What are the responsibilities and job description for the Clinical Nurse Educator - Per-diem/Day Shift position at Watsonville Community Hospital?
Clinical Nurse Educator - Per-diem/Day Shift
Job Summary:
The clinical educator coordinates with the Director of Nursing Practice to use specific knowledge to develop training tools and provide direct clinical education. The Clinical Educator is responsible for the design, implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of clinical education and competency programs for hospital staff. This role supports high-quality, evidence-based patient care by ensuring staff maintain required competencies, regulatory compliance, and professional growth. The Clinical Educator collaborates with interdisciplinary leaders to align education with organizational goals, patient safety initiatives, and quality improvement priorities.
Education, Certifications/Licensure, and Experience:
Required:
- Master’s degree in nursing, Education, or Healthcare Administration
- CA Registered Nurse, Active, unrestricted
- Basic Life Support Certification (BLS)
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support Certification (ACLS)
- Minimum of 5 years of recent nursing clinical experience in an acute care or hospital setting
- Multi-specialty clinical nursing experience
- Minimum of 3 years of recent critical care experience
- Minimum of 3 years of training/education experience including staff education, training, or professional development
- Strong knowledge of adult learning principles and evidence-based practice
- Excellent communication, organizational, and presentation skills
- Certification in area of specialty within 6 months of hire
Preferred:
- Clinical educator certification (e.g., CNE, CCRN, RRT-NPS)
- Nursing informatics experience
- Experience with simulation-based education and learning management systems (LMS)
- Experience supporting regulatory surveys, competencies, or quality initiatives
Required Skills/Abilities:
- Instructional design and curriculum development
- Facilitation of group learning and skills validation
- Data-driven education planning
- Interdisciplinary collaboration
- Change management and coaching
- Technology proficiency(PowerPoint, LMS platforms, documentation systems)
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
- Assess clinical learning needs using quality data, regulatory requirements, and unit-specific performance gaps.
- Design, implement, and evaluate orientation, annual competency, and continuing education programs for clinical staff.
- Facilitate classroom, simulation-based, hands-on, and asynchronous learning experiences using adult learning principles.
- Develop and maintain clinical education materials, including competency checklists, policies, procedures, and quick-reference tools.
- Ensure education and competency programs comply with regulatory and accreditation standards (e.g., Joint Commission, CMS, state licensing boards).
- Track, document, and report completion of required education and competencies using the hospital’s learning management system.
- Collaborate with clinical leaders, subject matter experts, and interdisciplinary teams to support practice changes and performance improvement initiatives.
- Serve as a clinical resource, mentor, and coach for staff, preceptors, and emerging leaders.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of education programs through learner feedback, competency outcomes, and patient care metrics, and revise content as needed.
- Stay current with evidence-based practice, clinical guidelines, and best practices in healthcare education to support continuous improvement.
- Assures input from staff members to facilitate the development of Performance Improvement programs and development of unit-based indicators and criteria.
- Uses ethical decision-making process in practice.
- Actively participates in the development and application of standards, utilizing professional practice guidelines, recent literature, evidenced-based practice community standards and data as applicable.
- Maintains current awareness of new legislation and regulations influencing the practice of standards of Nursing care.
- Demonstrates an ability to identify and solve problems; uses initiative and good judgement to reach quality decisions.