Employment Status:Per DiemJob Category:NursingJOB SUMMARY:The Diabetes Educator will assist with conducting needs assessments, developing and implementing educational programs according to the individualized needs of inpatients, outpatients, professional development, the community and specific to hospital service lines.
The Diabetes Educator will assist with the administration and sustainability of hospital-wide educational programs by directing and efficiently utilizing resources to meet organizational goals.
The Diabetes Educator may participate in independent and collaborative research activities that support goals, identify quality, safety and process improvement areas, and will address staff development issues in both clinical and non-clinical areas.EXPERIENCE/QUALIFICATIONS:Minimum 2 years in specialty area of practice preferred.Minimum 3 years in acute care setting preferred.Visual acuity to observe patient assessment data and use manual/automated documentation toolsEffective communication skills including speaking, enunciating, and writing.
Able to receive and give information in person, by telephone, and in writingEmotional stability conducive to dealing with a high stress level associated with management, care coordination, caring for acute patients/SO, fast paced physical activity, emotional demands of maintaining effective working relationships with peers, manager, physicians, external customers, and other health care workersBi-lingual in English and Spanish highly preferred.EDUCATION: BSN degree requiredMaster’s degree preferred.LICENSURES/CERTIFICATION:Current licensure with the California Board of Registered NursingCertification as a Certified Diabetes Educator through the NCBDE within 1 year of hireMust successfully complete and maintain BLS certificationMust successfully complete and maintain LA City Fire Card certification at the time of hire or within the first 30 days of employmentDUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES (These are the essential job functions for this position.
The essential functions of this job include but may not be limited to those listed in this job description.
Employees hired for this position must be able to perform the essential function of this job without imposing significant risk of substantial harm to the health or safety of themselves or others):Patient Care ManagementClinical Practice Assures the stages of the patient care process occur, including assessment, planning, intervention and evaluation through mentoring and policy/standards development.Orientation Assures that all staff is able to locate items related to physical environment, safety, and patient care areas as identified in the orientation and performance appraisal tools.Clinical Coordination Demonstrates supervisory skills, clinical skills and independent judgment.Assures appropriate patient education and assists staff, as appropriate, in adhering to the recommended standards.Patient Education and Consultation Assists the staff in accommodating special patient needs by serving as a consultant and/or providing alternative materials or evidence-based resources.Documentation Serves as a resource for utilizing all hospital-wide documentation tools according to established guidelines.Patient’s Rights/Legal Functions as a patient advocate through independent intervention, as deemed appropriate, and through assuring adherence to required standards initiated by the Patient Representative and Ethics Committee when necessary.Education ManagementAssessment Identify learning needs through needs assessments.Theory – Demonstrates sound knowledge of age-specific, culturally-sensitive, adult and pediatric education principles, theories and methods.Design Designs educational activities/programs, based on evidence-based education principles, which facilitates the attainment of all standards/program objectives and goalsImplements educational activities/programs relevant to learning needs of participants and goals of the organizationEvaluation – Evaluates the effectiveness of educational activities/programsEvaluation – Collaborates with Nursing Leadership in preparation of 90-day evaluation of Nurse Residents and orientees and existing staff.Documentation – Completes all documentation for class presentations in a timely manner; prepares education documents/education files/staff development toolsPolicy Contributes to policy development and evaluation.
Understands administrative, patient care and departmental policies and procedures at an expert level.Compliance – Contributes to preparation for regulatory surveysQuality Improvement Conducts concurrent monitoring activities for documented competencies and makes appropriate changes in educational strategies.
Uses QI data in development of educational activities.Professional Development – Demonstrates and validates self-directed learning and participates in continuing education to meet own professional developmentProfessional Practice – Serves as a role model and resource for professional practice and staffProblem Solving Demonstrates ability to use appropriate independent judgment in the development and coordination of education and staff development programs.Conflict Resolution Discusses issues of concern directly with others, reporting to Director only when attempts at resolution are not succeedingCollaboration Actively serves on committees on a voluntary and appointed basis at hospital, medical, department and area level committees.Consistently remains aware of research/literature findings and integrates current research into practiceConducts independent/collaborative research with the goal of quality improvementOperations ManagementLegal Demonstrates awareness of and responsibility to legal issues in all aspects of professional and patient careEmergency Response Directs and implements an appropriate, effective response to emergency situations or other circumstancesCompliance Demonstrates the ability to enforce policies and standards through appropriate disciplinary action and gives input in the performance appraisal processThe following job accountabilities are not unique to this particular job but are common to all jobs at VPH:Complies with VPH policies and procedures on customer satisfaction and service excellence.
Demonstrates professionalism and cultural sensitivity in coordinating activities and communicating with all customers, peers, and the community at large.
Conducts self in a professional, respectful and courteous manner during all interactions.
Works effectively and collaboratively with others toward common goals.Communicates accurately, honestly, supportively and in a timely manner with department and interdepartmental team members.
Demonstrates effective business writing and oral communication skills, handwriting is clear and legible.Participates in operational aspects of the department and maintains/participates in performance improvement activities within the department.Participates in all departmental specific training, Environment of Care (injury/illness prevention, fire/life safety, hazardous materials, emergency preparedness, utilities management, medical equipment management, safety and security management), infection control (standard precautions, TB Exposure Control Plan, Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Control Plan).Demonstrates knowledge of and follows safety practices.
Understands the importance of safety, including patient safety in the work place.
Maintains a safe environment for self and others.Actively participates in the Patient Safety Program, including event reporting.
Identifies sentinel events/near misses and responds per defined organization processes.
Participates in education activities and process implementation.
Demonstrates advocacy for the patient/customer and appropriately acknowledges patients, customers and visitors.The above statements reflect the essential functions considered necessary to describe the principle content of the job.
They are not intended to be a complete statement of all work requirements or duties that may be inherent in the job.WORK ENVIRONMENT:Primarily an inside building/office environment, well lighted and ventilated, which may consist of multiple treatment and/or work sites.Fast and continuous work pace with variable workload.Frequent contact with staff and public under a variety of circumstances.
Requires ability to communicate clearly (in English) verbally and in writing for effective communication with other staff members, physicians, vendors, community members, patients and patient families, employees and applicants of all socio-economic levels from a diverse cultural and ethnic population.Subject to many interruptions from multiple calls and inquiries and potentially emotional situations involving accidents, injuries, illness and/or death.Handles emergency/crisis situations in accordance with Hospital policy.Answers phones or pages; may carry a beeper/pager, and/or use a two-way radio.Occasional travel may be required.Potential risk of exposure to hazards from chemicals (toxic and non-toxic), flammable materials, gas or electrical or radiant energy or equipment with/without moving parts.PHYSICAL DEMANDS: Key for Physical DemandsContinuous66 to 100% of the timeFrequent33 to 65% of the timeOccasional0 to 32% of the time Patient CareContinuous standing/walking and occasional/intermittent sitting.Continuous use of bilateral upper extremities in fine motor activities requiring fingering, grasping, and forward reaching between waist and shoulder level to handle/operate medical equipment/devices.Frequent reaching above shoulder level and overhead.Frequent forward bending, twisting, squatting and kneeling; occasional climbing.Occasional repositioning and transferring patients weighing up to 200 pounds between bed, chair, and gurney.Occasional lifting and carrying equipment weighing up to 25 pounds.Occasional/intermittent pushing of gurneys, wheelchairs, bed and other medical equipment over tiled and carpeted surfaces.Continuous use of near vision to read medical equipment such as monitoring devices and reading documents and computer screens; hearing and verbal communication to interact with patients, co-workers, and other customers.