• Maintain effective working relationships with the interdisciplinary group and involve the team when the care plan warrants collaboration.
• Participate in on-call and patient-support activities as applicable, providing clinically competent and responsive on-call services.
• Provide emotional, physical, and spiritual support to patients and loved ones, including comfort, education, and bereavement guidance.
• Teach caregivers to provide safe care and help patients and families understand medication administration, hospice philosophy and services, symptom and pain management, and end-of-life processes.
• Follow infection-control, regulatory, and organizational compliance standards.
• Support quality-improvement and scheduling initiatives and contribute to team collaboration and patient and caregiver satisfaction.

Benefits

• Competitive pay.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Career advancement opportunities.
• National and local recognition programs.
• Teammate Assistance Fund.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance for eligible full-time associates.
• Mileage reimbursement or fleet vehicle program for eligible full-time associates.
• Generous paid time off and seven paid holidays for eligible full-time associates.
• Wellness programs, including telemedicine, diabetes management, and joint and spine concierge care, for eligible full-time associates.
• Education support and tuition assistance, including ASN-to-BSN and BSN-to-MSN pathways, for eligible full-time associates.
• Free continuing education units (CEUs) for eligible full-time associates.
• Company-paid life and long-term disability insurance for eligible full-time associates.
• Voluntary pet, critical illness, accident, and long-term-care benefits for eligible full-time associates.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed