Job Title: Registered Nurse
Profession: RN
Specialty: Stepdown Care Unit
Duration: 13 weeks
Shift: 12H Nights
Hours per Shift: 12
Experience: Minimum 1 year
License: Active state license required
Certifications: BLS required; ACLS recommended
Must-Have:
- ICU/Intermediate (Stepdown) experience with a nurse to patient ratio of 3 to 1 or 2 to 1.
- Trach and ventilator experience.
- Ability to titrate drips.
Description:
The Stepdown Care Unit has 20 beds, including 8 private rooms and the remainder semi-private.
The nurse to patient ratio is 3 to 1.
Common diagnoses and types of patients include COPD, CHF, DM, sepsis, renal failure, DKA, alcohol withdrawal, overdoses, pneumonia, and various respiratory and neuro/surgical/cardiac conditions.
Nurses will care for patients with trachs, chest tubes, G-tubes, NG tubes, PICC lines, and central lines.
Common titratable drips include Cardene, Cardizem, Amiodarone, Dobutamine, Heparin, and low dose/infrequently titrated vasopressors.
A charge nurse is available on each shift, though they may take patients if staffing is not ideal.
There are around 2 patient care technicians per shift.
All patients are monitored using bedside Phillips monitors and telemetry technicians interpret strips, while RNs confirm readings.
Weekend requirements entail working every other weekend.
Holiday requirements follow an every other holiday rotation.
Travel RNs are the first to float to other units as needed based on their experience.
The dress code allows for any color scrubs.
General orientation for new hires includes EPIC training and unit-specific training.