Assist licensed nurses in delivering patient care and maintaining unit environmental standards on a surgical stepdown unit. Serve as a liaison for patient and family needs while supporting unit operations and patient flow.
Requirements summary
Requires a High School Diploma or GED and either current RN program enrollment, completion of a Nursing Assistant program, or one year of recent experience as a care partner. Preferred candidates have hospital experience and strong professional communication skills.
high schoolprofessional certificateTeamworkCommunicationPatient CarePatient Flow ManagementVital SignsPoint Of Care TestingEmotional IntelligencePatient DocumentationClinical CompetenciesEnvironmental Standards Maintenance
Job description
Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health is committed to an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your uniqueness is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt’s mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.
Organization
9N
Surgical
Stepdown 20
Job
Summary: Assist with the delivery of patient care and maintenance of unit environmental standards under the supervision of a licensed nurse. . **All Candidates must attach an up-to-date resume to their application. *
Why Vanderbilt Health? Located in the heart of Nashville, Tennessee, Vanderbilt University Medical Center is more than a workplace—it’s a community driven by a shared mission: to advance health and wellness through world-class patient care, education, and research.
Here, you’ll find:
Purpose: Every role contributes to something bigger than yourself.
Growth
Your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged.
Belonging
We celebrate individuality and create an environment where everyone can thrive. If you’re passionate about making a difference and want to be part of a team that never settles for “good enough,” Vanderbilt is the place for you.
About the
Department: The Surgical Stepdown unit (9 North) is a 27-bed progressive care inpatient adult unit. Our unit is a critical care unit that specializes in the care of the post-operative surgical patient including thoracic surgery, oncology-endocrine surgery, emergency general surgery, and head & neck surgery, among others. The patients admitted to the surgical step-down unit generally require cardiac monitoring, continuous pulse-oximetry, and more frequent assessments and interventions than can be provided in the general acute care setting. Our focus is to provide high quality intensive patient care with a wide variety of surgeries and diagnosis. Our unit provides our staff with the opportunity for professional and personal growth in a fast-paced work environment.
Your
Schedule:
Full-Time
Day
Shift - 6:45 am - 7:15 pm (three 12-hour shifts/week)
Shifts rotate throughout the week
Note: Set schedules are not available. Schedules are determined by unit clinical staffing needs.
What
You
Need to
Qualify:
Required: High School
Diploma or
GED (or equivalent experience)
AND one of the following: Current enrollment in a professional nursing RN program with successful completion of the first semester (including nursing fundamentals clinical), or Graduation from a Nursing Assistant or Aide Training Program within the past year (certificate of completion required), or Minimum of one year of recent experience (within the past two years) as a care partner, nursing assistant, or patient care technician.
Preferred
One year of previous experience in a hospital setting Flexible availability Professionalism and reliability Excellent communication and teamwork skills High emotional intelligence Why You’ll Love Working Here Be part of a nationally recognized medical center. Work alongside passionate professionals who care deeply about patients and each other. Opportunities for growth and advancement within a supportive environment. Ready to Apply?
Current
Vanderbilt employees: Apply via the internal job board in Workday. Search for “internal jobs”, enter your work information manually and upload your resume.
All
Candidates: Upload a current resume in Word or PDF format, including start and end dates (month & year) for all relevant positions.
Key
Responsibilities: Assist with the delivery of patient care and maintenance of unit environmental standards under the supervision of a licensed nurse. Assists with day-to-day delivery of patient care. Facilitates efficient and safe patient care and flow by following work area standards. Serves as a liaison for communication and education of patient and family needs. Supports unit operations and patient flow by maintaining supplies, equipment, and unit environmental standards. The responsibilities listed are a general overview of the position and additional duties may be assigned.
Technical
Capabilities:
Clinical
COMPETENCIES (Novice): Demonstrates competence with interventions (such as point of care testing, vital signs, etc.) in practical applications of moderate difficulty.
CARE
PARTNER
PATIENT
DOCUMENTATION (Novice): Independently works with clinical applications for patient documentation.
Environment
OF
CARE (Novice): Demonstrates ability to set up and maintain patient rooms, supplies, and equipment. Possesses sufficient knowledge, training, and experience to be capable of successfully delivering environment of care services while requiring some support and instruction from others. Able to train and educate peers by setting the example, giving technical support, providing leadership, and generally elevating the level of performance of others while on the job. Models CREDO behaviors.
Planning &
ORGANIZING (Novice): Demonstrates ability to anticipate basic resource needs, identify discrete tasks, participates in goal setting, define dependencies, schedule activities, meet deadlines, and organize work for own assignments and responsibilities. Appropriately matches equipment, and capital resources to task demands. Prepares and presents clear and accurate status reports on patient care assignments. Address problems and obstacles before they arise. Adapt to changes in major assignments while maintaining expectations. Understands and identifies with the basic goals and values of the organization. Our clinical and nursing support roles are at the center of all we do, helping us be the world leader in advancing personalized health. We support each other and encourage excellence among all who are part of our workforce. High-achieving employees stay at Vanderbilt Health for professional growth, appreciation of benefits, and a sense of community and purpose. We support each other and encourage excellence among all who are part of our workforce.
