Job Description

General Summary
Serves as the on-site nursing supervisor for the Medical Center 24 hours/7days per week. Collaborates, coordinates, and communicates with administrators, physicians, nurse leaders, staff, patients, support services, and external agencies to facilitate the delivery of quality patient care. In collaboration with unit and department-based leaders, the Nurse Coordinator assumes administrative responsibility for the Department of Nursing for assigned shifts, off sifts and holidays.  Serves as a liaison between Maryland Access Center (MAC) and nurse manager and assists unit personnel in problem solving, interpretation of institutional policies and procedures, and coordination of patient care services. 

Principal Responsibilities and Tasks
The following statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification.  They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all job duties performed by personnel so classified.

Maintains and communicates accurate information regarding availability and type of patient beds and services within the hospital to support patient placement.  Plans and coordinates patient and bed assignments with the MAC for the Emergency Department, Procedural Areas, and all access points in collaboration with requisite disciplines and providers within the organization.

A.            Promotes the mission, vision, and values of the organization. Interprets and enforces hospital and nursing policies, practices and procedures with staff, patients, the public and other members of the healthcare team in a consistent and equitable manner.

B.            Assess patient care requirements on each unit/area.

C.            Incorporates unit rounds into daily activities

As the primary resource for nursing personnel, responds appropriately to clinical issues; guides and directs staff according to nursing standards and practice.Assess the acuity of care required by patients and communicates changes in patient condition or unusual events to the oncoming Shift Coordinator. Coordinates staff utilization by assisting the charge nurse when necessary in identifying resources to meet the unit’s needs.Develop and implement staffing strategy for shift based on patient acuity, patient census and available staff; based upon information obtained regarding staffing needs from charge nurses on units.Collaborates with all appropriate Coordinators (i.e. Trauma Coordinator, Neuro Care Coordinator) and Supplemental Staffing to assign available staff to inpatient units.

D.  Assists MAC with patient flow issues and works with clinical leadership to ensure safe staffing on patient care units. Coordinate local patient flow and bed access.  Monitors and evaluates patient flow and patient placement considering financial and regulatory issues.

Responds to crises and emergency situations (RRT, Code Blue) and assists as necessary.Assists in placement and transport of acutely ill patients to ensure patient safety and coverage.Report significant hospital events to the hospital administrator-on-call.Identifies and provides for specialized care needs of post arrest patients until planned transfer to the appropriate critical care unit is complete.  Oversees the interim management of patients requiring specialized care but who are not in intensive care units.

E.             Utilizes knowledge of legal principles that affect the provision of nursing care and educates nursing staff of those principles related to consent, blood administration, patient elopement, discharge against medical advice and other such issues.

F.             Collaborates with hospital and physician leadership to define, reduce and eliminate barriers within the system which may impede patient flow.

1. Negotiates with physicians related to patient placement

2. Works within the critical care model

3. Negotiates off service patient placement with physicians, staff and managers

a. Works collaboratively with Maryland Access Center physician leaders and requisite physician leaders to resolve bed management issues

b. Communicates a rationale for placement decisions

Establishes articulate communication with essential team members across neurology, surgery, and medicine departmentsEstablishes strong interpersonal relationships across complex systemsOperates from a team-centered orientation during bed flow meetings and decision makingExercises strong understanding of complex systems and organizational thinking as it pertains to throughputDemonstrates excellent multi-tasking skills managing multiple patients’ bed needsCollaborates with UMAC Coordinators and cross-campus coordinators when risk-stratifying patients during routine and priority bed identification and placementDevelops and uses strong analytical and problem-solving abilitiesDemonstrates leadership skills that are goal and outcomes focusedCommunicates and assists physicians, nurses, *support services and **consulting services in a wide spectrum of needsResolve conflict and reach agreement by facilitating open communication between departments OR, PACU, ICU, CCRU, and procedural areas.Reviews all arrivals and communicates with UMAC nurse coordinators on bed placementReports delays and gaps in care to attending, nursing leadership and nurse coordinatorsAttends service-line specific bed huddles to obtain Admission, discharge, discharge (ADT) needsObtains pertinent updates from all divisions to coordinate ‘loose ends’ to expedite pending transfers or discharges.Works across multiple services to connect patient to service/department/resourcesConfirms home or SAR transportation times and family notifications during IDR’s with charge nurse. Boarding locations for in-hospital patient pick-ups by family must be communicatedProvides continuous communication throughout shift to all units, providers, UMAC, and staff to streamline patient throughput. Improves the patent experience using direct communication amongst the patient care team and ensures efficient and organized admissions, transfers, and dischargesReduces pressure on staff by coordinating communications amongst several providers to coordinate priorities, patient movement and decision makingChecks dashboards and milestones to track hospital census and critical situation developmentsCommunicates with nursing coordinator for possible patient transfers to the medical center, and in/out repatriations to system hospitalsEnsures that units staff have organized hospital transport for transfers to floors, procedural areas, or other locations\Contacts consultant services for requests that are delayedConfirms discharge teaching, prescriptions, and other discharge requirements prior to discharge orderPerforms unit sweeps of discharged patients for room readiness and EVS services and arranges for STAT cleansRequests/Obtains stretchers/wheelchairs to avoid patient transport delays when none are available

8.             Ensures smooth functioning of the bed management process to reduce wait times and avoid unnecessary movement of patients. 

A.            Makes timely bed assignment

B.            Triages/prioritizes admissions from multiple sites, i.e., community referral, Express Care, ED, etc., and internal transfers

C.            Manages complex decisions related to patient placement.

D.            Matches the clinical needs of patients with staff competencies and unit resources to optimize patient placement decisions

E.            Pre-assigns scheduled patients to beds

F.             Ensures patients are placed in a clinically appropriate level of care

                 

9.         Maintains continuous knowledge of patient census, Alert Status, OR, STC Capacity Alert, or ExpressCare demands.

 

A.            Ensures continuous analysis of patient throughput.  Identifies barriers or process issues.

B.            Tracks bed turnaround time and analyzes variances.

C.            Prepares and communicates data on program outcomes to key constituencies communicating with managers in real time.

D.            Leads performance improvement efforts related to patient placement and access.

 

 

Company Description

Renowned as the academic flagship of the University of Maryland Medical System, our Magnet®-designated facility is a nationally recognized, academic medical center with opportunities across the continuum of care.  Come join UMMC and discover the atmosphere where talents and ideas come together to enhance patient care and advance the science of nursing.  Located in downtown Baltimore near the Inner Harbor and Camden Yards, you won’t find a more vibrant place to work! 

Qualifications

Education and Experience

Graduation from an accredited School of Nursing with a Bachelor’s degree in Nursing required.Current licensure in the State of Maryland or eligible for licensure.Three years of nursing work experience in a Medical/Surgical and/or Critical Care unit is required.BLS/ACLS certification required. 

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Knowledge of policies and procedures related to hospital emergency codes, discipline and disaster plan is needed for resolving administrative and clinical matters.Ability to deliver various educational programs to the off-shift nursing staff related to nursing care and standards, legal principles, CPR and the like.Ability to respond, investigate, identify and problem-solve regarding issues related to administrative and clinical matters that require immediate and decisive action.Ability to manage staff related to personnel issues such as absenteeism, tardiness, performance standards and to take the appropriate action.Highly effective verbal and written communication skills are required to interact with patient families, departmental units, and medical staff on all essential matters and to instruct and evaluate nursing staff.Ability to demonstrate knowledge and skills necessary to provide care appropriate to the patient population(s) served.  Ability to demonstrate knowledge of the principles of growth and development over the life span and ability to assess data reflective of the patient's requirements relative to his or her population-specific and age specific needs.   Professional DevelopmentMaintains competencies required for the position and remain current with all mandatory training.Formulates realistic professional goals for growth and development and works with Manager to develop a plan for achievement.Maintains accountability for own educational needs and attends appropriate educational programs.Contributes input to committees as requested.

Patient Safety

Ensures patient safety in the performance of job functions and through participation in hospital, department or unit patient safety initiatives.

Takes action to correct observed risks to patient safety.Reports adverse events and near misses to appropriate management authority.Identifies possible risks in processes, procedures, devices and communicates the same to those in chargeAdditional Information

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Compensation

Pay Range: $50-$65Other Compensation (if applicable):Review the 2024-2025 UMMS Benefits Guide