What are the responsibilities and job description for the Registered Nurse (O-2/O-3/O-4 Billet) Non-Supervisory position at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement?
Summary
The Registered Nurse provides advanced nursing care to ICE detainees, including assessments, triage, medication administration, emergency response, and patient education. Responsibilities include leadership roles such as Charge Nurse or Team Lead, mentoring, and process development. The role requires clinical expertise, adaptability, and the ability to work in a multidisciplinary team in a detention setting.
This position is only open to USPHS officers and Call to Active Duty (CAD) candidates.
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This job is open to
The public
Clarification from the agency
Applicants must be a current USPHS Commissioned Corps Officer or USPHS Call to Active Duty (CAD) candidate. Civilians are not eligible for this position.
Duties
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Provides direct nursing care to detainees with knowledge of nursing care principles, practices, and procedures.
- Provides nursing procedures as ordered following Lippincott Procedure Manual after completed IHSC Registered Nurse (RN) competency documentation on annual basis. Additionally, follows and remains current on all applicable IHSC directive and guidelines.
- Documents all detainee encounters using S.O.A.P.E. format, followed by the nurse's signature and name stamp on written documentation or by locking notes in electronic health record.
- Ability to assess patients' needs and coordinate appropriate nursing care plan.
- Obtains medical histories on detainees; referring medical problems identified to the physician, or Advanced Practice Provider (APP) as appropriate.
- Demonstrates nursing triage process and screening of detainees/residents during sick call and performs functions as outlined in the approved IHSC Clinical Nursing Guidelines, refers patients to higher level of care as appropriate.
- Accesses interpretation and/or translation services as needed to ensure ability to communicate with detainees or others who are not proficient in the English language.
- Provides daily nursing care as needed in Medical Housing Units (MHU) and notifies physician, or APP of any abnormal findings.
- Provides care for psychiatric patients as indicated.
- Coordinates health care needs of detainees with healthcare team and coordinates referrals to off-site providers as required.
- Provides patient teaching/training in accordance with agency directives.
- Maintains non-involvement in the security/custody aspects of care.
- Assists the medical provider with medical appointments by taking the detainees vital signs, and assisting as necessary.
- Responds to emergency medical calls as assigned and provides emergency treatment of injury or illness to detainees as required.
- Performs orders authorized by the physician, APPs, or other qualified health care provider.
- Ensures the medical orders are implemented in a timely manner.
- Applies knowledge of drugs and therapeutics in administering medication.
- Ensures that medications prescribed are administered as ordered, using the 6 rights of medication administration.
- Ensures all new medication orders are reviewed before administration and acknowledged either by initials by each new order on paper medication administration records or by acknowledging in new electronic medication administration record. When medication orders are signed off, initials are placed next to the order and circled to maintain appropriate documentation.
- Maintains security when administering medications; maintain cognizance at all times of the potential hazard of drug hoarding and trafficking among detainees.
- Provide radiological services in accordance with nursing board state licensure rules; these services will be to conduct tuberculosis surveillance i.e. digital single view chest x-rays, if applicable.
- Draws labs as requested and collects laboratory specimens.
- Administers immunizations; reads and documents immunizations accordingly.
- Follows all IHSC Public Health, Safety, and Preparedness Unit Directives and Guides to maintain environmental health and safety, infection control, and all hazards emergency preparedness daily.
- Responsible for maintenance of medical equipment and quality control of laboratory reagent.
- Maintains medical supply stock level, may order supplies (lab and other supplies); restocking as needed.
- Maintains non-involvement in the security/custody aspects of care.
- Performs record keeping functions in accordance with program policies.
- May prepare statistical information, regularly scheduled reports, or special reports as necessary.
- Attends general/medical and Nursing Service Unit (NSU) meetings as scheduled.
- Must be able to work rotating shifts including holidays and weekends.
- Performs as punctual and dependent employee for assigned shifts.
- Maintains clinical professional skills via continuing education opportunities.
- May serve at other IHSC medical facilities on temporary duty (TDY).
- May serve as medical escort of detainees as needed for domestic/overseas travel under direction of special operations.
- Demonstrates leadership potential and willingness/ability to assume increasing levels of responsibility: may be tasked to function as Charge Nurse or Team Lead.
- May participate in quality improvement or other team/unit reviews/activities.
- Performance of complex tasks requiring developed proficiency/ higher responsibility: serves as Clinical Coordinator/Charge Nurse/Acting Nurse Manager as assigned.
- Nurse demonstrates they efficiently and effectively work at higher than their current grade.
- Performs other duties and responsibilities as assigned.
See additional duties in the "Additional Information" box below.
Requirements
Conditions of employment
- You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.
- You must successfully pass a background investigation.
- You must successfully pass a drug screen.
- Males born after 12/31/59 must certify registration with Selective Service.
- Requirements by Closing Date: Unless otherwise noted, you must meet all requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
- Service Remaining Requirement Agreement: Upon appointment to this position, officers will be required to serve an 18 to 24-month commitment to IHSC.
- ASSIGNMENT PAY AGREEMENT: You must not have a current Assignment Pay Agreement. However, if you have a current Assignment Pay Agreement, it must be fulfilled within 90 days of your application submission.
