RN Certified Diabetes Care & Education Specialist - Per Diem

MLK Community Healthcare•Los Angeles, CA

About The Position

The RN Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist provides diabetes education and supports self-management to help patients meet individualized behavioral and treatment goals, reduce risk, and optimize health outcomes. The role provides education to patients, their families or caregivers, and MLKCH clinical staff, and contributes to developing, reviewing, and revising diabetes education materials. It supports MLKMG ambulatory clinics by providing or reviewing current clinical education materials to help ensure consistency across MLKCH service lines. The specialist serves on the MLKCH Diabetes Care Committee, reviews hospital-wide policies and procedures related to diabetes education and glycemic control, and shares current American Diabetes Association clinical best-practice guidelines and Standards of Medical Care. The role has a matrixed work relationship with the Clinical Manager Pharmacy and takes clinical direction on standards of care for MLKCH patients with diabetes. The employee is expected to demonstrate behavior consistent with the organization’s Core Values and support its strategic plan and quality and performance improvement activities.

Requirements

Associate degree in Nursing.
At least two years of clinical nursing experience.
At least two years of diabetes education experience in inpatient and outpatient settings.
Current California nursing license.
Current Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS).
Certification as a Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (CDCES) within six months of hire; candidates eligible to take the CDCES exam may be considered and must pass within 90 days of the start date.
Basic computer skills.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Experience with an electronic health record (EHR).
Bilingual skills, preferably Spanish.

Responsibilities

Provide evidence-based, clinical best-practice diabetes education to patients and their family members or caregivers.
Participate in the interdisciplinary healthcare team to facilitate continuity of care and diabetes education.
Serve as a consultant and resource to clinical areas, clinic staff, and departments on diabetes education.
Build collaborative relationships with nursing and clinical leadership teams to meet educational needs effectively.
Provide leadership through educational activities that support changes in clinical diabetes care and education practices.
Regularly evaluate diabetes education programs and plan and implement improvements based on evaluations and stakeholder feedback.
Monitor and evaluate resource use, patient outcomes, self-care skills, and patients’ ability and readiness to learn, as needed.
Document individual consultations accurately and promptly in the patient’s medical record.
Counsel and educate patients on diabetes care in conjunction with their medical provider, including medications, exercise, diet, and sick days.
Participate in root cause analyses of hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia events and, when appropriate, recommend that medical or pharmacy staff consider medication adjustments.
Use adult learning principles to select appropriate teaching strategies and methods, including e-learning.
Develop and deliver group presentations, educational programs, and staff in-services as needed.
Incorporate MLKCH clinical policies and procedures and Quality and Performance Improvement recommendations into diabetes education curricula for clinical staff.
Use, protect, and disclose patients’ protected health information only in accordance with HIPAA standards.
Contribute to developing, reviewing, and revising diabetes education materials and reviewing current materials for consistency across MLKCH service lines.
Serve on the MLKCH Diabetes Care Committee, review relevant hospital-wide policies and procedures, and provide current ADA clinical guidelines and Standards of Medical Care.