Progressive Care Unit (PCU) Registered Nurse (RN)

General Information

This position is for a Progressive Care Unit (PCU) Registered Nurse (RN) with a focus on cardiac and vascular patients. The unit has a total of 44 beds and operates a mixed acuity model, which includes Intermediate Care, Telemetry, and Medical-Surgical patients.

Patient Types

• Direct admits, Emergency Department admits, and Post Cath Lab patients.
• Cardiac conditions including Myocardial Infarction (MI), NSTEMI, STEMI, Congestive Heart Failure (CHF), and Dysrhythmias.
• Post-cardiac procedures such as catheters, open-heart surgeries, TAVR, and pacemaker insertions.
• Backup Stroke unit and Medical Overflow.

Patient Ratios

RN-to-patient ratio is typically 1:4, with the possibility of 1:3 depending on patient acuity levels.

Required Certifications

• BLS (Basic Life Support)
• ACLS (Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support)
• NIHSS (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale)

Required Education

Completion of a nursing education program approved by a board of nursing; Registered Nurse (RN) licensure from the appropriate state board.

Skills Required

• Experience as a PCU level RN.
• Proficient in cardiac procedural recovery including CABG, TAVR, and cardiac catheterization.
• Knowledge of myocardial infarction pharmacology and titratable cardiac/vasoactive drips such as Cardizem, Amiodarone, Nitro, Levo, and Dopamine.
• Ability to manage heparin drips and interpret cardiac rhythms.
• Experience in chest tube management and TNK administration (preferred).

Support on the Unit

• CNA support with a ratio of 1:5-8, depending on the shift.
• Charge nurse is unassigned.
• Phlebotomy services available for peripheral blood draws.
• 24/7 Respiratory Therapy support.
• Hospitalist on-site 24/7, though not dedicated to the unit.

Charting System/Equipment

• Epic (traveler must have experience; if not, manager approval is necessary).
• Alaris infusion pumps.
• Omnicell for medication management.

Floating

Travelers may float primarily to the General PCU as needed and may also be assigned to Medical-Surgical/Telemetry or ICU units that accommodate PCU level patients, according to scope of practice.

Orientation

• Two partial days of education followed by three 12-hour shifts on the unit for orientation.

Scheduling

• Weekend rotation: every other weekend.
• No on-call duty.
• Holiday expectations: every other holiday.
• Time off requests: Up to 7 days off allowable; requests for a full week off should be extended. Note: No time off will be granted during the first three weeks of August.

Additional Notes

• Opportunities to precept nursing students are available.
• Scrub color is navy blue.
• Free parking is provided for all staff.