Registered Nurse - Cancer Care Navigator

Veterans Health Administration • Nashville, TN

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Registered Nurse - Cancer Care Navigator position is located at the Nashville, Tennessee VA Medical Center and provides competent, evidence-based care to assigned patients. The nurse provides patient management, care coordination, and disposition planning for cancer patients, supporting Veterans, their families, and caregivers in identifying and receiving appropriate services for complex healthcare needs.

The Cancer Care Navigator coordinates care among multiple providers and sites, including VA and community programs, and oversees patients’ progress through the diagnostic and treatment continuum. This includes tracking the overall treatment plan and ensuring that appointments and other steps are scheduled, timely, and completed. The navigator may follow selected patients from initial suspicion of cancer through diagnosis, treatment, survivorship or surveillance, and palliation or end-of-life care. The role also interfaces with outside referral agencies and ensures their business and clinical practices comply with regulatory standards.

The nurse applies the nursing process to assess, plan, implement, and evaluate age-specific care; anticipates and implements preventive care measures; and interprets patient data to identify individual needs. The role includes patient and caregiver education, self-management support, advocacy, and collaboration with the interdisciplinary care team to address nursing, medical, and psychosocial needs. The navigator individualizes care plans and education, evaluates outcomes and service timeliness, reports service needs, and contributes to resolving problems and improving processes. The position also participates in program-level quality improvement and customer service initiatives.

The work schedule is based on the needs of the service. The position requires a current, full, active, and unrestricted nursing registration in a U.S. state or territory, or the District of Columbia, and education from an appropriately accredited school of professional nursing, subject to the exceptions described in the announcement. Applicants must also meet the applicable VA nurse grade and level criteria.

Requirements

• Proficiency in basic written and spoken English.
• Graduation from an appropriately accredited school of professional nursing, or qualifying education under the stated bridge-program or foreign-education provisions.
• Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a U.S. state, territory, or commonwealth, or the District of Columbia, subject to the Graduate Nurse Technician exception described in the announcement.
• Meet the applicable education, experience, and dimension criteria for the assigned VA nurse grade and level.
• Ability to perform regular and recurrent bending, lifting 30 pounds or more, stooping, climbing, twisting, reaching above the shoulder, stretching, and similar activities.
• Ability to walk and stand for 8 hours and to stand and/or walk almost constantly during the workday.
• Ability to frequently push medication carts, wheelchairs, litters, and beds.
• Ability to use fingers, both hands, and both legs.
• Emotional stability to care for Veterans with medical and psychiatric illnesses, including patients who may exhibit unpredictable or potentially assaultive behavior.
• Near vision correctable at 13 to 16 inches; far vision correctable to 20/50 in one eye and 20/100 in the other; and ability to distinguish basic colors.
• Sufficient hearing to hear alarms and respond immediately; hearing aids are permitted.
• U.S. citizenship, except that non-citizens may be appointed only when qualified citizens cannot be recruited in accordance with VA policy.
• Selected applicants in testing-designated positions must submit to urinalysis for illegal drug use; refusal results in denial of employment.
• Meet Selective Service registration requirements for males born after December 31, 1959.
• Subject to background and security investigation.
• Complete the online onboarding process and provide acceptable identification for pre-employment requirements.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is required for VA Health Care Personnel.
• May be required to serve a probationary period and must complete application requirements listed in the announcement.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in Oncology Nurse Navigation and/or care coordination is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide and/or supervise direct patient care and be accountable for all elements of the nursing process.
• Assess, plan, implement, and evaluate care based on age-specific patient needs.
• Coordinate patient care, education, self-management support, and disposition planning across the continuum of care.
• Coordinate services among multiple providers and across VA and community care settings to support continuity of care.
• Oversee selected cancer patients’ progress from initial suspicion through diagnosis, treatment, survivorship or surveillance, or palliation and end-of-life care.
• Track treatment plans and ensure that care steps and services are scheduled, timely, and completed.
• Interface with outside referral agencies and ensure their business and clinical practices comply with regulatory standards.
• Anticipate and implement preventive patient care measures and interpret patient-status information to identify care requirements.
• Educate and guide patients, families, and caregivers, and develop individualized educational plans.
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary professionals to address patients’ nursing, medical, and psychosocial needs.
• Advocate for holistic care through patient and family education and provider interaction.
• Evaluate care and outcomes to ensure services are provided appropriately and in a timely manner.
• Report service needs and contribute to problem resolution and process modification.
• Participate in unit- or program-level quality improvement and customer service initiatives.

Benefits

• Competitive salary, regular salary increases, and potential performance awards.
• 50 days of paid time off per year, consisting of 26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, and 11 paid federal holidays.
• Traditional federal pension with five-year vesting.
• Federal 401(k) with up to 5% in contributions by VA.
• Federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long-term care insurance; many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Associate degree