RN Infection Preventionist and Education Specialist

Cura Health•Long Prairie, MN

4h•$90,000 - $104,000

About The Position

Cura of Long Prairie is seeking an RN Infection Preventionist and Education Specialist to join its leadership team. Under the direction of the Director of Nursing (DON), this role supervises nursing services and helps ensure residents receive care in accordance with facility policies and applicable state and federal requirements. The position may fulfill the DON’s duties during the DON’s absence or a vacancy and is a mandated reporter of alleged maltreatment, neglect, or abuse of vulnerable residents or tenants.

Requirements

Graduation from an accredited school of nursing.
Current registration as a Registered Nurse in Minnesota.
Training and/or experience in nursing in-service administration.
Thorough knowledge of professional nursing theory and practice, nursing-service administration, restorative nursing, and Medicare Part A requirements.
Considerable knowledge of psychiatric nursing and/or geriatric nursing.
Ability to plan, assign, and supervise the work of others.
Ability to establish and maintain effective working and public relationships and harmonious working relationships with the healthcare team.
Ability to maintain accurate and complete records and prepare clear, detailed reports.
Ability to teach long-term-care skills and concepts and supervise and teach on an ongoing basis.
Knowledge of standards of care, including restorative care, comprehensive resident assessment, and care-plan development.
Basic computer skills or ability to acquire them.
Ability to organize and prioritize projects, communicate effectively, process information accurately, meet deadlines, and follow instructions.
Tact and sound judgment when dealing with physicians, residents, families, visitors, management, and staff; pleasant manner and appropriate grooming and hygiene.
Ability to work effectively under stress caused by multiple tasks, noise, and interruptions while maintaining a pleasant demeanor and cooperating with the healthcare team.
Willingness, honesty, punctuality, dependability, and organizational loyalty.
Ability to safely perform essential job functions, with or without reasonable accommodation, without posing a direct threat to oneself or others.
Ability to read, analyze, and interpret complex documents; respond effectively to sensitive inquiries or complaints; write speeches and articles; and deliver effective, persuasive presentations on complex or controversial topics.
Ability to work with probability and statistical inference and apply fractions, percentages, ratios, and proportions to practical situations.
Ability to apply logical or scientific reasoning to a broad range of problems and deal with abstract and concrete variables.
Ability to stand, walk, sit, use hands to handle or feel, reach, crouch, talk, hear, and taste or smell; hear and distinguish sounds in background noise, including alarms and low voice levels; detect specified odors; and lift or move up to 25 pounds.
Required vision abilities include close, color, distance, and peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

Responsibilities

Develop and maintain nursing-service objectives, practice standards, procedure manuals, job descriptions, and an organizational plan defining nursing-service structure and communication lines.
Fulfill the DON’s duties during an opening, absence, or vacancy, and make facility-operation decisions in the DON’s absence in accordance with the organizational chart.
Fill nursing-floor shifts during critical staffing shortages, including days, evenings, nights, and weekends; participate in the nursing leadership on-call rotation and be available or assigned as an emergency designee.
Lead the Infection Control Committee, complete infection-control program requirements, and establish meeting times and procedures.
Provide education on the MDS process and serve as backup for the MDS Coordinator; coordinate the MDS schedule with other disciplines.
Verify staff competencies, prepare orientation materials for pool staff, and ensure pool staff are oriented before working at the facility.
Develop and maintain the annual in-service calendar, schedule and arrange required in-services, develop in-services in response to identified needs, and report to the DON staff who miss required in-services.
Coordinate Medicare certifications, denial letters, charting schedules, and policies and procedures affecting Medicare coverage; assist with pre-admission screening.
Participate in planning, developing, and implementing resident-care policies and bring policy-change issues to the Quality Assurance (QA) Committee.
Coordinate nursing services with administration and other resident-care services, including physician, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and dietary services; maintain effective working relationships with facility personnel.
Participate in selecting prospective residents based on their nursing needs and available nursing competencies; review admissions and assist attending physicians with continuing-care planning.
Ensure each resident has a care plan that is reviewed quarterly and modified as necessary; support care planning and quality assurance.
Be accountable to the DON, with delegated responsibilities and authority documented in writing, for the provision, direction, and supervision of nursing care.
Report accidents and dereliction of duties; report alleged maltreatment, neglect, or abuse to a supervisor and appropriate state agencies.
Oversee proper recording and handling of narcotics and barbiturates and ensure nursing notes clearly describe the care rendered.
Define and assign nursing personnel duties consistent with each staff member’s education, preparation, and license.
Coordinate Quality Assurance and participate in QA as directed by the Administrator and QI.
Supervise RNs, LPNs, and NARs, including interviewing, hiring, training, assigning and directing work, appraising performance, recognizing and disciplining employees, addressing complaints, and resolving problems, in accordance with facility policies and applicable laws.
Maintain records of employee hepatitis vaccinations and maintain accurate and complete records and reports.
Monitor nursing-department operations and the care environment to support residents’ safety, security, dignity, and quality of life.
Comply with facility policies and procedures, resident rights, applicable federal and state requirements, and the Minnesota Nurse Practice Act; perform other duties assigned by the DON within its scope.
Attend training or staff-development activities as required and perform other assigned duties.