Research Nurse

Axle•Bethesda, MD

25d

About The Position

Axle is seeking a Research Nurse to support the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland. The role provides nursing and clinical research support for research protocols and clinical trials, balancing patient care needs with research objectives and ensuring patient safety, protocol compliance, and accurate data collection. The Research Nurse recruits and screens participants, conducts interviews and clinical assessments, supports informed consent, educates patients and families, and coordinates care with interdisciplinary research and medical teams. The position also manages clinical and regulatory documentation, research databases, protocol implementation, and study reporting. Additional duties include training and mentoring clinical staff, contributing to protocol development and improvement, reviewing medical literature, and supporting patient scheduling and follow-up.

Requirements

Master’s degree in nursing and current state licensure as a Registered Nurse; three years of specialized experience plus a bachelor’s degree is considered equivalent to a master’s degree.
At least two years of nursing experience.
CPR certification.
Experience working with clinical protocols.
Experience with MedSurg nursing.
Strong diagnostic and clinical skills.
Excellent analytical, organizational, and time-management skills.
Strong verbal and written communication skills.
Proficiency with the MS Office Suite.

Responsibilities

Recruit, screen, enroll, and follow up with patients for clinical and basic research studies and protocols.
Coordinate with research and medical staff to evaluate potential participants for protocol eligibility.
Conduct patient and family interviews; obtain medical, social, medication, and other relevant histories.
Perform physical assessments and examinations, monitor patients during protocol studies, and identify clinical findings that may require prompt action.
Provide direct patient care in coordination with interdisciplinary teams, balancing clinical needs with research requirements.
Educate and counsel patients and families about disease processes, study objectives, treatments, potential risks, and side effects.
Obtain and maintain informed consent and assent, and support human-subject protections and research ethics requirements.
Implement clinical protocols and monitor adherence, patient safety, recruitment, retention, and study progress.
Collect, interpret, enter, manage, and report clinical and research data, including maintaining computerized patient files and databases.
Maintain protocol documentation and contribute to quality assurance, quality control, data abstraction, and data analysis activities.
Prepare and coordinate regulatory and Institutional Review Board (IRB) submissions, annual reports, amendments, adverse-event reports, and other required documentation.
Coordinate clinical testing, consultations, patient appointments, travel arrangements, and follow-up communications.
Respond to patient inquiries and communicate relevant clinical information to patients, referring physicians, and research team members.
Participate in clinical rounds, patient care conferences, research meetings, lectures, grand rounds, professional meetings, and seminars.
Train and mentor physicians, nurses, clinic staff, new staff, and other healthcare team members in research protocols and clinical research practices.
Contribute to the design, development, implementation, and improvement of research protocols, study methods, screening tools, and clinical processes.
Review and summarize relevant medical literature and participate in data analysis, manuscript preparation, and presentation of findings.
Identify operational or patient-care problems, recommend process improvements, and help improve procedures and reduce costs.
Clean and inspect equipment and run validation activities.
Meet with laboratory members to present updates.