RN PreOp PACU II - Surgery Center of Highlands Ranch

SCA Health•Highlands Ranch, CO

About The Position

The Registered Nurse (RN) PreOp PACU, Pain & GI provides perioperative and post-anesthesia nursing care at Surgery Center of Highlands Ranch. The role promotes SCA Health’s mission, vision, and values and assesses patients before and after procedures, develops and implements individualized plans of care, monitors recovery, manages pain and other clinical needs, and evaluates progress toward expected outcomes. The nurse provides safe, age-specific, culturally competent care; protects patient rights, dignity, privacy, and confidentiality; educates patients or their designated support people; communicates and documents care; coordinates handoffs and transfers; collaborates with other disciplines; and participates in quality improvement, training, safety huddles, and professional growth activities. The role also includes maintaining competencies, following facility policies and applicable nursing practice requirements, and performing other assigned duties.

Requirements

Graduate of an accredited school of nursing.
At least one year of preoperative or PACU experience.
Medical/surgical nursing experience.
Current state licensure in good standing to practice.
Current BLS/BCLS certification, or successful completion within 90 days of employment.
Current ACLS certification, or successful completion within 90 days of employment.
When pediatric care is within the facility’s scope of services, current PALS certification or successful completion within 90 days of employment.

Responsibilities

Promote the mission, vision, and values of SCA.
Assess patients’ preoperative and postoperative cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological, hemodynamic, pain and comfort, and mental status at required intervals.
Interpret information from noninvasive and invasive monitors and apply relevant knowledge of disease processes and anesthesia and procedural physiology.
Apply organizational discharge and transfer scoring criteria, such as Aldrete, Modified Aldrete/PARSAP, PADSS, or White score.
Develop and implement individualized perianesthesia plans of care, including managing recovery from general, monitored anesthesia care, regional, and local anesthesia.
Protect patients from injury related to positioning, thermal sources, and extraneous objects, and maintain normothermia and protection from infection.
Communicate patient status throughout the perianesthesia continuum and provide acute pain and comfort management as needed.
Administer medications safely using the eight rights of medication administration.
Maintain wound integrity, tissue perfusion, and the status of relevant body systems and fluid, electrolyte, and acid-base balances at or above baseline levels.
Manage comorbid conditions and fluids as prescribed.
Assess patient or support-person knowledge and provide education about expected psychosocial responses, nutrition, medications, pain and comfort, wound care, and procedure-related expectations.
Involve patients or designated support people in decisions about perioperative care and rehabilitation.
Provide age-specific, culturally competent, ethical care within legal standards and protect patient rights, dignity, privacy, and confidentiality.
Evaluate patient progress toward outcomes, transfer care as needed, and provide accurate, concise, pertinent handoff reports.
Delegate tasks in accordance with applicable nursing practice requirements, laws, and job descriptions.
Document nursing care completely, accurately, and legibly.
Collaborate effectively with other disciplines and participate in quality review and performance improvement projects.
Participate in performance appraisals, team meetings, trainings, and daily safety huddles.
Maintain required competencies, pursue professional growth, use problem-solving and conflict-resolution skills, and demonstrate fiscal responsibility.
Comply with facility policies and procedures and perform other duties as assigned.