Med Surg / Telemetry RN
Bakersfield, California
Mercy Hospital Downtown

RN (Registered Nurse): Tele

Location: Bakersfield, California Contract Length: 13 weeks Shift: Days, 12-hour shifts (36 hours per week)

Required Qualifications

• BLS, ACLS, and NIHSS certifications (AHA or APEX)
• At least 2 years of experience

Unit Details

• 32 beds, all private
• Nurse-to-patient ratios: 1:4 for tele patients, 1:5 for MedSurg patients. Mixed MS and Tele teams are 1:4.
• Nurse Aides (CNAs) assigned based on census
• Respiratory equipment: CPAP or BiPAP per RT and MD order. No ventilators.
• Cardiac rhythm monitoring: GE monitors. RNs must be able to read and interpret all cardiac rhythms.
• Charge nurse: A house supervisor is in-house 24/7, and a Nurse Manager is available during business hours. Each shift has a Nurse Shift Manager and Charge Nurse or Break Nurse. If there is no Nurse Shift Manager, there is a Charge Nurse and Break Nurse.

Patient Population

• Acute and chronic medical conditions
• Post-surgical patients, including bariatrics and total joints (must be comfortable with this population), urology, GYN, podiatry, and general surgery
• Stroke patients and non-titratable drips
• Potential oncology patients

Clinical Practice

• RNs do not titrate drips.
• Common set-rate drips: Cardizem, amiodarone, and heparin
• Required practices: bedside shift report, intentional hourly rounding, and medication teaching including side effects
• Fast-paced unit with many admissions and discharges due to surgical volume

Schedule and Attendance

• Shifts: 7a–7:30p and 7p–7:30a, with huddles at 0700 and 1900
• Weekends: 4 weekend shifts in a 4-week schedule. Weekends are Fri/Sat for nights and Sat/Sun for days.
• Holidays: 1 major and 1 minor holiday minimum
• No call, but may be placed on standby for low census. If called in from standby, the response time is 30 minutes.
• Strict attendance policy; tardiness is not accepted.

Floating

• Travelers are first to float.
• May float to another facility in the system (approx. 6.5 miles away)
• May float to any MS Tele unit, the ICU (for MedSurg Tele patients), and the ER (for MedSurg Tele holds)

Dress Code

• Navy blue scrubs
• Undershirts must be navy, white, or black. Scrub jackets must be navy.
• No hoodies, sweatshirts, or sweat jackets

Orientation

• 1–2 shifts with a preceptor

Work Environment

• Described as a warm and welcoming staff