Registered Nurse - Call Center Advice RN

At Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center, we honor all members of our community and acknowledge the dignity of each person we serve. Our purpose is to provide high-quality, comprehensive primary health care to the communities of Washington and Yamhill counties with a special emphasis on migrant and seasonal farm workers and a view to removing barriers to health care. We strive to provide an environment that welcomes and values the people we employ and serve.

If you are unsure whether you meet all the required qualifications for this role but are interested and passionate about this potential position, we encourage you to apply.

Job Summary: The Call Center Advice Nurse (CCAN) provides clinical advice and support over the phone to patients calling our call center. The CCAN utilizes their clinical background and critical thinking skills to assess symptoms, offer guidance on self-care, and determine the appropriate level of care needed, potentially referring them to other healthcare professionals or facilities like the Emergency Department (ED). This role works collaboratively with the Call Center, but practices independently to assist patients and uses evidence-based telephone triage nursing protocols and their nursing experience and judgment to provide guidance on a wide range of care concerns.  
Position allows for a hybrid schedule of four (4) ten-hour days per week with remote work up to three (3) days per week, negotiated based on performance and successful completion of the 150-day probationary period and orientation. Remote work is expected during interruptions to clinic services due to inclement weather or other emergencies. Hybrid or remote work requires adequate Wi-Fi and private space to care for patients and properly store any confidential materials. Laptop and peripheral equipment will be provided.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
•    Provide triage assessment over the phone utilizing the nursing process, making both independent and collaborative decisions to advise patients.  
•    Utilize telephone interpretation services to meet the needs of patients where appropriate. 
•    Provide high-quality customer service and a clinically appropriate and timely experience for patients calling the VGMHC Call Center. 
•    Coordinate care services for follow-up with the Emergency Department (ED) and internal and external departments/clinics based on patient needs.
•    Perform patient education, including explaining to the patient the triage disposition, treatment plan (including use of medications and their effects and side effects if appropriate), infection control (if indicated), and preventative techniques to lower the risk of future disease or accident.
•    Offer patients guidance on self-care, medication management, and preventative measures based on clinical protocols. 
•    Identify care gaps and problem-solve with patients to schedule appropriate appointments with their care team. 
•    Update on-call providers as needed on the changing needs of complex, high-risk patients.
•    Document all interactions with patients and others involved in the care of the patient, accurately, timely, and efficiently in the Electronic Health Record (EHR).
•    Communicate problems or concerns immediately to the supervisor to prevent delayed or inappropriate care decisions.  
•    Maintain up-to-date knowledge and skills in professional, clinical, and system VGMHC areas.
•    Perform other duties as assigned.
•    Handle protected health information (PHI) in a manner consistent with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA)

HIPAA Requirements:
The CCAN will use PHI to answer patient questions about their medical problems or plan of care, to triage and schedule appointments for urgent medical problems, to relay information from the health care providers to the patient.  Applying the minimum necessary rules of HIPAA, the designated record sets to which this employee will have access include scheduling, demographics, and view only patient account information in the practice management system, and the complete medical record, including confidential sections.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Required:
•    Relevant nursing experience that utilizes the nursing process and assessment skills, in person or over the phone.
•    Strong ability to accurately elicit information, determine existing health problems and evaluate current symptoms without the advantage of a physical patient assessment required.
•    Strong critical thinking skills and clinical judgment. Flexible and adaptable to daily needs. 
•    Proficiency in English, written and spoken language required. Proficiency in Spanish (or another 2nd language on the VG language list) preferred. The person hired for this role will need to pass a language proficiency test to qualify for a bilingual pay differential. 
•    Commitment to providing quality health care to all.
•    Demonstrated commitment to working with patients and staff from a wide range of ethnic, economic, cultural, and social backgrounds.

Education and Experience Required:
•    Current Oregon RN License
•    Two (2) years’ minimum experience with telephone or in-person nurse triage required, 3-5 years of experience preferred.

Physical Requirements:
Percentage of time spent
•    Standing:    5%
•    Walking:    5%
•    Sitting:    90%
•    Lifting/Carrying:  0%

Equipment Used: 
•    Office Equipment 
o    Computer 
o    Telephone, fax, copier, scanner
•    Medical equipment - The medical equipment listed provides examples of the clinical data you will be reviewing and analyzing in your role. You may not be expected to physically operate this equipment on a regular basis. 
o    Pulse oximeter 
o    O2 tank
o    Blood pressure equipment 
o    Glucometer 
o    EKG
o    Fetal monitor 
o    Other emergency equipment as ordered 
•    Electronic Software 
o    Electronic Health Record EHR (Epic OCHIN)
o    ClearTriage

Other Equipment and Requirements (for remote work):
•    Computer or laptop (provided by VGMHC IT)
•    Telephone (May be provided by VGMHC IT or calls can be routed through the laptop)
•    High-speed wired Internet service
•    Private home office

Immunization:
Staff members must meet immunization requirements as stated in VGMHC’s immunization policy and state and federal guidelines.

Job descriptions represent a general outline of the essential and major job duties, functions and qualifications required. They cannot be all-inclusive and comprehensive due to the dynamic nature of work performed to accomplish VGMHC’s Mission.

VGMHC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. No person is unlawfully excluded from consideration for employment because of race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, veteran status, marital status, or physical challenges. The policy applies not only to recruitment and hiring practices, but also includes fairness in placement, promotion, transfer, rate of pay, and termination.