Student Nurse Extern I - Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

UNC Health•Chapel Hill, NC

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Student Nurse Extern I (SNE I) is a temporary, full-time externship position in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), a 20-bed unit within a Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center. The PICU cares for complex pediatric medical and surgical patients across specialties including trauma, general and cardiothoracic surgery, neurosurgery, ENT, oncology, solid organ transplants, burns, and other medical specialties. Eight beds are designated for specialized pediatric cardiac care. The unit emphasizes collaborative interdisciplinary practice and family-centered care. The externship runs from May 24 through July 31, 2027, and is intended for prelicensure nursing students enrolled in an accredited School of Nursing. The SNE I works as a member of the patient care team alongside an RN partner, within the Nursing Assistant I scope of practice. The position provides an immersive clinical experience to reinforce foundational nursing education and support role socialization and preparation for a registered nursing career. This is not an extension of school clinicals; student skills performed under a clinical instructor, including IV or oral medication administration, assessment, documentation, and NGT or Foley insertion, are not permitted. The SNE I reports to the assigned department’s Patient Services Manager or designated Education Leader and works under the direct supervision of an assigned RN partner or provider. The RN partner supports learning experiences and the performance of nursing care activities in complex and non-complex situations. The role provides routine direct and indirect patient care in a hospital, clinic, or home health care setting.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED.
Current enrollment in an accredited prelicensure nursing program, with anticipated graduation within 12 months of the start of the externship.
Listed as Nursing Assistant I with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
Basic Life Support (BLS) certification.
Fluent verbal and written English.
Ability to organize and prioritize assignments in the delivery of patient care.
Attain and maintain unit-specific competencies.
Basic computer skills.
Ability to lift and carry 40–50 pounds; examples include pushing or pulling patients on a bed or stretcher, requiring 29 pounds of push force, and lateral transfers involving up to 50 pounds of the patient's weight.
Frequent to continuous standing and walking.
Ability to perform role-specific activities that may include kneeling, bending, squatting, and performing CPR.

Responsibilities

Observe, collect, and document patient information obtained while providing care, and promptly report significant changes in a patient's condition to a registered nurse or provider.
Participate in identifying and reporting patient safety issues collaboratively.
Assist patients and families with admission, orientation to the hospital, clinic, or home health experience, and discharge.
Provide care and treatments outlined in the plan of care, including measuring vital signs, height and weight; collecting specimens; skin preparations and scrubs; catheter care; capillary blood glucose checks; simple wound care; range-of-motion exercises; postural drainage; and supportive one-to-one patient and family interactions.
Provide personal care for routine activities of daily living, including bathing, dressing, feeding, and assisting with ambulation.
Provide indirect patient and unit support, including cleaning work areas, changing linens, restocking supplies, cleaning or sterilizing instruments, transporting patients, supplies, and specimens, assisting with orientation of new employees and students, and performing routine clerical functions.
Reinforce routine teaching provided by a registered nurse or provider and document patient understanding of instructions.
Assist providers and other healthcare providers with routine examinations and procedures, and obtain equipment and supplies during emergencies.
In psychiatric settings, support reality orientation, behavior modification plans or therapy, informal patient and family support, verbal de-escalation, physical management of aggressive or out-of-control patients, age-appropriate play for children, and monitoring of therapeutic milieu activities.