Senior Oncology Nurse Navigator

Ventura County • Ventura, CA

4d • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Oncology Nurse Navigator supports patients, providers, and family members throughout diagnosis, treatment, and related cancer services. The role collaborates with interdisciplinary teams to triage, coordinate, and manage oncology patients, serving as a point of contact to address barriers to access and care, specialized needs, and other cancer-treatment issues. The position is with the County of Ventura Health Care Agency at Ventura County Medical Center and/or Santa Paula Hospital. The payroll title is Senior Registered Nurse – Hospital. The role is represented by the California Nurses' Association and is eligible for overtime compensation. The recruitment currently has one regular vacancy; the eligible list may also be used for future regular, temporary, fixed-term, intermittent, and extra-help vacancies.

Requirements

• Two years of full-time professional oncology registered nursing experience.
• Graduation from an accredited School of Nursing.
• Current, valid Registered Nurse license issued by the State of California, to be maintained.
• Current, valid Basic Life Support (BLS/CPR) certification by the first day of employment, to be maintained thereafter.
• Comprehensive knowledge of American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer standards; advanced oncology nursing care principles and practices; cancer treatments, their indications, actions, adverse effects, and safe handling; and signs, symptoms, and emergency interventions for chemotherapy complications, infusion reactions, oncologic emergencies, and treatment-related adverse effects.
• Working knowledge of performance-improvement processes, hospital-based and nursing committee practices, and patient and staff education methods.
• Ability to provide direction to others, self-direct continuing education, serve as a positive role model, work proficiently in emergency or stressful situations, maintain patient confidentiality, establish effective working relationships, and communicate effectively orally and in writing.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing and/or a master's degree is strongly preferred.
• Chemotherapy-Immunotherapy Certification (ONS).
• Oncology Certified Nurse Certification (ONC/ONCC).
• Bilingual ability in English and Spanish.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate patient care across the cancer continuum, helping patients access care promptly and coordinating or facilitating appointments and services; accompany patients to appointments as needed.
• Coordinate appointments and services from abnormal findings and diagnosis through treatment and the cancer-care continuum.
• Schedule and coordinate patient consultations and related telephone and in-person care-plan meetings, and follow up according to each patient's plan of care.
• Coordinate diagnostic testing, services, and consultations with care-team providers to support timely delivery of diagnostic and treatment services.
• Use oncology nursing knowledge to clarify information and provide education appropriate to the patient's literacy level.
• Assess patient and family needs, connect them with resources, and make referrals for education, financial, psychosocial, survivorship, transportation, childcare, lodging, and follow-up services.
• Facilitate distress screenings and patient needs assessments and make appropriate referrals.
• Help mitigate barriers to care and assist patients with concerns and paperwork as needed.
• Facilitate screening for and/or access to clinical trials.
• Build partnerships with local healthcare agencies and cancer-related care groups, including referrals to other services and cancer survivor support groups.
• Collaborate closely with physicians, cancer and rectal program coordinators, and oncology specialists to support seamless patient care and coordination.
• Participate in multidisciplinary conferences and cancer committee meetings.
• Educate patients about treatment, care plans, symptom management, and survivorship.
• Document patient interactions and progress and communicate navigation activities to physicians and the cancer-care team.
• Track navigation program metrics, quality indicators, and outcome reporting.
• Assist with ongoing assessment of the navigation program and identify process-improvement opportunities.
• Assist with annual Commission on Cancer Standard 3.1 activities, including community needs assessment, resulting program modifications, and reporting to the cancer committee.
• Participate in community health promotion and awareness programs, attend health fairs and screenings, and provide community education presentations as appropriate.
• Facilitate and attend support groups as needed.
• Perform other related duties as required.

Benefits

• Educational incentive of 2.5%, 3.5%, or 5% for qualifying Associate's, Bachelor's, or Master's degrees not required for the classification.
• Bilingual incentive may be available depending on operational need and certification of skill; eligible employees must pass the applicable bilingual fluency examination.
• Certification pay of $0.813 per hour based on scheduled work-week hours for each qualifying certification, up to five certifications; one certification may be paid at $2.00 per hour for a National Certification.
• Continuous County Service Incentive Pay: 1% for 7 years, 1.25% for 12 years, and 1.5% for 17 years.
• Preceptor pay of $2.50 per hour.
• Flexible Credit Allowance: biweekly contribution toward medical, dental, and/or vision insurance from authorized plans.
• Participation in the County's defined benefit pension plan.
• Overtime compensation eligibility.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed