All County workforce members must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. Successful candidates for this position will be required to submit proof of vaccination against COVID-19 or request an exemption for qualifying medical or religious reasons during the onboarding process. Candidates should not present proof of vaccination until instructed to do so by the hiring department.
DEFINITION:
Consults with administrative, medical, and nursing personnel in hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and related health facilities to assist them in achieving compliance with State and Federal nursing regulations, and with the professional staff of the County Health Facilities Inspection Division in evaluating nursing services provided by licensed health care facilities.
The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS) is the second largest municipal health system in the nation. DHS operates as an integrated health system, operating 25 health centers and 4 acute care hospitals, in addition to providing health care to youth in the juvenile justice system and inmates in the LA County jails. Across the network of DHS' directly operated clinical sites and through partnerships with community-based clinics. DHS cares for about 600,000 unique patients each year, employs over 23,000 employees, and has an annual operating budget of 6.9 billion dollars

Through academic affiliations with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Southern California (USC), and the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Sciences (CDU), DHS hospitals are training sites for physicians completing their Graduate Medical Education in nearly every medical specialty and subspecialty. In addition to its direct clinical services, DHS also runs the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Agency and the County's 911 emergency response system, as well as Housing for Health and the Office of Diversion and Re-entry, each with a critical role in connecting vulnerable populations, including those released from correctional and institutional settings to supportive housing.

MISSION:
Our mission is to advance the health of our patients and our communities by providing extraordinary care.

Essential Job Functions

EXAMPLES OF DUTIES:

• Conducts audits, special studies, and critical reviews of clinical practices and process, to assess compliance with regulatory and legal mandates.
• Collects data necessary for the evaluation of infection prevention and control efforts from various sources including the medical record, laboratory results, etc.
• Acts as facility liaison for system wide programs focused on infection prevention and control.
• Provides staff support to Infection Control, QI, Patient Safety, and Risk Management related committees.
• Conducts surveys to measure clincal practice outcomes, and in consultation with stakeholders formulates solutions to improve outcomes. The survey process includes preparing survey questions, distributing surveys, following up on facility/program responses, and compiling and analyzing summary data.
• Functions as a Just Culture expert to provide consultation to facilities in the use and interpretation of the Just Culture model. Provides facility training in Just Culture concepts when requested.
• Assists with Risk Management and Patient Safety related functions, including staffing DHS' Risk Management and Patient Safety committees.
• Provides professional consultation to health facility administrators and nursing staff in the interpretation of laws, regulations and standards governing licensing, accreditation and certification for Medicare and Medi-Cal and in various acceptable methods of maintaining, improving, or modifying nursing operations.
• Plans, develops, and conducts orientation and in-service training sessions for Division staff, conducts and participates in educational programs for health facility administrators, nurses and other health professionals, and develops guidelines and manuals for use in interpreting requirements for nursing care services.
• Conducts both internal and external surveys to determine standards of practice which includes preparing survey questions, distributing surveys, following up on facility/program responses, and compiling summary data.
• Visits health facilities and evaluates the quality of nursing service and compliance with laws and regulations; Notifies facilities in writing of findings and recommendations for correction of deficiencies, monitoring progress toward implementation of recommendations.
• Conducts audits, performs special studies and critical reviews of medical record, such as adverse event investigations, Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goal audits, and risk management audits to confirm compliance with facility enacted corrective actions.
• Functions as the chairperson for the Infection Control Committee, Quality Improvement Committee and Emergency Preparedness Subcommittee, which includes assisting department managers and directors to organize, interpret, and present data for committee meetings; Plans agendas and prepares minutes for the monthly Quality Improvement and Infection Control committee meetings.
• Assists in departmental improvement projects such as those related to hospital acquired pressure injuries, falls, workplace violence, etc.
• Performs reviews and critical analyses of Safety Intelligence (SI) incident reports submitted by facility frontline staff, to assess for appropriateness and thoroughness based on departmental policies. Identifies and notifies DHS Risk Management staff of events that may meet external reporting criteria such as CDPH Adverse Events and/or those that are at high risk for litigation.
• Updates and revises program materials, such as the "Patient Safety & Risk Management Handbook". Creates Patient Safety and Risk Management educational materials for facility staff.
• Maintains liaison with State and Federal agencies and professional organizations in connection with the development, analysis and interpretation of legislative and regulatory material in the area of nursing and its application to licensed health care facilities.

Requirements

SELECTION REQUIREMENTS:
Option I:
Five (5) years of experience as a Registered Nurse including two (2) years of experience in an administrative, Supervisory, or consultative capacity.