Duties

Summary

CHIEF NURSE (GERIATRICS & EXTENDED CARE NURSING)
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Responsibilities

The Chief Nurse (Geriatrics & Extended Care Nursing) provides clinical and administrative leadership and oversight for both clinical nursing practice and administration; establish/promote optimal standards of care and policies/procedures which reflect evidence based practice; work with his/her peers to formulate strategic directions for the Nursing Service; plan, implement, and lead activities to enhance customer service; and collaborate with other health care disciplines to establish and maintain programs that cross service and/or discipline lines and influence organizational mission and the overall health care delivery. As the CN for Geriatric & Extended Care Nursing, the incumbent will be responsible for assessing and recommending the allocation of resources, both human and material, necessary to ensure positive outcomes of existing programs and new projects. The CN uses performance improvement data, e.g. staffing effectiveness, to design delivery models, ensure budgetary responsibility, and establish staffing levels that will meet the needs of the Veteran patient.

This CN will be responsible and accountable for the delivery of high quality, customer-focused, cost-effective patient care to meet the mission and goals of current operations, the Medical Center, VISN 6, and VHA. The CN for Geriatrics & Extended Care Nursing will facilitate interdisciplinary teamwork to assure optimal quality in all care delivery processes, promote productivity/efficiency, monitor clinical outcomes, work to enhance patient satisfaction levels and be responsible and accountable for continuous performance improvement within the Geriatric and Mental Health Services.

Work Schedule: Normal work days/hours will be Monday-Friday, 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM, with work day/hours flexibility required as administrative and/or clinical demands require.
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Status: Exempt
Supervisory Position: Yes
Bargaining Unit Position: No
Recruitment/Relocation Incentives: Not Authorized
Relocation expenses: Not Authorized
Probationary period: May be required
Financial Disclosure: Not Required

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
Yes

Promotion Potential
4

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Designated and/or random drug testing required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/23/2020.

Basic Requirements:

• U.S. citizenship. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Graduate of a school of professional nursing approved by the appropriate State-accrediting agency and accredited by one of the following accrediting bodies at the time the program was completed by the applicant: The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). In cases of graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing, possession of current, full, active and unrestricted registration will meet the requirement of graduation from an approved school of professional nursing.
• The completion of coursework equivalent to a nursing degree in a MSN Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration constitutes the completion of an approved course of study of professional nursing. Students should submit the certificate of professional nursing to sit for the NCLEX to the VA along with a copy of the MSN transcript. (Reference VA Handbook 5005, Appendix G6).
• Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a State, Territory or Commonwealth (i.e., Puerto Rico) of the United States, or the District of Columbia.
• English Language Proficiency: Qualified applicants must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d).

Preferred Experience: Masters Degree in Nursing or related field preferred. Also, see below.

• National certification in Advanced Nursing Administration strongly preferred.
• A minimum of five (5) years of full-time professional nursing administrative practice in a variety of nursing settings, including previous supervisory positions in progressively more responsible leadership assignments strongly desired.
• Recent experience in managing/overseeing the nursing/clinical operations in an acute inpatient facility. Demonstrated success in planning and activating new units/programs, with demonstrated leadership in formulating new policies/practice protocols and in preparing programs for accrediting body reviews, such as Joint Commission/CAP.
• Current knowledge and understanding of VA Performance Measures required. Evidence of previous active leadership in system re-design initiatives in previous assignments to facilitate Richmond's transition to a tertiary care delivery model.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively as both a team member and leader, with excellent interpersonal skills, strong organizational skills, and excellent oral communication and writing skills, as demonstrated in previous assignments.

Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates:

Nurse IV - Master's degree in nursing or related field with BSN and approximately 4-5 year's of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree in nursing or related field and appropriate basic or advanced certification desired, and approximately 3-4 year's of nursing practice/experience. Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-6 Nurse Qualification Standard. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office.

Physical Requirements: This position requires visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. This position requires potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, pushing and reaching over head. Transferring patients and objects may be required. The incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations or operative/invasive procedures. The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities based on patient needs. Must complete annual Employee Health requirements; such as annual TB screening or testing, as a condition of employment. Incumbent may be exposed, on a short term basis to fumes, dust and other debris. This position potentially requires flexibility in schedule and assignments, as this is a 24h hospital and is an essential function of the position. Some positions require rotation of tours or indefinite work on non-administrative tours as established by the immediate supervisor.

Other Factors
- Lifting 50 pounds
- Repetitive motions, i.e. typing
- Perform CPR
- Ability to read; reading 70% of the time on computers

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ . If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html .

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

If you are unable to apply online view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, résumé, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

NOTE: A formal pay-setting process will be used to determine your salary. The salary may be at any point in the range listed for this vacancy.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
Yes

Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Trust determination process
Credentialing , Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: VA Form 10-2850a - Application for Nurses and Nurse Anesthetists can be found at: https://www.va.gov/vaforms/medical/pdf/vha-10-2850a-091998-fill.pdf CV or Resume. Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, full-time or part-time, start/end dates in mm/dd/yy format, AND average number of hours worked per week. Copies of college transcript(s) Copies of all licensures and certifications. Nursys License Verification: https://www.nursys.com/LQC/LQCTerms.aspx Candidates must submit a copy of their two most recent performance appraisal. The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please use this checklist to ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc. If prior military service, include all copies of your DD Forms 214 or proof of service (required). Applicants claiming preference based on service-connected disability, or based on being the spouse or mother of a disabled or deceased Veteran, must also complete and submit an SF 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference (available at http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf ). If currently employed for Federal agency, include latest SF-50 - Notification of Personnel Action. (except current Richmond VAMC employees). SF 50 must show your tenure code, position occupied and highest grade and step. In addition, if you have or had service in a Federal Law Enforcement position covered by law enforcement or firefighter retirement provisions, including early or mandatory retirement, the SF-50 must show the retirement code. An award SF-50 does not contain the required information.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.