Palliative Care Provider-Advance Practice Nurse

The Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) Certified Nurse Practitioner (NP) in Geriatrics and Extended Care (GEC) Palliative Service provides advanced clinical care, consultation, and management for GEC Palliative Service. The APN practices to full scope of education and certification, with prescriptive authority, delivers quality, timely care, collaborates with teams, and advances the VA mission.

Start your career here. A Career At VA Salt Lake City Health Care System Can Take You Places (youtube.com) The NP is a licensed independent practitioner with advanced education and national certification, providing evidence-based care for a population of patients, manages a panel of patients with terminal illness with an emphasis on symptom management related to illness and discussion of goals of medical care. Duties of the position are, but not limited to: Develop and implement an individualized plan to achieve improved quality of life.

Demonstrates leadership and work collaboratively with the interdisciplinary team. Order and interpret labs, tests, and diagnostic studies. Prescribe pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic interventions.

Initiate referrals and consultations with specialty services. Provide education to patients and their families. Assess and adjust the plan of care as needed to achieve optimal patient outcomes.

Exemplify the ICARE core values of-Integrity, Commitment, Advocacy, Respect, and Excellence. Respond to all palliative care consults within 48 hours. Initiate, chair and record outcomes of Veteran/family meetings, communicate' goals; meetings may be in the impatient or the outpatient setting; providers, social workers, and chaplain are encouraged to attend these meetings; issues of discussion may include code status, advanced directives, and identification of resource needs.

Collaborate with veterans and the medical providers (provider may be urgent care/ER, primary care, specialty care, or hospitalist) to be informed of patient history and prognosis. Provider is available to Emergency Medicine as needed, to assist with case-finding and goal setting. Directly interact with Veterans and family in various venues, such as primary care visits at the time of the veteran's appointment, Oncology Clinic, subspecialty clinics and acute care settings.

Review ongoing pain and symptom management with evaluation and adjustments as needed for Veterans under the care of the SLCVHA. Provide care to inpatient palliative and hospice patients. Special interest/skill in malignant acute pain management with availability to other medical providers for consultation.

Fill scripts for opioids, palliative care medications and durable medical equipment requests as needed. Attend palliative care/hospice team meetings and palliative care memorial service, participate as requested. Assist with request evaluation for inpatient palliative care admissions.

Contribute to local, VISN, and National Palliative Care workgroups or QI as needed. Participate in conference calls as scheduled. Advance and enhance Hospice and Palliative Care services across VISN, foster continuous improvement and quality care delivery, which is above and beyond normal duties and contributes to higher evaluations.

Other duties as assigned. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

Licensure

1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory Work Schedule: 0800-1630, Monday to Friday Telework: Not available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not available. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not available.

Advanced Practice Nurse (Nurse Practitioner) Basic Requirements

Education

A post-master's certificate or master's or doctoral degree as a Nurse Practitioner. (Applicants pending the completion of educational requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until the education requirements are met.) Must be a graduate of a school of professional nursing approved by the appropriate 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). NOTE: Foreign Education.

Graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing programs, the nurse practitioner degree equivalency must be validated through an Agency recognized degree equivalency evaluation agency, such as the International Consultants of Delaware (ICD). Candidates with equivalent nurse practitioner masters or doctorate level degrees who possess current, full, active, and unrestricted registration and certification will meet the requirement of graduation from an approved school of professional nursing to warrant appointment. License - All APN (NPs) must possess and maintain an active, current, full, and unrestricted APN license to practice as an NP in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.

Basic Board Certification - All APN (NPs) must maintain full and current basic board certification in one of the following: Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), Adult Nurse Practitioner (ANP), Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP), Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (ACNP), Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (AGACNP), or Gerontology Nurse Practitioner (GNP) from one of the following: the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB), or other nationally recognized certifying body in the area in which the Nurse Practitioner is academically prepared. NOTE: Grandfathering Provision - All persons currently employed in VHA in 0610 series and an APN (NP) assignment that are also performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of the standard (1/29/2024) are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held including positive education and licensure/certification. The following Scope, Education and Experience, and Dimension criteria must be met to qualify for Advanced Practice Nurse (Nurse Practitioner) II: Exception to Licensure for Graduate Nurse Technicians.

Candidates who otherwise meet the basic requirements, but do not possess the required licensure and/or certification, may be appointed at the entry step of the Nurse II, as a Graduate Nurse Technician - Nurse Practitioner on a temporary appointment up to any period not-to-exceed one year and a day under the authority of 38 U. S. C. § 405(c)(2)(B). Scope: Demonstrates leadership in delivering and improving holistic care through collaborative strategies with others Education and Experience Requirement: Meets basic education requirement for APN (NP). Nurse II is considered the entry grade level for APN (NPs); no experience is required.

Dimension Requirement: APNs (NPs) at level II are expected to meet the following dimension

requirements

Clinical Practice. Delivers evidence-based health care, demonstrating proficiency in the ability to manage a patient panel, population, or program. Outcome Focus.

Utilizes research and evidence-based practice to evaluate the patient care delivery system within a patient panel or program, presents findings and contributes to changes that enhance the quality and timeliness of veteran/patient care. Leadership. Works effectively as a leader within a team/unit/group and seeks interdisciplinary collaboration as appropriate to enhance patient care.

Professional Development. Acquires knowledge and skills to develop expertise in area of practice. Professionalism/Collegiality.

Demonstrates effective communication skills and professional behavior, promoting cooperation and teamwork. Participates in interdisciplinary teams and processes that positively impact patient outcomes. The following Scope, Education and Experience, and Dimension criteria must be met to qualify for Advanced Practice Nurse (Nurse Practitioner) III: Scope: Executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience, and creative approaches to management of complex client care.

Education and Experience Requirement: Meets basic education requirement for an APN (NP) AND one year of specialized APN (NP) experience equivalent to the Nurse II grade level. Dimension Requirement: APN (Nurse Practitioners) at grade III are expected to meet the following dimension

requirements

Clinical Practice. Influences and models the delivery of evidence- based health care, demonstrating expertise in the ability to manage a patient panel, population, or program. Outcome Focus.

Leads and implements changes that enhance the quality and timeliness of Veteran/patient care applying research and evidence in the delivery of healthcare for patient populations. Leadership. Initiates and leads interdisciplinary teams informed by structured approaches and processes to improve outcomes that positively impact care for a patient panel, population, or program.

Professional Development. Acquires knowledge and skills, then disseminates acquired information within and/or outside the medical facility. Professionalism/Collegiality.

Initiates and leads interdisciplinary teams developing systems that positively impact outcomes at the panel, population, or program level. Demonstrates effective communication skills and professional behavior, promoting cooperation and teamwork Preferred

Experience

Previous palliative and/or hospice care. Physical

Requirements

The employee must be able to perform all activities of the position without restriction. This position involves considerable standing, walking, stooping, bending, reaching, lifting and turning. It requires repositioning patients and assisting with transferring patients to wheelchairs/stretchers.

Mechanical devices when available are required to be used for heavy or difficult to lift patients. The work may involve pushing or lifting in excess of 50 pounds and going up and down flights of stairs. The position requires visual and auditory acuity at a level to provide safe and effective nursing care.

The position requires work for periods of time with arms above shoulder level or with the neck in a fully flexed or extended position and the ability to physically control or protect him/herself from physically abusive patients. May be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations, operative/invasive procedures. May occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders.

Must be mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities, based on patient needs.

U. S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.

English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U. S. C. 7402(f), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Subject to background/security investigation.

Selected applicants will be required to…