Public Health Nurse in Westmoreland, Kansas at County of Pottawatomie

Position is a 3 day per week position (24 hours) with full part-time benefits. Days are set each week – Monday, Tuesday and Friday.

POSITION SUMMARY:

Under the supervision of the Pottawatomie County Health Department Director and Assistant

Director, the Public Health Nurse is a non-exempt position under FLSA. Primary responsibilities

include providing public health nursing assessment and care, providing health education,

monitoring health risks and communicable disease in the county, and promoting good health in

Pottawatomie County.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS (required):

1. Provides adult health screening/monitoring of chronic disease per protocol or doctor

order;

2. Conducts child health assessments as trained and assigned;

3. Assists with child and adult immunizations and administers immunizations at clinics as

trained and assigned;

4. Performs direct nursing duties in public health programs as trained;

5. Maintains and updates Communicable Disease Protocols provided by KDHE and

develops local protocol to enhance disease investigation process;

6. Conducts home visits to investigate disease or counsel clients with public health concerns

or environmental hazards;

7. Conduct home visits to high-risk families for education and risk reduction;

8. Follows protocols and procedures for public health programs;

9. Provides health education/materials to the general public and schools regarding health

prevention;

10. Assures that appropriate educational materials are displayed and available in health

department and in community;

11. Provides counseling, testing, treatment, and follow up for sexually transmitted diseases as

trained;

12. Performs toenail care per protocol as assigned.

13. Conducts communicable disease investigation and provides follow-up recommendations

to individual, physicians and family members for the control of disease as assigned and

enter all the information into the Disease Reporting system within 10 working days of the

report;

14. Completes all paperwork required by KDHE regarding a reportable communicable disease

and entering all disease in Disease Surveillance Reporting System within 10 working days

of receiving report via mail, fax, lab, or phone;

15. Enrolls clients in appropriate medical assistance programs and completes all paperwork,

facilitating the referral;

16. Coordinates the activities of the Pottawatomie County Traffic Safety Coalition/Safe Kids

Chapter as assigned:

17. Refers clients for further evaluation and/or treatment when necessary and document all

information in electronic health record and electronic referral system;

18. Maintains client records in organized concise manner, integrated with other health

department records;

19. Collaborates with other public and private health care providers to provide integrated,

comprehensive services;

20. Collects program data for use in community health assessment and planning;

21. Provides and monitors TB drugs as assigned;

22. Provides support for the health department preparedness coordinator as assigned;

MARGINAL FUNCTIONS

1. Performs supply inventory and data entry of information;

2. Performs school screening as trained (vision, hearing, growth, scoliosis, immunization

status);

3. Works with Volunteer organizations (ACS, ADA, MoD, United Way, Salvation Army,

CERT Team,) in programming and support work.

4. Procures and organizes brochures and other educational publications and audio-visual

materials at the Health Department.

5. Provides community education to groups, schools, and the public as needed. Develops

and displays health exhibits at appropriate events, such as health fairs. Promotes events

such as Great American Smoke Out and Breast Cancer Awareness Month;

6. Promotes health department services such as flu shots, immunization clinics, and lead

testing;

7. Utilizes the media effectively to promote and educate the public;

8. Performs other duties as deemed necessary or assigned.

EDUCATION/TRAINING/EXPERIENCE:

Education: A high school diploma or GED, and graduation from an accredited School of Nursing.

Employee should be a Registered Nurse and be currently licensed to practice in the State of Kansas.

Experience: One year of similar or related experience is required. Employee is expected to have

acquired the necessary information and skills to perform the job reasonably well within six months

to one year of employment.

WORKING CONDITIONS AND PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

The work environment and physical demand characteristics described here is representative and

not intended to be fully inclusive of those an employee encounters while performing the essential

functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with

disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to outside weather

conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. Exposure to human

blood and body fluids or communicable disease is possible.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use hands to finger,

handle, or feel and talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to walk, sit, and reach with

hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to stand; climb or balance; stoop, kneel,

crouch, or crawl; and taste or smell. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10

pounds, frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50

pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color

vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND ABILITY:

A thorough knowledge of nursing assessment skills, procedures and immunization techniques and

a working knowledge of mathematics is required. The ability to operate medical equipment and

phlebotomy with a high degree of accuracy is required. Employee must be able to read and

interpret patient charts, reports, policies and written instructions, and make proper referrals.

Excellent interpersonal relation and writing and oral communication skills are also required.

Employee must have good driving skills and a current Kansas driving license.

Employee must be able to read, analyze, and interpret common scientific and technical journals,

financial reports, and legal documents. Position requires the ability to respond to common

inquiries or complaints from customers, regulatory agencies, or members of the business

community. Employee must be able to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw

valid conclusions. Person must possess the ability to interpret an extensive variety of technical

instructions in mathematical or diagram form and deal with several abstract and concrete variables.

Employee must have knowledge of the principles of community education and knowledge of the

significance of disease prevention measures in the improvement of public health. Employee must

have knowledge of the social and economic forces in society that affect health. Person must have

the ability to plan and adapt education measures to persons of diverse cultural, socioeconomic and

age groups. Employee must have comprehensive knowledge of the principles of nursing practice

with special emphasis on public health. Person must have assessment skills with the ability to

develop a plan of care to enhance a positive outcome for the client.

Employee must conform to HIPAA privacy regulation specific to the position held. The employee

creates and records protected health information (PHI). The employee is only authorized to use

the information for categories for work performance. Disclosures are only allowed as necessary

for treatment or to other providers/business associates or as required by law. Access to PHI and

information is only allowed for health care operations.

PROBLEM SOLVING:

Problem solving is involved in this position. This employee encounters problems with complaints

from clients, fluctuating workloads, communicating with problematic medical systems, helping

client’s access health care and community services. Other problems often encountered are dealing

with non-compliant clients and with severe socio-economic constraints of families.

DECISION MAKING:

Decision-making is a factor in this position. Decisions this employee may encounter include

assessing client complaints and concerns, determining appropriate referral sources and providing

accurate information to clients.

MACHINES/EQUIPMENT USED:

Personal Computer and related software

Multi-line phone

Postage Meter

Facsimile

Copier

Shredder

Printer

Scanner

SUPERVISION/ACCOUNTABILITY:

This employee works with little supervision from the Pottawatomie County Health Department

Director.

FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY:

Employee is responsible for departmental equipment, but does not participate in the annual

departmental budget process.

PERSONAL RELATIONS:

Frequent contact with the general public, co-workers and supervisory personnel is expected.

An offer for employment for this position is contingent upon the applicant passing pre-employment background checks which may include, but are not necessarily limited to: Drug Screening, Driving Record, Criminal History, Physical Capacity, and/or Skills Testing.