- Applicants must be a current USPHS Commissioned Corps Officer or USPHS Call to Active Duty (CAD) candidate. Civilians are not eligible for this position.
- Applicants without a USPHS commission must begin the USPHS Commissioned Corps application process before applying to this position. Applicants must review the USPHS application requirements and submit an application at www.usphs.gov/apply-now/.
- Continued employment is contingent upon appointment to, and maintenance of, active-duty status in the USPHS Commissioned Corps.
- PHS officers must participate in IHSC TDY On-Call Schedule (ITOS.) ITOS is either an entire month or two 16-day periods a year where, depending on the needs of the agency, the officer is required to be available to serve.
Qualifications
COMPETENCIES:
- Cultural Competency.
- Demonstrates strong interpersonal skills.
- Active listening skills.
- Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills.
- Integrity/Honesty.
- Adult learner teaching skills.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
- Requires physical exertion such as lifting objects greater than 30 pounds.
- Must have the ability to assist sick, injured or aging detainees or staff exiting the building (may require lifting, dragging, wheeling or carrying someone who weighs significantly more than self).
- The work may necessitate some physical characteristics that will be required when responding to an emergency situation, such as running short distance, prolonged standing and working in an austere environment.
- Required to perform CPR/emergency care standing or kneeling.
Education
REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES (O-2 Billet):
- Must be a Bachelor prepared Registered Nurse. Must be licensed by a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or territory of the United States.
- Knowledge of the Nurse Practice Act for the licensing state and/or the state in which one practices nursing.
- Maintains current/documented professional license.
- Maintains current CPR/BLS certification.
- Maintains USPHS Basic Readiness status.
- Minimum of zero to two years' professional nursing experience.
- Professional credentials/Certification appropriate to current job specialty.
- Knowledge of a wide range of nursing concepts, principles, and practices to perform nursing assessments of considerable diversity to include mental health, medical surgical, ambulatory and emergency nursing care.
- Knowledge of medication administration guidelines, and pharmaceutical agents and their desired and adverse effects in order to recognize untoward effects and take appropriate corrective measures.
- Sufficient interpersonal skills to develop a rapport with patients and coworkers during which instructional and patient health educational information is presented.
- Requirements for safety, infection control, quality assurance, maintenance of records of patients seen, statistical information gathering, etc.
- Spanish language proficiency preferred, not required.
REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES (O-3 Billet):
- Must be a Bachelor prepared Registered Nurse. Must be licensed by a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or territory of the United States.
- Knowledge of the Nurse Practice Act for the licensing state and/or the state in which one practices nursing.
- Maintains current/documented professional license.
- Maintains current CPR/BLS certification.
- Maintains USPHS Basic Readiness status.
- Minimum of two to four years' professional nursing experience.
- Knowledge of a wide range of complex nursing concepts, principles, and practices to perform nursing assessments of considerable diversity to include mental health, medical surgical, ambulatory and emergency nursing care.
- Professional credentials/Certification appropriate to current job specialty.
- Knowledge of medication administration guidelines, and pharmaceutical agents and their desired and adverse effects in order to recognize untoward effects and take appropriate corrective measures.
- Knowledge of managing non-compliant patients, special needs populations, and patients with significant deficits in coping skills, thereby requiring continuing professional clinical support.
- Knowledge of nursing management and leadership skills.
- Knowledge of team building principles.
- Knowledge of forensic nursing concepts and principles.
- Intermediate knowledge of computerized data base, sources, and reporting methodologies.
- Flexibility and ability to adapt to sudden changes in schedules and work requirements.
- Spanish language proficiency preferred, not required.
REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES (O-4 Billet):
- Bachelor or Masters prepared Registered Nurse; Masters preferred. Must be licensed by a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or territory of the United States.
- Knowledge of the Nurse Practice Act for the licensing state and/or the state in which one practices nursing.
- Maintains current/documented professional license.
- Maintains current CPR/BLS certification.
- Maintains USPHS Basic Readiness status.
- Minimum of 4 years' experience, begin graduate level education-preferred, (O-3 for two years), must have two years Registered Nurse II, Clinical Nurse Intermediate.
- Knowledge of a wide range of nursing concepts, principles, and practices to perform nursing assessments of considerable diversity to include mental health, medical surgical, ambulatory and emergency nursing care.
- Professional credentials/Certification appropriate to current job specialty.
- Knowledge of medication, administration guidelines, and pharmaceutical agents and their desired and adverse effects in order to recognize untoward effects and take appropriate corrective measures.
- Comprehensive knowledge of managing non-compliant patients, special needs populations, and patients with significant deficits in coping skills, thereby requiring continuing professional clinical support.
- Knowledge of requirements for safety, infection control, quality assurance, maintenance of records of patients seen, statistical information gathering, etc.
- Training methods and sufficient interpersonal skills to develop a rapport with patients and coworkers during which instructional and educational information is presented.
- Knowledge or experience of nursing management and leadership skills.
- Knowledge of teaching patient health education skills.
- Knowledge of team building principles.
- Knowledge of forensic nursing concepts and principles.
