Oncology Charge Nurse

Cancer Center of South Florida PLLC•Palm Springs, FL

About The Position

The Oncology Charge Nurse (RN) provides specialized oncology nursing care and serves as the on-shift clinical and operational leader for the infusion center. The position combines direct patient care with advance review and coordination of chemotherapy and infusion treatments, staff support, patient flow, resource allocation, and timely escalation of clinical or operational concerns. The Charge Nurse collaborates with nursing leadership, physicians, advanced practice providers, pharmacy, scheduling, and other interdisciplinary partners to promote safe, efficient, evidence-based, and patient-centered care across the continuum. Duties are performed in accordance with the organization’s mission, vision, values, policies, and regulatory standards.

Requirements

Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) or Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from an accredited nursing program; a bachelor’s degree is strongly preferred.
At least two years of clinical nursing experience, including at least one year in oncology infusion, chemotherapy administration, or a comparable specialty setting.
Current, active, unrestricted Registered Nurse (RN) license issued by Florida or a Compact State.
Basic Life Support (BLS) certification, maintained as current.
Current ONS/ONCC Chemotherapy/biotherapy card provider.
Advanced knowledge of oncology and hematology conditions, antineoplastic and supportive therapies, symptom management, professional nursing standards, and applicable regulatory requirements.
Expertise in patient assessment, clinical triage, treatment reaction management, rapid intervention, and escalation of care.
Ability to prioritize, delegate, assign work, coordinate patient flow, and allocate clinical resources effectively in a dynamic outpatient setting.
Knowledge of hazardous drug handling, infection prevention, medication safety, quality improvement, patient safety science, and risk mitigation.
Proficiency in electronic health records, including Epic, and in clinical documentation, secure communication, treatment-plan review, and scheduling workflows.
Strong interdisciplinary collaboration, conflict resolution, coaching, and professional communication skills.
Ability to apply evidence-based practice and sound independent judgment to complex clinical and operational situations.
Proficiency in clinical triage protocols, including assessing symptom severity and guiding appropriate care pathways.
Knowledge of HIPAA regulations and electronic health record documentation standards.
Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, and Word.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in nursing.
Prior charge, preceptor, or clinical leadership experience.
Oncology Certified Nurse (OCN®) certification, or willingness to obtain it within two years of hire.

Responsibilities

Provide and coordinate safe, evidence-based nursing care for patients receiving oncology, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, transfusion, and other infusion therapies.
Serve as the on-shift clinical resource and team leader, supporting staff with patient assessment, clinical decision-making, emergency response, and escalation of high-risk or complex situations.
Coordinate daily patient flow, assignments, staffing coverage, chair utilization, and clinical resources in collaboration with nursing leadership.
Delegate and oversee clinical activities based on patient needs, staff competency, scope of practice, and organizational policy.
Review treatment charts and infusion schedules in advance to verify required laboratory results, signed medication orders, treatment parameters, prior authorization status, and medication availability.
Evaluate laboratory values and clinical findings; communicate potential dose adjustments, treatment delays, required interventions, and other concerns to providers, pharmacy, nursing staff, scheduling teams, and leadership.
Monitor patients for treatment-related symptoms, adverse reactions, complications, and changes in condition; initiate appropriate nursing interventions and emergency response procedures.
Educate patients and families about treatment plans, expected side effects, symptom management, recovery expectations, self-care, and changes to scheduled care.
Conduct follow-up communication after a patient’s initial infusion, as assigned, to assess status, answer questions, and identify concerns requiring intervention.
Ensure accurate, timely, and compliant documentation of assessments, interventions, care coordination, patient education, and treatment outcomes in the electronic medical record.
Support staff orientation, precepting, competency development, and adherence to clinical standards, infection prevention practices, hazardous drug precautions, and regulatory requirements.
Participate in quality improvement, patient safety, incident review, workflow optimization, and other unit or organizational initiatives.
Proactively review treatment charts, laboratory results, medication orders, authorization status, medication availability, and infusion schedules to identify and resolve issues before treatment.
Coordinate with providers, nursing, pharmacy, leadership, and scheduling teams regarding required changes or interventions; communicate treatment updates to patients and follow up after their first infusion to address questions or concerns.