Registered Nurse-Patient Aligned Care Team

Veterans Health Administration • Mishawaka, IN

4d • Onsite

About The Position

The Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) Outpatient Staff Registered Nurse provides competent, evidence-based, gender-specific care to primary care patients and oversees licensed vocational nurses and nursing assistants as appropriate. The nurse provides direct Veteran care and coordinates care within the Primary Care Department. The role manages assigned patient panels, uses registries, and ensures appropriate evaluation and access for those panels. It also provides health promotion, education, and coaching on wellness, disease prevention, and chronic care management.

The nurse assists with nursing education, orientation, competencies, quality improvement, and outcomes utilization. The position demonstrates leadership in delivering and improving holistic primary care through collaboration, evaluates practice using the best available evidence, and provides constructive feedback to peers. The nurse supports a safe environment for professional development, contributes an outpatient nursing perspective to interdisciplinary discussions, shares knowledge and educational findings, partners with colleagues to improve outcomes, and helps sustain an evidence-based practice culture.

The position is accountable to the Associate Director of Patient Care Services (ADPCS) and assigned rating and approving supervisors. It is full-time, Monday through Friday. Compressed or flexible scheduling, telework, and virtual work are not available. Relocation and recruitment incentives and permanent change of station are not authorized.

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 professional nurse registration in a U.S. state, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia; a Graduate Nurse Technician exception may apply under the stated conditions.
• Meet the education and experience requirements for the assigned Nurse grade and level.
• U.S. citizenship, except that non-citizens may be appointed when qualified citizens cannot be recruited in accordance with VA policy.
• Selected applicants must undergo urinalysis for illegal drug use, background/security investigation, online onboarding, and a pre-employment physical evaluation or examination.
• Males born after December 31, 1959, must meet Selective Service registration requirements.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is required for VA health care personnel.
• May be required to serve a probationary period and complete all application requirements in the announcement’s Required Documents section.
• Physical ability to perform direct patient care activities, which may include walking, standing, stooping, bending, sitting, reaching, pushing, pulling, and moderate lifting or carrying up to 35 pounds in accordance with safe patient handling guidelines.
• Adequate vision to perform assigned duties, distinguish basic colors, and assess patients and the environment safely; ability to hear sufficiently to perform assigned duties (hearing aids are permitted).

Responsibilities

• Provide competent, evidence-based, gender-specific care to primary care patients.
• Provide direct Veteran care and coordinate care within the Primary Care Department.
• Oversee licensed vocational nurses and nursing assistants as appropriate to the setting.
• Manage assigned patient panels, use registries, and ensure appropriate evaluation and access.
• Provide health promotion, health education, and coaching on wellness, disease prevention, and chronic care management.
• Assist in directing nursing education, orientation, and competency activities.
• Contribute to quality improvement and outcomes utilization.
• Demonstrate leadership in delivering and improving holistic primary care through collaboration.
• Evaluate practice on an ongoing basis using the best available evidence.
• Provide peers with informal, constructive feedback for improvement.
• Foster a safe and supportive environment conducive to professional development.
• Contribute an outpatient nursing perspective to interdisciplinary team discussions.
• Partner with others to effect change and produce optimal outcomes.
• Share knowledge, educational findings, experiences, and ideas with peers to support safe, quality outpatient nursing care.
• Question clinical practices and participate in strategies that sustain an evidence-based practice culture.

Benefits

• Competitive salary, regular salary increases, and potential performance awards.
• 50 days of paid time off per year: 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