Nursing Instructor/Professional Staff Nurse – UPMC Mercy School of Nursing

Are you a nurse with a passion for your field and an interest in teaching? Are you looking for an opportunity to build experience in education while continuing to care for patients? Is work-life balance important to you?

UPMC Mercy School of Nursing seeks a full-time Clinical Instructor/Nursing Instructor, dually appointed at UPMC Mercy as a Professional Staff Nurse.

Perfect for a nurse interested in the world of academia, this position will allow you to get your foot in the door with our School and have flexible scheduling, while maintaining your passion for direct patient care along with full-time benefits.
 

In addition to teaching 16 hours of clinical instruction to our students and 8 hours of administrative tasks and professional development, you will work one 12-hour shift at UPMC Mercy as a bedside nurse, for total of 36 working hours per week. Unit placement will be within a clinical pod based on your previous experience and training.
 

The Nursing Instructor for the School of Nursing has the authority, responsibility and accountability for both the didactic and clinical instruction of students in utilizing the nursing process to provide quality patient care. This position requires the ability to effectively instruct nursing students in the classroom as well as provide meaningful learning experiences, guidance and evaluation of those students in the clinical environment utilizing the nursing process during the provision of care to ensure safe nursing care and quality patient outcomes.

Applicants will be placed in the appropriate job title and salary from the My Nursing Career Ladder based on their individual experience and education. Salary as shown is for the Clinical Instructor title. Those with their MSN may be brought in at the Nursing Instructor title/pay. 

Responsibilities:

• Serves as a role model of professional nursing practice for students and peer nursing staff by serving as a recognized unit leader in one or more of the following areas: clinical expertise, teacher, specialized resource nurse, and/or evidence based practice.
• Consistently gives appropriate feedback to all members of the health care team and participates in the nursing peer review process.
• Promotes change that enhances the quality of patient care and the unit environment.
• Serves on teams and manages relationships with other faculty members as a part of daily practice.
• Demonstrates highly developed clinical assessment and analytical skills within the context of Relationship Based Care.
• Reflects a commitment to nursing, the school and the program goals.
• Explores creative and innovative teaching learning strategies during conferences and on the clinical unit.
• Utilizes information technology skillfully to support the teaching learning process.
• Demonstrates interest and respect for learners through mentoring and knowledge sharing.
• Provides quality instruction to groups of students in the clinical area utilizing teaching learning concepts reflective of best practice in nursing education.
• Provides timely, thoughtful and constructive feedback and evaluations to learners.
• Establishes and maintains positive, caring relationships with students, faculty, management, patients/families and all other members of the health care team.
• Works productively and effectively within a complex educational and patient care environment.
• Creates meaningful clinical learning assignments based on student learning needs.
• Utilizes critical thinking skills necessary to lead students in the application of the nursing process in the clinical area.
• Applies the nursing process within the framework of Relationship Based Care to create a healing environment. 
• Formulates daily goals and a plan of care for patients that involves the patient as partner and considers the individual needs of the patient in a holistic manner.
• Practices solid communication skills, and is able to articulate and translate the patient’s condition to other care providers and to negotiate and make recommendations for changes in patient care and unit practices.
• Patient documentation is comprehensive and promotes communication between caregivers.
• Demonstrates critical thinking in the identification of clinical, social, safety, psychological and spiritual issues for the patient care within an episode of care and in educational/teaching instances
• Participates in self review by critically analyzing strengths, areas for improvement in relation to performance as a clinical instructor.
• Receives and utilizes constructive feedback to improve clinical teaching and nursing practice
• Demonstrates clinical competence in order to provide the highest quality of clinical instruction for nursing students.
• Demonstrates a passion for developing others, enthusiastically and expertly precepts students, graduate nurses and new hires.
• Analyzes clinical and behavioral situations, identifying learning opportunities to improve patient care practices.
• Supports continuous learning and commitment to lifelong learning in the clinical area by sharing research, materials from professional organizations, presenting on the unit, teaching students, supporting journal clubs, etc.
• Identifies opportunities for clinical quality as well as workplace improvement and shares outcomes from improvement projects with peer practicing nurses, other faculty, and schools of nursing
• Applies evidence based practice as a regular aspect of professional practice.
• Serves on or leads teams that launch innovations in patient care or support a healthy workforce.
• Utilizes research and evidence based practice to support improvement in clinical teaching.
• Assesses student performance to insure care reflects evidenced based nursing practice.
• Builds and mends relationships among colleagues within the framework of a healthy workplace.
• Role models keen cultural awareness including preventing and addressing horizontal violence and impairment.
• Maintains a conscious balance between work and personal life through prioritization and delegation of responsibilities.
• Works cooperatively and productively to achieve the school goals in accordance with the mission and values of the parent organization.
• Maintains open communication with other health care team members to achieve academic and organizational goals.
• Understands how the concepts of trust, respect, professionalism and caring are utilized to build an organizational climate that fosters the development of the student.
• Applies principles of dignity and respect in meeting the diverse learning needs of students in clinical practice.
• Resolves and manages conflict effectively and in a timely manner.
• Creates an environment which recognizes and values differences in students, peers, patients, families and communities.
• Coaches students on cultural diversity and civility in the educational environment.