Transition Nurse - Hospital at Matheny Medical and Educational Center – Peapack, New Jersey

We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.

Matheny is a special hospital for children and adults with medically complex developmental disabilities. Matheny's mission is to provide exceptional care and an optimal quality of life for children and adults with special needs and medically complex developmental disabilities. Founded by Walter and Marquerite Matheny in 1951, the Matheny of today is a pioneer in providing fully integrated, personalized care and education that respects each person's dignity and encourages their highest potential. At Matheny, we focus on abilities in a warm and nurturing environment. Matheny Medical and Educational Center currently has an opening for a Full Time Transition Nurse.

The Transition Care Nurse's primary role is to improve transitions to and from acute care hospitals for patients with multiple chronic conditions associated with developmental conditions such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, Lesch-Nyhan disease and autism spectrum disorders.

Transitions will be the first priority of this nurse's role; thus this nurse will work with the Medical Trip nurse and the Wound care nurse to provide transition services for the hospital patients in total.

The additional role of this nurse will be to work with the Nurses on the Clinical Units to improve their skills when working with any new procedure or protocol that a patient has, who has been admitted with, or re-admitted with, to Matheny Medical and Educational Center. This role is essential in communication between the physicians from Matheny and the physicians from the outside hospitals when a patient of Matheny is admitted to an outside agency.

Desired Qualities of a Transition Nurse:

• Respect
• Professionalism
• Integrity
• Compassion

Duties of the Transition Nurse include:

• Advocates for patients residing in the Matheny Medical and Educational Center during transitions to and from acute care hospitalization. Consults with Matheny staff regarding the situation, background, interventions taken and plan for patients' health care needs.
• Ensures a smooth and effective transition among care settings and the transmittal of important information about the patient via the 'Transition Medical Record'.
• Ensures accurate medication reconciliation from the patient's home to hospital and on return to home.
• Follows the patient's post-discharge health status for one month and recommends additional consultations as necessary
• Fosters collaboration between Matheny, acute care hospitals and families. Conducts daily follow-up visits on all hospitalized patients, including consultations with their healthcare team members. Maintains communication with healthcare providers at the acute care hospital as to the patient's status during hospitalization and collaborates with discharge planners for the patient's return to Matheny.
• Provides in-service education and support to acute care hospital healthcare teams and families/caregivers regarding special care needs of patients with developmental disabilities, specific to the individual patient.
• Education of the Matheny staff regarding changing care needs post-hospitalization is a key aspect of his nurse's function.
• Participates in pre/post planning meetings and initiates post-hospitalization care plans with the primary care nurse on the clinic unit.
• The Transition Nurse/Nurse Educator will assure that we use evidence based practices pertaining to transitions, transitional care, reducing readmissions, and improving care for developmentally disabled complex care patients.
• directed through the Matheny Research Institute pertaining to transitions, transitional care, reducing readmissions, and improving care for developmentally disabled complex care patients.
• Will attend and participate in conferences pertaining to developmentally disabled and complex care patient needs as well as transition nursing to support the Transition Nurse role which could build capacity in the community for the proper health care of children and adults with developmental disabilities.
• Is a member of the Nursing Administration at Matheny Medical and Educational Center, thus taking call once every 7-8 weeks on the weekend as the other members of the Nursing Administration. Key committees that this nurse will be a member of include:
  • The Quality Monitoring Committee(previously the Mortality/Morbidity)
  • Nursing Practice Committee
  • Code Committee
• The Nurse will work with the Clinical Educator from QI department to assure that all DOH plans of corrections are being met and training data is being maintained.

Incentives for joining the Matheny team:

• Paid Training
• Staff Appreciation events
• Health and Wellness fairs
• Employee Recognition Awards
• Diversity events
• Employee Referral Bonuses

Matheny offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package that includes medical/dental, life insurance, tuition reimbursement, tax deferred retirement plan, and generous paid time off.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected veteran status.

The salary range and/or hourly rate listed is a good faith determination of potential base compensation that may be offered to a successful applicant for this position at the time of this job advertisement and may be modified in the future. When determining a team member's base salary and/or rate, several factors may be considered as applicable (e.g., location, specialty, service line, years of relevant experience, education, credentials, negotiated contracts, budget and internal equity).

The salary range for this position is $88,909 - $96,542 annually.

Salary ranges shown on third-party job sites may not accurately reflect ranges provided by Matheny Medical and Educational Center. Candidates should check www.matheny.org for accurate information and discuss salary/hourly details and our comprehensive benefits with a recruiter, if selected for an interview.

Enriching Lives. Growing Abilities.

Bachelors in Science Degree in Nursing (BSN) from an accredited college or university required. Masters in Nursing, preferred.

Licensure/Certifications:

Licensed Registered Professional Nurse by the State of New Jersey Board of Nursing required

Current CPR and ACLS or PALS Certified

Experience with children and adults with I/DD is required

Certified Pediatric Nurse certification a plus.