AddressSummary The Western New York VA Medical Center is hiring for one, full-time Registered Nurse to work in the Operating Room (OR). Responsibilities The Registered Nurse is assigned to the Operating Room in the Ambulatory Care Service with the Buffalo, NY VA Medical Center. The incumbent is a professional Registered Nurse, qualified by education and recent Operating Room experience to provide direct patient care and specializes in perioperative nursing practice. The Registered Nurse will be involved in the three phases of the patient's surgical/OR experience. This includes the preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative surgical phases of care. The incumbent will possess intimate knowledge of regulatory requirements, VHA guidelines, utilization of organizational processes, clinical documentation requirements, current standards of care, evidence based practices and compliance guidelines. The Operating RoomRegistered Nurse executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience, and creative approaches to management of complex client surgical care. The Operating Room Nurse functional role includes specialization in perioperative nursing practice and is responsible for preoperative assessment and postoperative evaluation, providing individualized direct care with emphasis on the intraoperative period, organizing and coordinating the clinical components in response to individual healthcare needs and care continuum in multiple settings. The goals are to center services around the patient, to foster patient self-managed care, and maximize efficient and cost-effective use of health care resources. The Operating Room Nurse utilizes all avenues of resources available to provide safe and efficient timely coordination of quality health care and services. The scope of practice will include but is not limited to the role of scrub/instrument and circulating nurse. The incumbent collaborates and coordinates the patient's plan of care with the multidisciplinary team members. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory Work Schedule: Full Time. 7:30 am - 3:30 pm with on-call rotation to 9:00 am - 5:30 pm. (On-call rotation assigned to RN after successful completion of the OR orientation) Compressed/Flexible: Not Eligible Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements Conditions of Employment U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a probationary period. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Must pass pre-employment physical examination Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a State, Territory or Commonwealth(i.e., Puerto Rico) of the United States, or the District of Columbia. EDUCATION: Graduate from a professional school of nursing accredited by one of the following at the point of graduation is required: Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN); or Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education(CCNE) OR a graduate of a foreign school of professional nursing. Note: The National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission/NLNAC changed its name to ACEN in May 2013; ACEN's website may be utilized to verify accredited programs using automated inquiry processes; however, for verification of any nursing program's accreditation prior to 1998, an automated inquiry cannot be used and ACEN must be contacted directly ACEN or CCNE Accreditation - Candidates meeting the basic education requirement of graduation from an ACEN or CCNE accredited nursing program must be considered before consideration of a deviation to the basic accreditation requirement Nursing Bridge Program (must be appropriately accredited): A masters-level nursing accelerated nursing education program: The completion of coursework equivalent to a nursing degree in a MSN Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration constitutes the completion of an approved course of study of professional nursing. A copy of the MSN transcript must be provided to VA. Bridge programs that confer a master's degree also fully meet the education requirement, even though a Bachelor's Degree is not awarded. Foreign Nursing Education Graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing who, possess a current, full, active and unrestricted registration, will meet the education requirement of graduation from an approved school of professional nursing to warrant appointment as a Nurse who has completed an associate degree/entry level Nursing education program Credit for foreign nursing education higher than the associate degree/entry level requires a formal degree equivalency validation from a recognized degree equivalency evaluation agency accepted by VA such as the International Consultants of Delaware (ICD) Preferred Experience: Previous Experience in the OR Scrub Role preferred Demonstrated experience in sterile technique preferred One Year of Operating Room experience with multi-specialty competencies preferred Charge Nurse experience in a Surgical setting preferred Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates, and if appropriate, the level within a grade: Nurse I Level I - An Associate Degree (ADN) or Diploma in Nursing, with no additional nursing experience required. Nurse I Level II - An ADN or Diploma in Nursing and 1 year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to aa Nurse 1, Level 1; OR a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing (BSN) with no additional nursing experience. Nurse I Level III - An ADN or Diploma in Nursing and 2 yeas of professional nursing practice, one of which is a year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse 1, Level 2; OR a BSN with 1 year of professional nursing experience equivalent to Nurse 1, Level 2; OR a Master's degree in nursing (MSN) and no professional nursing experience; OR a Master's degree in a related filed with a Bachelors degree in nursing with no professional nursing experience. Nurse II - A BSN with 2 years of professional nursing experience, one of which is a year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse 1, Level 3; OR a Master's degree in nursing with 1 year of nursing experience equivalent to a Nurse 1, Level 3; OR a Master's degree in a related field with a BSN and 1 year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to Nurse 1, Level 3. OR Doctorate degree in nursing and no professional nursing experience OR a Doctorate degree in a related field with a MSN or BSN and no professional experience. Nurse III - Master's degree in nursing and 2 years of specialized nursing experience, one of which is equivalent to Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III; OR Master's degree in a related field with a BSN and 2 years of specialized nursing experience, one of which is equivalent to Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III; OR a Doctorate degree in Nursing and 1 year of specialized care which is equivalent to a Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III; OR Doctorate degree in a related field with a MSN or BSN and 1 Year of specialized nursing experience equivalent to a Nurse II and meets all dimension requirements for Nurse III. Note regarding MSN degrees: If your MSN was obtained via a Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration, a BSN is not required. Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-6 Nurse Qualification Standard. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office. Physical Requirements: The position requires the incumbent to have visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. The incumbent must be mature, flexible, and sensible, capable of working effectively in stressful situations and able to shift priorities based on patient needs. This position requires limited periods of standing, stooping, bending, pulling, pushing, walking, and be able to lift up to 35 pounds. Transferring patients and objects may be required. This position also requires sitting for long periods typing on computer keyboard, looking at computer monitor, and using the telephone. The incumbent maybe exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials requiring the incumbent to don protective clothing and equipment in isolation situations or during invasive patient procedures. The incumbent may be exposed to patients who are combative or aggressive related to neurologic or psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must meet the required screening/testing and be medically cleared by Employee Occupational Health as a condition of employment. Education IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/off ices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
