RN

Job Summary and Responsibilities

As a Registered Nurse (RN), you will be a pivotal healthcare professional, delivering compassionate, high-quality care that truly impacts our patients' well-being and recovery.Every day, you will leverage your expertise to provide individualized, comprehensive care, making critical assessments, performing skilled procedures, and meticulously implementing patient care plans. You'll collaborate seamlessly within an interdisciplinary team, contributing to a dynamic environment focused on optimal patient outcomes.To be successful in this role, you will possess keen assessment skills, acute critical thinking, and a patient-first mindset, driven by a profound enthusiasm to help others. Your sense of urgency and dedication to excellence in a fast-paced environment will not only support patient recovery but also fuel your own career advancement.

- Assessment: Assesses adult, geriatric, adolescent and pediatric clients. Understands anesthesia theory and risk factors/complications Manage unprotected airway, provide manual support and or manual ventilations. Can set up a ventilator and input setting per physician orders Recognizes new, unfamiliar, not commonly seen conditions and seeks assistance. Observes, collects and records data according to departmental standards related to a patient's biophysical, psychosocial, environmental and self-care ability as well as educational and discharge planning needs. Continually evaluates patient's condition while in the PACU or Level II or Discharge Lounge with particular attention given to monitoring oxygen, ventilation and circulation. Communicates assessments according to department protocol. Documents following on arrival in the PACU: airway is patent and oxygen is applied; verifies adequate respiration and circulation. Identifies and provides for individual patient care needs. Describes a systematic method of achieving the goal of post-anesthesia care.

- Planning: Can open and close the PACU, Level II recovery or Discharge Lounge in full compliance with departmental procedure. Uses the nursing process to establish priority needs for each individual patient including special procedures and medication administration. Uses nursing processes to set short term perioperative goals and discharge plans. Assesses nursing care given and provides for ancillary services when indicated. Documents in PACU record. Checks orders of Anesthesia and surgeon regarding patient's needs or equipment. Communicates with Anesthesia regarding patient care. Communicates with the nursing director or RN Lead as to the plan of the day. Communicates opportunities and problems to the nurse director or RN Lead as needed.

- Implementation: Properly monitors patients according to physician orders. Assists physicians with special procedures as instructed. Applies knowledge of the crash cart, location of medications, supplies and equipment to provide safe and competent nursing care. Follows universal blood and bodily fluid precautions. Prepares recovery area as indicated by operating room schedule. Accurately administers medications such as patient controlled analgesia based on the written order of the physician. Applies knowledge of hospital and unit-based fire and safety programs, infection and environmental control policy and procedure and applies them appropriately for self and for patient care. Accurately and completely documents a patient's response to care on PACU records. Applies knowledge of hospital or unit-based policy and procedures such as medication administration, PCA and others in order to provide safe and competent nursing care.

- Evaluation: Continuously assesses the effectiveness of nursing interventions against patient outcomes and documents responses while adjusting care plans, regulating the clinical environment for safety, administering medications with an understanding of anesthetic implications, and strictly adhering to infection control and PPE protocols.

- Teaching: Verifies patient understanding of surgical and post-operative instructions, provides clear guidance on emergency contact procedures, coordinates home medication needs, and conducts follow-up wellness calls.

- Nursing Care Leadership: Promotes unit efficiency by managing resources cost-effectively, participating in quality improvement initiatives, utilizing appropriate communication channels, and maintaining high standards of professional attendance and scheduling flexibility.

Job Requirements

Required

- Registered Nurse: CA, upon hire and

- Basic Life Support - CPR, upon hire and

- Advanced Cardiac Life Support, upon hire and

- Pediatric Advanced Life Support, within 90 Days and

- Trauma Nurse Core Course, within eighteen (18) months

Preferred

- Clinical experience in PACU, Operating Room, ICU, Emergency Department, Endoscopy. and

- Conscious Sedation experience

- Certified Nurse Operating Room (CNOR) upon hire or

- Certified Post Anesthesia Nurse (CPAN) upon hire or

- Certified Ambulatory Perianesthesia Nurse (CAPA) upon hire or

- Critical RN Adult/Neonatal/Pediatric/Acute (CCRN), upon hire

Please be advised that this location requires quarterly American Heart Association (AHA) Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) competency certification post-hire. This ongoing competency is required through resources internal to the facility; outside RQI competency resources are not acceptable for CommonSpirit Health compliance requirements.

Where You’ll Work

Founded in 1873, Dignity Health - Mercy Medical Center is a 186-bed, acute care, nonprofit hospital located in Merced, California. Serving over 150,000 patients annually, the hospital offers a full complement of services including a Level II NICU, heart care, the Mercy Cancer Center, and a family birth center. Additionally, Merced Medical Center has been recognized as an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality High Performer by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation and is a Joint Commission-certified Primary Stroke Center.

One Community. One Mission. One California