Overview

Welcome home to Wesley Place on Honeysuckle. Here residents settle into an innovative, care-enhanced lifestyle that’s comfortably similar to how they’ve always lived. They enjoy a setting of home shared with others in a neighborhood to call their own.

The LPN Household Nurse performs nursing functions within the household, including administering medications, observing residents' conditions and communicating changes to the Clinical Coordinator or the physician as needed. The LPN Household Nurse works closely with the Clinical Coordinator to ensure regulatory compliance, nurtures a resident-directed culture, strengthens the ability of the household to grow as a separate effective home and promotes individual and team learning in the household. LPN Household Nurses are teachers and role-models of professional nursing practice to the household associates and resident advocates for quality clinical care. They provide each resident with routine daily nursing care and other desired services in accordance with resident choices, assessment criteria and the individual plan of care.

Responsibilities

• Promoting the residents’ well-being and satisfaction by supporting resident-directed care, developing and interpreting standards of care, guiding the interdisciplinary team as it establishes and implements the resident’s plan of care with the resident and his/her family or responsible party and the household team.

• Developing and maintaining a quality work team by recruiting and selecting associates for the household, scheduling associates to best support the needs of the residents in the household, promoting empowerment of the team in providing resident-directed care, facilitating a personal development plan for every member of the household team, conducting a performance evaluation for each team member at least annually, building rapport and support among the team, developing and participating in team problem solving methods, monitoring team members performance and providing feedback through coaching and counseling, celebrating individual and team success.

• Mentoring and leading clinical associates in their household, carrying out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the community’s policies, procedures and applicable laws, including participating in interviewing, hiring and training associates, planning assigning and directing work, appraising performance, rewarding and disciplining associates, addressing complaints and resolving concerns as allowed within Alabama’s Nurse Practice Act.

PRIMARY

• Ensures the clinical operations in the household are in compliance with federal, state and local regulations, the Nurse Practice Act of Alabama and professional standards of nursing care while honoring person-centered and resident-directed care; observes resident status as necessary to assure quality care and coordinates with other resident services to assure continuity of care

• Provides leadership to household associates to maintain policies and procedures for clinical practices and household management that support the values of Person First and resident-directed care, implements clinical policies and procedures which ensure safe, sanitary and efficient practices supporting professional standards of nursing care; assures that documentation, medication administration, resident nursing care, safety and sanitation, personnel and associates development, RAI process, materials management , CQI and resident rights are in compliance with community standards

• Participates as household clinical associates in hiring functions, orientation, training, clinical competency, coaching, educating, counseling and performance appraisals, maintained in a manner supportive of team and professional standards of practice

• Demonstrates support for organizational fiscal viability through efficient and effective use of all resources of the household, including maintaining clinical staffing and supply budgets within planned expenditures; maintain staffing patterns consistent with the philosophy, objectives and availability of resources
• Participates in the clinical component of QAPI in the household in support of a systemic approach to quality clinical care

• Fosters collaboration, consensus and negotiation to address problem solving in the household; assures that all clinical policies and procedures of the household are maintained; interprets and communicates same to all in the household as needed, with an emphasis on resident, family or designated representative relationships

• Maintains working relationship with physicians and other medical personnel in support of quality clinical care in the households

ANCILLARY

Supports meeting all resident and household needs by actively assisting (to the extent of cross training and certification) in all tasks to meet identified needs

LIFE ENHANCEMENT (social service and activities)

• Continually seeks opportunities to meet resident’s psychosocial needs through both care planned and spontaneous actions

• Continually seeks opportunities to support the social needs of all members of the household through support, friendship and kindness

• Plans and organizes social activities for individual residents, small groups and for the household, making any necessary arrangements to assure success of the activity

• Seeks opportunities throughout the day to facilitate spontaneous activities of resident choice and household preference; accompanies resident in all activities of choice

• Leads and participates in learning circles with residents and associates in the household daily

• Maintains equipment, games, supplies for use in supporting resident and household activity choices

• Continually seeks opportunities to share personal interests and talents with members of the household through both planned and spontaneous activities

• Maintains appropriate documentation in support of social service and activities functions in the household

HOUSEKEEPING

• Maintains clean spaces in the household, including resident rooms and bathrooms, household common spaces, as well as support spaces and equipment

• Maintains supply of all materials to meet resident needs in the household

• Supports all aspects of the household environment, including pets, plants, children, visitors and guests, facilitating all planned and spontaneous needs and activities

• Coordinates work with the household homemaker to ensure the housekeeping needs of the household are met within the associating resources of the household

LAUNDRY

• Assists residents as needed to wash, iron, fold and sort all residents' personal laundry; supports residents in self-care and provide assistance to ensure all residents' personal laundry is maintained in quality condition

• Coordinates work with the household homemaker to ensure the personal laundry needs of the resident (and household linens if washed in the household) are met within the associating resources of the household

Qualifications

LPN HOUSEHOLD NURSE

• Clinical Skills: Clinical skills sufficient to meet all the primary responsibilities identified above; meets state licensing and all other appropriate regulations for position, as well as organization’s expectations of position clinically (direct nursing, return demonstration, supervision and guidance).