- Advanced knowledge of computerized data base, sources, and reporting methodologies.
- Flexibility and ability to adapt to sudden changes in schedules and work requirements.
- Spanish language proficiency preferred, not required.
Additional information
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES CONT'D:
- Identifies and suggests process improvement activities at local/regional level.
- Officers should strive for increasing impacts at the regional level: may participate in quality improvement or other regional/national reviews/activities.
- Serves the leadership in a group/ team/committee/ branch with the potential for team leadership or management potential and/or serves as a member of a task force or similar group at/above the local/regional/Branch/ Division level.
- Contributions to/support of a management/supervisory/technical/clinical expert/ and/or program leadership role: develops/presents at least 1 approved education offering with evaluation criteria annually; or teaches a minimum of 2 established training modules; or partner with Registered Nurse II to develop or update 2 or more patient education materials, or precept for full orientation period.
- Participates as a primary or supportive mentor in regular one-on-one or group mentoring activities.
- Active member at the local level in Professional, Uniformed Service and Specialty Organizations; evidence that PHS Commissioned Corps (CC)/IHSC collateral activities impact and contribute to the PHS mission at the local/regional/national level.
IHSC has a multi-sector, multidisciplinary workforce of more than 1400 employees, including U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) commissioned officers, federal civil servants, and contract staff. The IHSC provides on-site direct patient care to ICE detainees at 22 detention facilities throughout the country and manages the provision of off-site medical care for detainees housed in approximately 240 additional Intergovernmental Service Agreement (IGSA) facilities. The ICE detainee population is approximately 34,000 detainees on a daily basis, with an average length of stay of approximately 30 days, and over 400,000 detainees annually. IHSC also provides medical support during ICE enforcement operations in the air, on the ground, and at sea.
DHS SUPERVISORY CONTROLS:
- DHS
- ICE
- ERO
- DHHS
- USPHS CC
The Registered Nurse will be supervised by the Nurse Manager in collaboration with the Health Services Administrator and Clinical Director, with the Regional Nurse Manager as the reviewing official.
Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
Benefits
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefits
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
We will review your resume and supporting documentation to ensure you meet the minimum qualification requirements. You may be selected for an interview at the hiring authority's discretion. You will be notified of selection or non-selection.
Required Documents
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position. A complete application includes:
U. S. Public Health Service Officers
- Cover Letter/Letter of Interest.
- Degrees. (Place under "Diploma/GED")
- Professional license. (If applicable)
- Additional professional certificates. (If applicable)
- Three professional references. (i.e., name, title and contact information)
- Official USPHS Promotion CV - e.g., relevant experience, education, training. (Place under "USPHS Promotion CV")
- You may provide a civilian resume in addition to the USPHS Promotion CV to capture all relevant work experience.
- A copy of your Certificate of Investigation (located in your eOPF).
- Three most recent Commissioned Officer Effectiveness Reports (COER). (Place under "Performance Appraisal")
- For IHSC USPHS officers only, a copy of your current Service Remaining Requirements Agreement.
- Indicate if you have an Assignment Pay (AP) Agreement and the date of the end of your AP Agreement. If you do not, please submit a memo attesting to no AP in the Assignment Pay (AP) Agreement section in the documents section of application.
- Cover letter/Letter of Interest. Please include location preference here.
- Degrees. (Place under "Diploma/GED")
- Professional license. (If applicable)
- Additional professional certificates. (If applicable)
- Three professional references (i.e., name, title, and contact information)
- CV - e.g., relevant experience, education, training. (Place under "USPHS Promotion CV")
- U.S. Public Health Service - Appointment Board Decision Letter/Email or a screenshot of AES dashboard to the United States Public Health Service
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must submit the required documentation outlined under the REQUIRED DOCUMENTS section below.
The complete initial Application must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 11/05/2026.
PLEASE NOTE: If your materials are not received by the closing date, your application will be evaluated solely on the information available and you may not receive full consideration or may not be considered eligible. Also, if you do not provide a valid email address, you may not be notified of the outcome of your application.
To begin the process, click the Apply Online button to create an account or log into your existing USAJOBS account. Follow the prompts to complete the occupational questionnaire. Please ensure you click the Submit My Answers button at the end of the process.
Note: To check the status of your application or return to a previous or incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account, select Application Status, and click on the more information link under the application status for this position.
Applications and supporting documentation will not be accepted by mail or email. If you need further assistance, contact the Human Resources Office representative listed on this announcement at least one day prior to the closing date for further instructions.
Agency contact information
500 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20536
US
Next steps
Once you submit your application, we will assess your experience and training, identify the best-qualified applicants, and refer those applications to the hiring manager for further consideration and interviews. We will notify you by email after each of these steps has been completed. Your status will also be updated on USAJOBS throughout the process. To check your status, log on to your USAJOBS account, click on "Application Status," and then click "More Information." We expect to make a job offer within 60 days after the deadline for applications. If you are selected, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation. View more information on applying for federal employment.
Overview
Please note that the salary is dependent on the officer's rank, years in service, and location of duty station.
- 0610 Nurse
- Credentialing
- Suitability/Fitness
Salary : $1,000 - $150,000