Occupational Health RN

At Houston Methodist, the Occupational Health Nurse position provides expert, integrated, cost-effective, quality patient care through the coordination of clinical care for occupational health clients and programs which includes organization, planning, developing and implementing occupational health programs. This position encompasses new employee, volunteer and allied health assessments, on-going employee health management and education as well as for cause drug testing. Responsibilities for this position include, but are not limited to, initial management, monitoring and reporting of occupational injuries and illnesses, return-to-work status, case management, immunization administration and compliance, safe patient handling equipment, education and training and regularly works with physicians on employee health assessments. The Occupational Health Nurse position collaborates with Infection Prevention and Control in the investigation, reporting and follow-through related to employee exposures to infectious or communicable diseases.

PEOPLE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Uses therapeutic communication, which includes active listening and teaching, to establish a relationship with patients, guests and interprofessional team.

• Contributes to teamwork by awareness of overall department workload, consistently offering assistance, and responding positively to requests for assistance. Collaborates to foster healthy relationships in the work environment. Seeks guidance from and offers guidance to interprofessional team, when appropriate, and applies feedback to improve outcomes.

• Functions directly and indirectly as a clinical resource/consultant by working with staff, management, patients/families, and/or other groups as applicable.

SERVICE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Performs pre-employment health assessments on all new post-offer candidates, allied health professionals (not managed by medical staff credentialing), and other contract, agency, volunteers and students per policy.

• Coordinates and performs activities related to on-going employee health management to include the annual Tuberculosis (TB) and Influenza program for employees, allied health staff, volunteers and contract personnel. Administers, tracks, coordinates and reports immunization programs.

• Provides nursing care to include administration of injections, dispensing non-prescription medications, vital signs, wound care and work status reports. Provides first aid treatment as needed and appropriate. Refers employees to physicians as appropriate.

QUALITY/SAFETY ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Conducts initial management, review and monitoring of all occupational injuries and illnesses.

• Utilizes results from data collection activities to include occupational injury and illness volumes and trends, results from infection control surveillance, trends of employee illnesses to identify and prioritize areas of focus for improvement. Participates in and reports to safety committees as needed.

• Assists in development and revision of policies and procedures to meet current practice standards. May present at Medical Staff, Environment of Care (EOC) and Safety Committees.

• Collaborates with Infection Control, physicians and others in the investigation, reporting and follow-through of employees potentially exposed to infectious or communicable diseases.

FINANCE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Displays self-motivation to independently manage time effectively, timely document care, minimize incidental overtime, and prioritize daily tasks. Provides input into the unit resource utilization including unit capital and operational budget needs.

• Adheres to fiscal responsibility when ordering and maintaining medical and office supply inventory.

GROWTH/INNOVATION ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Coordinates, collaborates, and participates in training along with other key stakeholders such as education and department leadership regarding safe patient handling and mobility (SPHM) principles.

• Coordinates planning of and may present educational programs to enhance staff knowledge.

• Designs, gathers, reviews, and utilizes qualitative and quantitative data analyses to develop educational material to promote patient safety and risk reduction.

This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive; the employee will also perform other reasonably related business/job duties as assigned. Houston Methodist reserves the right to revise job duties and responsibilities as the need arises.

EDUCATION

• Bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited school of Nursing OR Associate's degree from an accredited school of Nursing with an additional two years of nursing experience (in addition to the minimum experience requirements listed below)

WORK EXPERIENCE

• Three years of clinical nursing experience

• Occupational health nursing experience preferred

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS - REQUIRED

• RN - Registered Nurse - Texas State Licensure and/or Compact State Licensure within 60 days OR

• RN-Temp - Registered Nurse - Temporary State Licensure within 60 days AND

• BLS - Basic Life Support (AHA)

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS - PREFERRED

• COHN - Certified Occupational Health Nurse (ABOHN) OR

• COHN/S - Certified Occupational Health Nurse Specialist (ABOHN)

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Demonstrates the skills and competencies necessary to safely perform the assigned job, determined through on-going skills, competency assessments, and performance evaluations

• Sufficient proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing the English language necessary to perform the essential functions of this job, especially with regard to activities impacting patient or employee safety or security

• Ability to effectively communicate with patients, physicians, family members and co-workers in a manner consistent with a customer service focus and application of positive language principles

• Strong assessment, organizational and problem solving skills as evidenced by capacity to prioritize multiple tasks and role components

• Ability to function independently and exercise judgment in interactions with physicians, interprofessional care team and patients and their families

• Uses critical thinking skills and clinical judgment to work autonomously as defined by the Nurse Practice Act

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

WORK ATTIRE

• Uniform No

• Scrubs Yes

• Business professional No

• Other (department approved) Yes

ON-CALL*

*Note that employees may be required to be on-call during emergencies (ie. DIsaster, Severe Weather Events, etc) regardless of selection below.

• On Call* No

TRAVEL**

Travel specifications may vary by department

• May require travel within the Houston Metropolitan area Yes

• May require travel outside Houston Metropolitan area No

Company Profile:

Houston Methodist is one of the nation’s leading health systems and academic medical centers. Houston Methodist consists of eight hospitals: Houston Methodist Hospital, its flagship academic hospital in the heart of the Texas Medical Center, and seven community hospitals throughout the greater Houston area. Houston Methodist also includes an academic institute, a comprehensive residency program, a global business division, numerous physician practices and several free-standing emergency rooms and outpatient facilities. Overall, Houston Methodist employs more than 27,000 employees and is supported by a wide variety of business functions that operate at the system level to help enable clinical departments to provide high quality patient care.

Houston Methodist is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Equal employment opportunity is a sound and just concept to which Houston Methodist is firmly bound. Houston Methodist will not engage in discrimination against or harassment of any person employed or seeking employment with Houston Methodist on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, status as a protected veteran or other characteristics protected by law. VEVRAA Federal Contractor – priority referral Protected Veterans requested.