Registered Nurse PreOp PACU II - Steamboat Surgery Center

SCA Health•Steamboat Springs, CO

About The Position

The Registered Nurse (RN) PreOp PACU provides perianesthesia care at SCA Health’s Steamboat Surgery Center. The role supports the organization’s mission, vision, and values and provides patient-centered, age-specific, culturally competent, ethical care within legal standards of practice. The nurse assesses patients before and after procedures, develops and implements individualized plans of care, manages recovery from different forms of anesthesia, and evaluates progress toward expected outcomes. The role includes patient and support-person education, safe medication administration, coordination and handoffs, complete documentation, collaboration with other disciplines, and participation in quality improvement, team activities, and professional development.

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 nursing.
Current BLS/BCLS certification or successful completion of a BLS/BCLS course within 90 days of employment.
Current ACLS certification or successful completion of an ACLS course within 90 days of employment.

Nice To Haves

Current PALS certification, or successful completion of a PALS course within 90 days of employment, when pediatric care is included in the facility’s scope of services.

Responsibilities

Promote SCA Health’s mission, vision, and values.
Assess patients’ preoperative and postoperative status, including cardiovascular, respiratory and airway, neurological, hemodynamic, pain and comfort, and mental-status needs.
Interpret information from noninvasive and invasive monitors and apply relevant discharge or transfer scoring criteria according to organizational policy.
Develop and implement individualized perianesthesia plans of care, including preparation for and management of recovery from general, monitored anesthesia care, regional, and local anesthesia.
Protect patients from injury, infection, and compromised wound integrity or tissue perfusion; support physiological systems and fluid, electrolyte, and acid-base balances at or above baseline levels as applicable.
Manage acute pain and comfort, prescribed fluids, comorbid conditions, and normothermia as needed.
Administer medications safely using the eight rights of medication administration.
Assess patient or support-person knowledge and provide education on expected psychosocial responses, nutrition, medications, pain and comfort, wounds, and expected responses to procedures.
Involve patients or designated support persons in decisions about perioperative care and rehabilitation.
Protect patients’ rights, dignity, privacy, and the confidentiality of health information; provide consistent care regardless of setting.
Evaluate patient progress toward outcomes, transfer care as needed, and give accurate, concise, pertinent handoff reports.
Delegate tasks in accordance with applicable nursing laws, regulations, and job descriptions.
Document nursing care completely, accurately, and legibly.
Collaborate with other disciplines and participate in quality review, performance improvement, performance appraisal, team meetings, trainings, and daily safety huddles.
Use problem-solving and conflict-resolution skills to foster effective working relationships.
Maintain required competencies and pursue professional growth.
Demonstrate fiscal responsibility, comply with facility policies and procedures, and perform other duties as assigned.