Senior NICU Nurse , Head of Department

Organization Background

Village Health Works (VHW) is a 501(c)(3) corporation. It is a social justice organization founded on the belief that health equity is not a commodity but a right. Founded in partnership with the communities we currently serve, VHW’s mission is to provide the neediest high quality, compassionate health care and education based on critical thinking in a dignified environment. VHW’s holistic approach integrates clinical services with education, food security, economic development, environmental protection, music and the arts. In the context of where we currently work, this is the only way we can sustainably end the extreme, multigenerational scarcity in a way that uplifts and engages communities with dignity and in their own context. We believe that the lack of access to quality healthcare and education is the biggest threat to development and world peace.

Currently VHW operates in a wide array of clinical and community programs in a catchment area of over 200,000 people within the provinces of Rumonge and Bururi, though its doors are open to every patient regardless of where that patient is coming from. Our first clinic attends over 51,000 outpatient consultations per year. Since 2007 until summer 2023, our 60-bed inpatient wards have been providing basic adult and pediatric non-operative inpatient services including treatment of malnutrition, mental health, chronic and acute diseases and uncomplicated obstetrical deliveries. These services have been administered by our staff of generalist physicians and nurses under the supervision of our Medical Director.

Village Health Works has embarked on a plan to expand our clinical services to provide comprehensive quality medical care and training. To achieve this goal, VHW has constructed and officially opened an 85,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art teaching hospital with several services that include surgery, obstetric deliveries, intensive care, pediatrics and neonatology, emergency, pathology lab, medical education and research center, etc.. To provide excellent patient care and training we must expand the scope and skills of the healthcare providers through training, teaching and research, hiring through rigorous development and implementation of systems and structures, policies and procedures that are framed by high quality norms and international standards.

Additionally, VHW has established the Kigutu International Academy, a grade 9-12 boarding school to equip young minds with an education based on critical thinking to prepare them to become the leaders we wish their country and the continent to have for a better future.

Our core values are as follows:

● Every member of VHW’s team must value the dignity inherent in each individual, aspire to excellence in all we do, proceed with boldness and perseverance.

● Compassion and justice must be at the heart of our organization.

● To accomplish the mission of our organization we all must be accountable to each other and to our community.

For more information, please visit: villagehealthworks.org

Position Overview The Senior Nurse/ Head of Department is responsible for managing the NICU Department. The overall objective is to manage and build a team to provide safe, effective, and curative health services, targeting the most important causes of the common illness, morbidity, and mortality rate among the target population.

Duties and Responsibilities

Administration and Management

• Supervising, supporting, and evaluating the team under his/her responsibility particularly Ward Charge Nurses , Staff Nurses, Patient assistants and ancillary staff on the team.
• As the Senior Nurse/Head of Department is responsible for planning and organizing nursing work schedules and assignments (areas, days, absences, visits, holidays, etc.). in a timely manner and shared with CNO for compiling and approval
• Coaching and mentoring staff in their work with special focus in following all appropriate protocols and procedures.
• Responsible for the department-related pharmacy activities (stock and consumption monitoring) as well as maintenance of the medical equipment
• Ensures that all the administrative procedures, patients’ data and documents are filled in correctly and registered for compiling monthly reports which reflect the activity in the department
• Ensures that all MoH Reports are completed and submitted on time
• Ensures that all MoH Drugs are consumed as per the protocols, inventory done, and reorders on time
• Ensures smooth communication between MOH and Village Health Works, and assures participation in all MoH meetings
• Train and maintain routines and standards for work processes such as receiving patients, registering admission, discharge, maintaining patients’ records including discharges, death and referrals etc
• Promote good ethical standards related to consent and confidentiality
• Supports, and supervise staffs on their respective working areas

Patient Care

• Ensure that essential quality nursing care is provided to all patients in the outpatient and inpatient department in line with Village Health Works guidelines and protocols.
• Participates in patient care as needed in area of specialty

Speciality Care

• Assuring quality of care by adhering to therapeutic standards; measuring health outcomes against patient care goals and standards; making or recommending necessary adjustments; following hospital and nursing standards of care of all newborns in the unit
• Resolving patient problems and needs by utilizing multidisciplinary team strategies.
• Maintaining a safe and clean working environment by complying with procedures, rules, and regulations; calling for assistance from health care support personnel.
• Protecting patients and employees by adhering to infection-control policies and protocols, medication administration and storage procedures, and controlled substance regulations.
• Documenting patient care services by charting in patient and department records.
• Maintaining continuity among nursing teams by documenting and communicating actions, irregularities, and continuing needs.
• Participates in the development of standards of care/policies and procedures for the Neonatal ICU
• Monitoring the babies’ health regularly and noting down their health status and taking them for periodic checkup to the doctors
• In case of emergency situations, providing primary treatment to the babies and informing the doctors for further treatment.
• Educating new parents on the care of their new infant; for example, breastfeeding, hygiene and psychological care and Communicating with parents or guardians about the care and medical procedures related to their infant.
• Ensuring tell is care round-the-clock to premature and severely ill newborn infants
• Performing medical procedures such as inserting intravenous lines, performing tests and administering medications
• Assist the NICU physicians in medical procedures and treatments
• Comfort sick newborns and anxious parents and family members
• Offer support to parents and educate them on the at-home care of their newborn
• Maintain and calibrate NICU equipment for patient safety and support

Clinical Quality and Patient Safety

• Ensuring teamwork and a professional relationship between Nursing and other departments.
• Cleaning and minor maintenance tasks are performed according to the protocols, reporting any malfunction to the project biomedical service.
• Maintaining clean health environment for patients and other staff
• Ensure all the patients receive their treatments at the right time, right dose and through the right route
• Ensure that the staff on duty knows, implements, and always follows the universal hygiene standards/ precautions, bio-hazard prevention and infection control ensuring high standards of hygiene in the working environment

Professional development/Education and Training

• Engage in continual and ongoing maintenance of skills and certifications
• Maintains current license requirements for Nursing practice.
• Provide ongoing bedside educational experiences for the core clinical team.
• Provide appropriate skills training for nursing staff
• Engage with nursing and medical education for rotating students and trainees.
• Ensure that all staff using medical devices are qualified and trained
• Able to train and mentor staffs on sterile procedure, waste management and standard nursing procedures such as administering drugs, set up drips and blood transfusions, obtain routine investigations, Input and output for patients, wound care, inhalation therapy, emergency resuscitation

Qualifications

Education and Work Experience Requirements

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• 5 or more years of clinical work, practicing in a hospital setting with high standards.
• Minimum of 2 years experience in the NICU.
• Minimum 2 years of Nursing management experience
• Up-to-date knowledge of NICU equipment, such as a ventilator, incubator, and feeding pumps.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Demonstrated ability to provide counseling and guidance to patients and their families
• Intermediate to advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office and other relevant software.
• Exceptional leadership qualities with the proven ability to work with others in the clinical environment.
• Experience in working in low resource settings will be an advantage.
• Commitment to social justice and health care as a human right.
• Demonstrated experience working with multicultural, multilingual teams
• A caring and compassionate attitude towards new parents and their infants

Commitment to VHW’s Principles

• Demonstrates loyalty, awareness and respect for VHW’s values
• Expresses his/her interest by talking/asking/giving informed opinions about VHW’s activities.
• Expresses he/she wants to work with VHW because of its principles and mission.
• Overtly expresses his/her satisfaction at belonging to VHW and defends VHW’s mission.
• Always transmits a positive image of VHW in front of both colleagues and external people.
• Translates the principles of VHW into action