Impact: Performs tasks that are typically routine that may impact team's performance with occasional guidance.
Problem
Solving/
Complexity of work: Utilizes some discretion and research to solve routine problems.
Breadth of
Knowledge: Applies knowledge of standards, established processes and procedure that apply to your own job.
Team
Interaction: Provides guidance to entry level co-workers.
Core
Capabilities :
Supporting
Colleagues :
Develops
Self and
Others: Continuously improves own skills by identifying development opportunities.-
Builds and
Maintains
Relationships: Seeks to understand colleagues' priorities, working styles and develops relationships across areas.-
Communicates
Effectively: Openly shares information with others and communicates in a clear and courteous manner.
Delivering
Excellent
Services: -
Serves
Others with
Compassion: Invests time to understand the problems, needs of others and how to provide excellent service.-
Solves
Complex
Problems: Seeks to understand issues, solves routine problems, and raises proper concerns in a timely manner. -
Offers
Meaningful
Advice and
Support: Listens carefully to understand the issues and provides accurate information and support.
Ensuring
High
Quality: -
Performs
Excellent
Work: Checks work quality before delivery and asks relevant questions to meet quality standards. -
Fulfills
Safety and
Regulatory
Requirements: Demonstrates basic knowledge of conditions that affect safety and reports unsafe conditions to the appropriate person or department.
Managing
Resources
Effectively : -
Demonstrates
Accountability: Takes responsibility for completing assigned activities and thinks beyond standard approaches to provide high-quality work/service. -
Stewards
Organizational
Resources: Displays understanding of how personal actions will impact departmental resources. -
Makes
Data
Driven
Decisions: Uses accurate information and good decision making to consistently achieve results on time and without error.
Fostering
Innovation : -
Generates
New
Ideas: Willingly proposes/accepts ideas or initiatives that will impact day-to-day operations by offering suggestions to enhance them. -
Applies
Technology: Absorbs new technology quickly; understands when to utilize the appropriate tools and procedures to ensure proper course of action. -
Adapts to
Change: Embraces changes by keeping an open mind to changing plans and incorporates change instructions into own area of work.
Position
Qualifications:
Responsibilities:
Certifications:
Work
Experience:
Relevant
Work
Experience
Experience
Level:
Less than 1 year
Education: High School Diploma or GED (Required) This role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful impact within Vanderbilt Health, supported by a comprehensive benefits package which may include health, disability, retirement and/or wellness offerings to enhance your well-being and professional growth. Vanderbilt Health is committed to fostering an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and is committed to the principles of equal opportunity. EOE/Vets/Disabled. PEOPLE ARE AT THE HEART OF ALL WE DO.
Our vision: The world leader in advancing personalized health.
Our mission: personalizing the patient experience through our caring spirit and distinctive capabilities. Making Health Care Personal. We’re looking for like-minded individuals driven to make a difference. We invite you to explore careers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. At VUMC, we place a priority on designing with and for our patients and families. We value collaboration, embrace continuous learning and discovery, and seek to be a place where everyone has the chance to thrive. We’re the largest private employer in Middle Tennessee, with a growing team and expanding footprint in towns and communities across the region. We employ more than 28,000 people who work in inpatient and outpatient clinical care, research, and graduate medical education as well as critical supporting roles in administration, information technology and informatics, finance, legal and community affairs, communications and marketing, fund-raising, groundskeeping and facilities, and many more.
Our growing health system has more than 1,700 licensed hospital beds at: Vanderbilt University Hospital Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital Vanderbilt Tullahoma-Harton Hospital It’s also home to hundreds of outpatient clinic and surgical locations throughout the region. We serve our community with many unique and specialized services including the Level 1 Trauma Center, a highly experienced Transplant Center that does the most heart transplants in the world, a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, Lung Institute, Burn Center and many more. World-leading academic departments and centers make scientific discoveries, advance clinical care and train the next generation of health care professionals. Our robust research enterprise consistently ranks among the highest in the country as measured by peer-reviewed grant funding from the National Institutes of Health. We’re honored to be consistently considered among the nation’s best hospitals, including being nationally ranked in multiple medical specialties for treating the most complex conditions in adults and children by US News and World Report. Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt ranked as the No. 1 children’s hospital in the southeast in 2024. We support each other and encourage excellence among all who are part of our workforce. High-achieving employees stay at VUMC for professional growth, appreciation of benefits, and a sense of community and purpose. Join us in Making Health Care Personal.
