Patient Care Tech

Description
Penn Medicine is dedicated to our tripartite mission of providing the highest level of care to patients, conducting innovative research, and educating future leaders in the field of medicine. Working for this leading academic medical center means collaboration with top clinical, technical and business professionals across all disciplines.

Today at Penn Medicine, someone will make a breakthrough. Someone will heal a heart, deliver hopeful news, and give comfort and reassurance. Our employees shape our future each day. Are you living your life's work?

Pennsylvania Hospital is seeking a Patient Care Tech to join our Nursing 6 Cathcart Team. This is a full time, day shift opportunity.
6 Cathcart is a complex 43 bed medical-surgical unit at Pennsylvania Hospital that provides the highest quality of care to its patients. 6 Cathcart also achieves outcomes that exceed national benchmarks in quality, employee engagement and patient satisfaction through a strong interdisciplinary team approach.

Surgical service lines include Colorectal, Urology, Gynecology, Otorhinolaryngology and General Surgery. While a majority of our patient volume is surgery, we also care for general medicine patients. RN patient assignments are most frequently 3-5:1, depending on the overall acuity of the assignment, which is measured by our acuity scale. These patient assignments are also supported by highly skilled Patient Care Technicians (PCT) that perform vital signs, accuchecks, electrocardiograms, intake and outputs, phlebotomy, assistance with ADLs and ambulation. The PCT patient assignments are most frequently 8-12:1, again depending on the overall acuity of the assignment.

Summary:

• The Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) interacts with patient at the most intimate level and highest frequency. As an integral member of the health care team, the CNA shows up and remains engaged in all aspects of the role, drive results with intention, partners with unwavering support, commit to every single moment and serve with compassion. While working under the direct supervision of the registered nurse, the CNA role primary focus is to support and assist in the delivery of quality care to patients and families. Some of the major responsibilities includes participation in RN/CNA hand-off communications and unit huddles, timely collection and reporting of patient data, demonstrating safety protocols at all times, timely notification and escalation of data or clinical conditions, remaining alert and responsive to activities on the unit, and demonstrating a genuine care for the patient (paying a close attention to the basics), e.g., active listening, timely response, cultural sensitivity, individualized approach to care.

Responsibilities:

• Demonstrates a genuine care for the patient, e.g., active listening and responding, gentle approach to providing care, knock then identify yourself before entering a patient's space, provide timely information to patients in a caring manner; ensure an individualized approach to care to include cultural sensitivities, anticipate patent needs based on dialogue and observation
• Active participation in daily RN/CNA handoffs and unit huddles
• Communicate with patients to ascertain feelings or need for assistance or social and emotional support.
• Answer patient call signals, signal lights, bells, or intercom systems to determine patients' needs.
• Provide physical support to assist patients to perform daily living activities, such as getting out of bed, bathing, dressing, using the toilet, standing, walking, or exercising. Assist patient in their independence (when appropriate), preserving the patient's dignity while providing care.
• Timely notification and escalation of data or clinical data/information
• Gather information from caregivers, nurses, or physicians about patient condition, treatment plans, or appropriate activities.
• Collecting and recording vital signs, such as temperature, blood pressure, pulse, or respiration rate, as directed by medical or nursing staff.
• Document or otherwise report observations of patient behavior, complaints, or physical symptoms to nurses.
• Demonstrates flexibility/change in assignments based on patient acuity and unit needs
• Demonstrate safe patient handling skills, proper hand hygiene
• Demonstrates support of quality and safety measures in the work environment, e.g., demonstrated support of the unit's Quality Assessment Performance Improvement (QAPI) goals
• Ensure actions and behaviors demonstrate their support in creating a positive, caring and healing patient environment
• Consistently focus on improving the patient experience

Credentials:

• CNA Certification by the State of Pennsylvania or RN without a BSN Degree (Required)
• American Heart Association BLS (Required)

Education or Equivalent Experience:

• H.S. Diploma/GED Required.
• Matriculated in an accredited BSN Nursing Program preferred; minimally completed the nursing foundations/fundamentals clinical course with a 3.0 GPA overall and in the nursing major.

We believe that the best care for our patients starts with the best care for our employees. Our employee benefits programs help our employees get healthy and stay healthy. We offer a comprehensive compensation and benefits program that includes one of the finest prepaid tuition assistance programs in the region. Penn Medicine employees are actively engaged and committed to our mission. Together we will continue to make medical advances that help people live longer, healthier lives.

Live Your Life's Work

We are an Equal Opportunity employer. Candidates are considered for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, familial status, genetic information, domestic or sexual violence victim status, citizenship status, military status, status as a protected veteran or any other status protected by applicable law.