Sonoma Specialty Hospital, as the county’s only Long-Term Acute Care Hospital, is dedicated to caring for patients that require an extended acute care stay due to severe illness or catastrophic injury. We accept patients from the ICU, Step-Down and Telemetry units of partner hospitals and continue their care for as long as 45 days. This care focuses on the challenges of getting patients off of ventilator support, healing severe wounds, aiding their recovery following surgical procedures, and providing rehabilitation to speed their return to daily life. Our Hospital provides ICU, Surgical, and Step-Down care with dialysis, multi-specialty therapies and ongoing planning for the patient’s transition back home or into a lower level of care. Please contact us with any questions, and welcome to Sonoma Specialty Hospital.

Job Summary:

Patient care aides (PCAs) under the supervision of the supervising RN and primary care nurse (RN/LVN) the PCA will assist in providing quality basic care to patients. Patient care duties may include completing vital signs, intake/output, distributing trays, feeding patients, collecting intake/output, interdepartmental transports, and transferring patients.

Education, Training and Licenses Required:

• High School Diploma or G.E.D. certificate, or equivalent
• BLS certificate required.
• On-site job training with nurse educator/nursing administration
• One-on-One orientation with the precepting nurse, Certified Nursing Assistant or experienced PCA
• Medical Assistant, EMT, CNA experience preferred
• Work in a healthcare environment for at least 60 days; preferred experience in a hospital setting

Experience/Skills:

• Good Verbal and written communication skills for regular contact with employees, patients, and patient’s families
• Positive interpersonal skills
• Basic math and computer skills
• Good organizational skills
• Knowledge of basic medical terminology/anatomy
• Ability to work with others in a flexible, cooperative manner.
• Demonstrates the basic knowledge and skills necessary to provide age-specific care to patients served
• Working knowledge of established safety topics (e.g. Infection Control, Electrical safety, Disaster) as required by organizational standards

Essential Functions:

• Provide basic patient care, such as personal hygiene assistance to patients, including grooming, oral care, bathing, incontinent care, and toileting.
• PCA, after completing on-site training and competencies, will be competent to document and take patients vital signs and report abnormal vital signs to primary care nurse.
• Collecting and documentation of intake/output records of patients.
• Documentation of vital signs, intake/output, and basic care completed with patients.
• Immediately notify the supervising RN or primary nurse of any abnormal/unusual findings of patient conditions, problems, or data.
• PCA will be performing all job responsibilities in accordance with infection control procedures.
• Maintains the comfort, privacy, and dignity of patients in the delivery of services to them. Interacts with patients in a manner that displays warmth and promotes a caring environment.
• Provide emotional support when warranted.
• Assists with setting up and/or feeding of patients when appropriate.
• Lifts, moves, and transports patients, using proper body mechanics or lifting devices for accident prevention.
• Use correct body mechanics when performing duties.
• Prepares and maintains patient care area/rooms and ensures they are clean and orderly.

• Removes and stores extra equipment in a timely manner.
• Knowledge of type of isolation rooms. How to correctly DON and DOFF PPE.
• Maintain HIPAA compliance.
• Use interpreter services to communicate effectively with patients.
• Maintain fall precautions and awareness of fall-risk patients.
• Ambulating patients in accordance with their limitations. Assisting patients with active or passive range of motion.
• Escorting patients out of facility upon discharge.

Equipment Knowledge Required:

• Use of multi-line phone system, computer, and knowledge of Microsoft Office suite preferred.
• Proficiency in electronic documentation system must be obtained and returned demonstration to the Lead.
• Assisting in bookkeeping/filing duties.

Safety Requirements:

Employees are responsible for all aspects of the hospital safety and health program including compliance with safety rules and regulations, remedying unsafe working conditions, and for continuously practicing safety while performing duties. Sonoma Specialty Hospital policy prohibits employees with patient contact or those who prepare products for patient use from wearing artificial nails.

Physical Requirements:

While performing the duties of this job, the position is frequently required to do the following:

• Stoop, kneel, crouch, reach, and stand for a sustained period of time.
• Walk, push, pull, lift, carry objects from a lower to a higher position or horizontally from position to position or otherwise move objects.
• Feel sizes, shapes, temperatures, and textures by touching with the skin, particularly that of the fingertips.
• Express or exchange ideas orally and potentially loudly, accurately, or quickly.
• Perceive the nature of sound with no less than a 40 db loss @ 1000 Hz and 2000 Hz with or without correction.
• Exert up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 20 pounds of force frequently.
• Minimum standard of visual acuity with or without correction.
• While the worker may be subjected to temperature changes, the worker is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions as the work is predominantly inside.

Supervisory Requirements (if applicable): None

Work Environment:

Able to adapt to sudden changes and willing to care for all types of patients regardless of age, ethnic background, religion, sexual preference, educational or economic status. Able to adapt to specific shift routines, i.e., sleep/wake patterns.

The work environment characteristics described here represent those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly exposed to hospital areas and the general office environment. The work environment is clean, well-lit, well-ventilated, and temperature-controlled. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. The hours of duty are lengthy and irregular.