Job Description

Join the hospital trusted by Chicago’s Southland, Ingalls Memorial Hospital, in this role as an Intake & Referral Nurse Liaison (RN) in our Home Hospice unit for a Full Time, Days shift. Our hospice team strives to improve the quality of a person's last days. Our goal is to help our patients live out each and every day to the best of their ability and keep them in the comfort of their own home, if at all possible. Hospice care at UChicago Medicine offers a team-oriented approach that assists patients and their families with the physical, emotional, social, spiritual and grief needs they may have as we go through this journey together. This position is a 100% onsite opportunity. You will need to be based in the greater Chicagoland area. Please note this position will work out of our Hyde Park campus in Mitchell Hospital primarily with occasional travel into patient homes.

The Home Hospice Intake & Referral Nurse Liaison (RN) meets with patients and families to facilitate the home health admission process.

Essential Job Responsibilities

• Completes an initial assessment of patient and family to determine hospice care needs.

• Provides a complete physical assessment and history of current and previous illness(es).

• Regularly re-evaluates referral for patient/family hospice needs.

• Initiates the plan of care as needed.

• Educates the patient and family (caregiver) in ways to achieve palliative goals.

• Provides health care instructions to the patient, family (caregiver) as appropriate per assessment and/or plan.

• Provides direct patient care as needed.

• Documents the initial patient and family assessments and interventions.

• Identifies bereavement and discharge planning needs as part of the care plan development.

• Prepares clinical notes and updates the primary physician when necessary.

• Performs initial communication with the physician regarding the patient’s needs.

• Ensures that arrangements for equipment, medication and other necessary items and services are available.

• Customer/Referral Source Management: Primarily works with designated hospital and other potential referral sources to develop and promote awareness of all hospice and home care services, discuss the agency’s capabilities, and educate on the services provided by hospice and home care. Facilitates communication between the referral source and the hospice and/or home care office.

• Works closely with clinical staff to ensure that promised services are provided. In situations when they are not, provide assistance in service recovery efforts.

• Collaborates with the Intake Departments and clinical staff to manage referrals/admissions.

• Communicates market information to the Executive Director and others as needed.

• Commits to one hundred percent (100%) patient and customer satisfaction by always exhibiting a courteous and helpful manner during interactions with others, including patients, families, visitors, physicians, students, and co-workers.

• Other duties as assigned

Required Qualifications

• Graduate of an accredited school of nursing
• Current state of Illinois nursing license as an RN
• Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification through the American Heart Association (AHA)
• One to two years of recent acute care experience in an institutional setting
• Excellent observation, verbal and written communication skills, problem solving skills, basic math skills & nursing skills per competency checklist
• Possess and maintain a valid driver’s license, current automobile insurance, and has personal & dependable mode(s) of transportation to conduct home visits as necessary.
• Possess excellent collaboration, observation, verbal and written communication, and problem-solving skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Previous Hospice and/or Home Care work experience

Position Details

• Job Type/FTE: Full Time
• Work Location: Ingalls Campus - Harvey, IL
• Shift: Days Shift
• Unit/Department: Home Hospice
• CBA Code: Non-Union