Registered Nurse- Vascular Access

Veterans Health Administration • Pittsburgh, PA

2d • Onsite

About The Position

This position is located at the University Drive Campus and is part of the IV Team, which provides vascular-access services to Acute Care, ICUs, the ED, SDPU, outpatient clinics, and other areas of VA Pittsburgh during code situations. The Acute Care IV Therapy Nurse is accountable for placing vascular-access devices to support patient care. The team places peripheral and central lines, changes dressings, collects blood samples for analysis, accesses indwelling ports, and trains staff to improve their skills.

The position is identified as Nurse III. It requires expert clinical judgment in caring for complex and specialized patient populations, leadership in care delivery and patient-safety practices, and program- or service-level work to improve care and resource management. The role is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

Requirements

• Proficiency in basic written and spoken English.
• Graduation from an appropriately accredited school of professional nursing, or qualifying nursing education as specified in the announcement.
• Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a U.S. state, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia; a temporary Graduate Nurse Technician exception is described for eligible candidates pursuing licensure.
• For Nurse III: a qualifying master's degree in nursing or related field with a BSN, or a qualifying doctoral degree in nursing or a related field with a BSN, together with the specified specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse II and satisfaction of Nurse III dimension requirements.
• U.S. citizenship, except that non-citizens may be appointed when qualified U.S. citizens cannot be recruited in accordance with VA policy.
• Pass a pre-employment physical evaluation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is required for VA health care personnel.
• Complete the required application and onboarding steps; selected applicants are subject to background/security investigation and, when applicable, pre-employment drug screening.

Responsibilities

• Place vascular-access devices to support patient care.
• Provide IV Team services to Acute Care, ICUs, the ED, SDPU, outpatient clinics, and other VA Pittsburgh areas during code situations.
• Place peripheral and central lines, change dressings, collect blood samples for analysis, and access indwelling ports.
• Train staff to improve clinical skills.
• Use expert clinical judgment when caring for complex and specialized patient populations, contributing to improvements across the organization.
• Guide staff in implementing the nursing process and evaluating patient-care outcomes.
• Coordinate care delivery with the interdisciplinary team to promote continuity and accountability.
• Develop and implement complex programs to optimize patient care and improve resource management.
• Participate in developing program or service-line philosophy, objectives, policies, and procedures, and ensure necessary policies and procedures are developed.
• Implement program- or service-level policies and procedures, monitor staff compliance, and initiate corrective actions as indicated.
• Lead program planning and problem identification and resolution to improve care at the program or service level.
• Guide staff in complying with patient-safety goals.

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: Senior