• Homebuilding: Demonstrates to all associates, residents and family that the organization is committed to the creation of the pleasures and good daily life expected of home. Understands that quality care is enhanced with quality of life in the household. Encourages pleasurable moments, laughter and fun in the households. Engages sensitively and appropriately in the households, role-modeling the value of home.

• Resident-Directed, Quality Focused: Models and ensures that others are providing medical treatment in a manner that honors resident preferences and individuality. Demonstrates strong commitment to the highest clinical outcomes.

• Leadership: Sees supervision of other associates as a role of service, rather than one of authority, and seeks to support and under gird supervisees’ ability to succeed. Willing to do any tasks needed, including those that may seem menial or unpleasant. When communicating with physician or other medical personnel advocates for resident preferences. Refrains from pressuring or manipulating residents into accepting medication or treatment for the sake of associates or community convenience.

• Critical Thinking: Recognizes early signs of changing conditions and uses all available and appropriate resources to resolve needs. Very strong observational skills with regards to physical and medical conditions, coupled with ability to discern effective response and treatment. Knows when to seek consultation with the Household Clinical Coordinator and/or Clinical Mentor. Able to embrace individualized methods if they will best suit resident needs.

• Taking the Initiative: Sensitive to changing medical needs and the nature of associates responses, and takes appropriate actions regardless of whether the needs have been reported by others.

• Learning and Teaching Centered: Is able to model person-centered practices, as well as evaluate and provide direction and coaching to other medical associates as needed.

• Community and Team Builder: Able to facilitate sense of team connection and participation. Able to nurture sense of accountability to residents and household among nursing associates. Able to advocate for needs of either household, resident, family or associates as needed.

• Conflict Facilitation: Able to mediate conflicts concerning nursing associates as needed.

• Interpersonal Sensitivity and Communication Skills: Able to provide clear directions and explanations and elicit trust and cooperation from associates. Good supervision skills – able to provide clear directions and expectations as well as providing clear, effective feedback. Able to demonstrate and elicit mutual trust and respect. Able to communicate residents’ medical needs clearly with associates and families, and to facilitate other associates participation in medical care through eliciting others’ observations, suggestions, etc. Able to communicate clearly and effectively with physicians.

• Dementia Sensitivity: Able to demonstrate and nurture care practices for persons with dementia that meet needs while protecting personhood and sense of well-being.

LIFE ENHANCEMENT

• Homebuilding: Makes the house a healthy and happy place, works together to get things done, facilitates the creation of homey spaces, sees the possibilities and creating a daily life that naturally facilitates pleasurable moments, laughter and fun with lots of opportunity for a wide variety of meaningful relationships. Is creative and takes initiative, encourages others Engages sensitively and appropriately throughout the household.

• Resident-Directed, Quality Focused: Sees activities as an opportunity to create time spent together in meaningful ways, not merely an effort to fill time and keep residents occupied. Regularly elicits resident input into activity planning. Seeks to be creative in choice of activities. Keeps activities well organized and upbeat.

• Leadership: Understands that activities are of most value when residents actively participate, rather than being passively entertained, and strives to facilitate these opportunities to the greatest degree.

• Critical Thinking: Able to recognize potential barriers for individual residents to participate, or for a particular activity to be held within the household, and finds appropriate solutions.

• Taking the Initiative: Besides planned activities, is alert to opportunities for impromptu activities, and initiates them frequently.

• Learning and Teaching Centered: Explores a variety of sources for new ideas, including literature, media and workshops.

• Community and Team Builder: Understands that preparing and sharing food

Must meet regulatory requirements for licensure as practical nurse in State of Alabama. Certification in gerontological nursing is preferred, specialized training or experience in geriatric nursing is desirable. Three to five years on the job experience as nurse in skilled health care facility or retirement facility is preferred. Must have demonstrated leadership qualities, supervisory skills, interpersonal relationship skills, and knowledge of federal and state regulations governing clinical care, nursing practice and leadership. Commitment to person centered and resident directed care is essential. ServSafe certification is required.

Will meet all physical requirements of the position as identified by the community policies and procedures related to functional job analysis.

Will comply with all federal and state regulatory requirements to maintain licensure as practical nurse, ServSafe and other certifications as appropriate.