Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant - Acute Care Surgery

Medical University of South Carolina•Charleston, SC

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Division of Acute Care Surgery is recruiting for a 1.0 FTE Advanced Practice Provider position split between clinical care and system trauma and disaster preparedness. The clinical 0.5 FTE, funded by the Department of Surgery, provides longitudinal outpatient care for patients with chest wall injury and pathology, including pain management, preoperative evaluation, postoperative follow-up, and follow-up after admission. It also includes inpatient consultation and co-management, telehealth visits, test-result follow-up, patient communication, surgical case coordination, and participation in quality improvement, research, and registry activities. When chest wall clinical volume does not occupy the full clinical allocation, work may be directed to other aligned clinical services in Acute Care Surgery. The system-funded 0.5 FTE advances trauma and disaster preparedness across MUSC Charleston and regional health network hospitals. The APP provides education, designs and facilitates simulations and exercises, leads debriefs, and develops site-specific and system-wide preparedness plans. Plans address multipatient and mass casualty incidents and other high-consequence events. The role coordinates preparedness across sites and contributes to after-action reviews, corrective actions, and program improvement. The position is scheduled for 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday, eight hours per day on a variable shift. Work combines outpatient clinical, office, classroom, and simulation environments, with regular travel to regional hospitals and possible occasional participation in exercises or activation outside standard business hours. The APP reports directly to an MUSC-employed primary supervising or collaborating physician. Clinical effort is accountable to the Chief of Acute Care Surgery and Director of the Chest Wall Injury Center; preparedness effort is accountable to the Trauma Systems Lead and Trauma Medical Director. Supervising leadership coordinates effort allocation, scheduling, and annual performance evaluation.

Requirements

Completion of an accredited Physician Assistant program and current or eligible licensure as a Physician Assistant, or completion of an accredited Nurse Practitioner program and current or eligible APRN licensure.
For APRNs, AGPNP/ANP training is specified for adult patients age 13 through death in stable chronic disease management or primary care; FNP training is specified for birth through death in stable chronic disease management or primary care across the lifespan.
Clinical experience in trauma, acute care surgery, thoracic surgery, or a closely related surgical specialty.
Current national certification appropriate to the discipline, such as ANCC or AANP for NPs or NCCPA for PAs, required before the start date.
Basic Life Support (BLS), current before the start date.
ACLS is required for adult inpatient-only positions.
If applicable, DHEC and DEA license applications must be started before the first day.
Sound clinical judgment in the assessment and longitudinal management of surgical and trauma patients.
Ability to plan for and teach responses to high-consequence, low-frequency events, including multipatient and mass casualty scenarios.
Strong instructional, facilitation, and debriefing skills for adult learners across disciplines and sites.
Effective written and verbal communication, including the ability to develop clear operational plans and instructional materials.
Ability to work independently, manage a split appointment, and prioritize competing clinical and system responsibilities.
Proficiency with electronic health records, telehealth platforms, and standard office and presentation software.
Ability to meet the stated physical requirements, including frequent lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, or carrying objects weighing approximately 50 pounds unassisted and ability to qualify physically for respirator use.

Nice To Haves

AGACNP/ACNP training for adult patients age 13 through death who are acutely ill or injured, potentially unstable, or technologically dependent.
Experience in healthcare simulation design and facilitation.
Formal training or experience in emergency management, disaster preparedness, or mass casualty response.
Experience delivering clinical education to interprofessional audiences.
Experience caring for patients with traumatic chest wall injury, including surgical stabilization of rib fractures.

Responsibilities

Take comprehensive histories and perform physical examinations.
Evaluate and treat patients using history, examination, imaging, laboratory, and other diagnostic results within the practice agreement or scope-of-practice guideline.
Perform approved therapeutic procedures, including chest tube removal, suture and staple removal, wound care, simple incision and drainage, negative pressure wound therapy application and management, and intercostal nerve blocks.
Initiate referrals and consult with the attending or collaborating physician as appropriate.
Document and bill for direct care, and maintain accurate, timely clinical records.
Use current research and evidence-based decision-making in clinical practice.
Participate in quality and performance improvement, clinical research, accreditation, compliance, and regulatory activities.
Maintain required licenses, certifications, and continuing education; participate in professional organizations and continuing education.
Potentially precept advanced practice provider students and facilitate learning for new team members.
Evaluate and manage chest wall injury patients in outpatient clinic, including preoperative evaluations, postoperative follow-up, and follow-up after admission.
Provide inpatient consultation and co-management for chest wall injury and pathology patients in coordination with trauma and acute care surgery teams.
Conduct appropriate telehealth visits and provide documentation and follow-up equivalent to in-person care.
Review, interpret, and follow up on laboratory, imaging, and other diagnostic results, escalating findings to the supervising surgeon when indicated.
Manage patient calls and other clinical communications, including triage, symptom assessment, medication questions, and care coordination.
Coordinate and schedule chest wall injury surgical cases with operating room, scheduling staff, and the surgical team.
Support chest wall injury program quality improvement, outcome tracking, case review, and process improvement.
Participate in research and registry activities, including prospective data collection, registry maintenance, clinical studies, and scholarly work.
Provide trauma and disaster preparedness education to nurses, providers, and other clinical staff at MUSC Charleston and regional hospitals.
Design, develop, and conduct preparedness simulations, including tabletop exercises and in situ simulations, and lead structured debriefs.
Develop site-specific trauma and disaster management plans tailored to regional hospitals' resources, geography, and patient populations.
Develop and maintain an overarching system-level trauma and disaster management plan addressing multipatient scenarios, mass casualty incidents, terrorist attacks, chemical weapons deployment, and acts of war.
Coordinate preparedness activities across sites to promote consistency, interoperability, and shared situational awareness.
Conduct preparedness-program performance improvement, including after-action reviews, corrective action tracking, and iterative plan and curriculum revision.
Collaborate with hospital emergency management, trauma leadership, nursing education, regional partners, and external agencies to align planning with regional and state frameworks.
Travel regularly to regional health network hospitals for education, simulation, and planning activities; occasionally participate in exercises or activation outside standard business hours.