Public Health Nurse II

An Overview The Public Health Nurse II (PHN II) was created by Alexandria City Council in July 2021 to begin the development of an interdisciplinary team at the Minnie Howard Campus satellite of Teen Wellness Center (TWC) located at the Alexandria City High School (ACHS) serving Alexandria teens. Under the direction of the lead Nurse Practitioner the PHN II, located at the TWC at ACHS, the PHN II will concentrate on the intersection of students’ physical and mental health, act as a liaison to Department of Community Health Services (DCHS) and Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) mental health practitioners to reach eligible youth from diverse backgrounds/cultures. The PHN II will follow up with students on recommendations made by TWC staff and by DCHS or ACPS mental health practitioners, assist in assessing youth for risk factors indicating they need further mental or physical health services, accustom Minnie Howard students and staff to having consistent TWC services at that site, be able to form relationships with students and better connect them with TWC services offered at the ACHS site, facilitate bringing certain services from the ACHS site to the Minnie Howard campus on an as needed basis.

The PHN II will triage patients, obtain health histories, provide direct nursing care including the administration of immunizations and prescribed medications, provide health education, laboratory testing, case management, formulate care plans and utilize independent assessment skills and analysis of physical, psycho-social, environmental and economic data to identify the impact each has on the health and health behaviors of Alexandria’s teens and families. The PHN II will perform satellite clinic management, conduct staff trainings, ensure ongoing quality assurance practices and work in compliance with clinical standards as it relates to the TWC clinic. Serves as a member of the Alexandria Health Department’s public health emergency response team and communicable disease control program as needed. Assists with data collection and report writing as it relates to the Minnie Howard Campus satellite of the Teen Wellness Center clinical activities and statistics.

The Opportunity - Examples of Work

• Acts as a liaison to the Alexandria City community and its agencies as well as to ACPS staff;
• Conducts a comprehensive health history and clinical assessment of adolescents in a clinical setting identifying physical and psychosocial needs, communicates the assessment to the clinician and documents assessment in the medical record;
• Has the ability to triage the adolescent to the appropriate clinician, social worker, mental health professional or community agency;
• Provides patient education dependent upon the teen’s needs. Follows TWC clinician’s orders using appropriate nursing skills and documents in the clinical record in accordance with established TWC requirements;
• Maintains inventory and orders supplies. Maintains all clinical laboratory logs and runs controls per TWC policy. Reports out of range or non-working equipment to lead Nurse Practitioner;
• Maintains emergency cart, equipment and supplies and follows protocol documenting testing;
• Provides immunizations appropriate to the adolescent, maintains the immunization inventory and follows CDC guidelines for storage of vaccines. Maintains all vaccine and temperature logs daily and reports deviations to the AHD Immunization coordinator;
• Provides health education, consultation and teaching on an individual or group level;
• Assists the TWC Health Educator in outreach activities in the community to promote access to TWC services;
• Assists with clinical data collection, reviews and implements new policies and procedures,
• Monitors clinic flow and reports data/information to the lead Nurse Practitioner in written form;
• Participates on assigned AHD activities such as committees, communicable disease prevention and emergency planning;
• Prepares a variety of required/requested reports using Microsoft Excel, Word, Publisher and other web-based systems;
• Performs other related work as assigned/required.

About the Department
Alexandria Health Department (AHD) is one of 35 health districts in Virginia. As part of the Virginia Department of Health, AHD serves the residents, businesses, and visitors of Alexandria and works closely with the City of Alexandria and community partners to achieve its mission and vision. Alexandria, comprised of 15.75 square miles and a population of approximately 158,000, is the most densely populated city in Virginia and is rich in diversity and community engagement. AHD’s mission is “Protecting and Promoting Health and Well-Being in Our Communities” and our vision is “Healthy People, Healthier Communities.” We view “health” in the broadest sense and this drives our path towards continuous health improvement with a focus on equity of the social determinants of health.

The Teen Wellness Center is a unique clinic located inside Alexandria City High School in Alexandria, Virginia. The clinic is supported by the City of Alexandria and is for the Youth of Alexandria between the ages of 12 and 19. The clinic is managed by AHD and the role public health plays in the clinic centers around empowering teens to lead healthful lives and to ensure that each and every Alexandrian teen succeeds physically, emotionally, socially and academically.

The Minnie Howard Campus satellite clinic is will be staffed Monday-Friday by the PHN II and work collaboratively with the TWC assists with this mission by collaboratively providing an easily accessible wellness center at the satellite clinic and through referral to TWC located at the Alexandria City High School. The TWC is the only full service school based health clinic for teens inside a school in Virginia and extending to the Minnie Howard Campus will increase access to health services. At this time, Alexandria Health Department is leading the Alexandria Community in its response to the COVID-19 pandemic and nursing/clinical services are an essential part of all related activities including not only case investigation and contact tracing but also providing accurate and targeted public health information to help all areas of the community as we respond and move forward into re-opening of business and clinical service delivery. The Nursing Division, with leadership from the Medical Director, is committed, engaged, and flexible in its response to the needs of the day as well as intentional planning for the future.

Minimum & Additional Requirements

To qualify for this position, all candidates must possess a four-year College Degree from an accredited college or university and/or graduate from an accredited professional school of nursing; three years of professional nursing service that include one year of experience providing services to individuals and families in a variety of settings such as community, clinics and schools; or any equivalent combination of experience and training which provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities. Eligibility for, or current licensure with the Commonwealth of Virginia as a registered nurse, and such other qualifications which may be prescribed by the Virginia Department of Health or any equivalent combination of
experience and training which provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities. Employees must possess a valid driver’s license issued by the state of their residence and must provide their own vehicle for routine transportation between locations.

Preferred Qualifications

To be considered as an ideal candidate, one should also possess work experience and/or a strong desire work with teens in making real changes that can impact their physical, mental and social well-being. Experience as a nurse in immunizations, communicable disease, family planning and adolescent health; progressively responsible work experience as a nurse in public health; work experience in providing clinic oversight. Experience developing and providing one on one, group education and outreach to multicultural populations as part of an interdisciplinary team; experience creating brochures, bulletin boards or educational materials with respect to the client’s language and learning level. Competent in Microsoft applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Publisher. English/Spanish fluency.

Notes

This position requires the successful completion of pre-employment background checks including but not limited to driving record check, employment verification, education verification, national sex offender search, fingerprint-based federal and local criminal history search, and DHHS Inspector General Exclusion Report search.