RN-Clinical Risk Management Specialist

Kaweah Health is a publicly owned, community healthcare organization that provides comprehensive health services to the greater Visalia area in central California. With more than 5,000 employees, Kaweah Health provides state-of-the-art medicine and high-quality preventive services in our acute care hospital, specialized health centers and clinics. Our eight-campus healthcare district has 613 beds and offers comprehensive health services across a broad continuum of care.   

It takes a special person to work for Kaweah Health. We serve a region where the needs are great, which makes the rewards even greater. Every day, we care for people facing unique challenges and in need of healing. Throughout it all, our focus is to make a difference, and we do — in the health of our patients, our loved ones, and our community.

Benefits Eligible

Full-Time Benefit Eligible

Work Shift

Day - 8 Hour or less Shift (United States of America)

Department

8751 Risk Management

The RN Clinical Risk Management Specialist has oversight of the patient and family grievance process to ensure the Kaweah Health is promptly responding to care concerns. The Specialist also has oversight and monitoring of quality of care and patient safety concerns in the clinical setting.

QUALIFICATIONS

License /Certification
Required: CA RN license

Preferred: Certified Professional in Healthcare Risk Management (CPHRM)

Education
Preferred: BSN, MSN, or currently enrolled in RN-BSN program

Experience
Required: At least two years of hospital acute care experience



Knowledge/Skills/Abilities
Possess excellent critical thinking, analytical, and written and verbal communication skills.
Able to work independently with little supervision.
 

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

Essential

Provides clinical risk management support to Kaweah Health Directors, managers, and staff:

Assists them in investigating various risk issues.

Assists staff to identify and analyze various patient care issues, intervenes appropriately using the appropriate chain of command when necessary.

Provides risk management and prevention staff education as requested.

Investigates various risk, complaints, and grievance issues or occurrences:

Receives and responds to all telephone calls to the Risk Management (RM) Department from Kaweah Health Managers or staff related to clinical risk issues/occurrences.

Ensures department managers are aware of the issue/occurrence, and collaborates with department managers in their investigation of the risk issue/occurrence.

Reviews and analyzes patient's medical records for applicable documentation, and ensures file includes hard copies.

Communicates any medical staff issues to the Medical Staff Office.

Assists the RM Coordinator with any questions related to legal claims/complaints' medical record documentation.

Assists the RM Coordinator with any issues related to grievance investigations in the clinical area.

Provides risk management orientation and education to Kaweah Health staff:

Develops appropriate risk management orientation materials for new clinical staff in collaboration with the RM Director and the Clinical Education Director.

Presents the RM orientation for new staff during the Patient Care orientation segment.

Collaborates with the RM Director in developing and presenting risk management orientation materials for all new Kaweah Health staff and new managers.

Collaborates with the RM Director and clinical department mangers for on-going staff education related to risk management and risk prevention.

Coordinates DHS visits and reporting activities:

Maintains current DHS filing system, appropriately labeled, easily retrievable, and ensures purging and storage of files per RM Department policy. Under the direction of the RM Director, coordinates and assists Kaweah Health Directors' development of action plans, and/or written responses. Ensures appropriate follow-up actions and monitoring activities are completed, and all documentation is included in the DHS file. Provides assistance to the VP's and PI Director on any DHS survey visits.

Collaborates with the PI Department staff to improve processes.

Meets weekly with the PI Director, PI staff, RM Director to review high severity occurrences.

Identifies trends in the RM data from the Occurrence Reporting database which require process improvements, and communicates to the PI staff and appropriate Kaweah Health Director as applicable.

Communicates effectively with Kaweah Health and medical staff, patients, families, and visitors:

Ensures all communications are completed in a respectful manner.

Identifies clinical risk issues and communicates them in a timely way to the applicable Kaweah Health and medical staff.

Written communications are completed with good grammar and free of errors.

Is a competent and effective advocate for patients and families.

Assists the RM Director in Kaweah Health wide risk management and prevention activities:

On direction of the RM Director, establishes a regular monthly schedule to visit all Kaweah Health campuses and units/departments to evaluate their clinical risk issues and risk prevention activities.

Provides a written monthly report of those visits to the RM Director that identifies areas visited, what was evaluated, results of the evaluation with special note of any areas of concern for risk, and any recommendations for improvements.


Additional

Attends and actively participates in appropriate Kaweah Health committees as directed by the RM Director providing timely and appropriate feedback to the Director.

Manages the RM Department and Kaweah Health RM activities in the absence of the RM Director.

Responsible for responding to any RM issues referred to the department through the Occurrence Reporting database:

Monitors the database at least daily for any Occurrences transmitted to the RM queue.

Performs investigations in a timely manner and documents results in the database.

Notifies the RM Director immediately of any high severity (as defined by the JCAHO Sentinel Event and DHS Adverse Event policy, AP. 87) or high-risk occurrences.

Provides the RM Director a monthly report of RM referred occurrences with a brief analysis including any identified trends and accompanying risk reduction strategy recommendations if necessary.

Makes recommendations to the RM Director for any revisions to the database to improve data collection and reporting.

Demonstrates the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care and services appropriate to the population served on the assigned unit or work area. Knowledgeable of growth and development for all patient/family cultural, linguistic, spiritual, gender, and age specific needs. Able to effectively communicate and care for patient and family as reflected in the Plan for Provision of Care.

Performs other duties as assigned.

Pay Range

$51.22 -$76.84

If you want to use your talents alongside people who face each day with courage and purpose, in an environment that empowers you to do your absolute best, this is where you belong.