On-Call Weekends - Visiting LVN

JOB DESCRIPTION SUMMARY The Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse is responsible for providing direct patient care under the supervision of a registered nurse. 5. The on-call nurse will provide follow-up appropriate to the call: A. Call the patient/family/caregiver B. Visit the patient, if necessary C. Obtain physician (or other authorized independent practitioner) orders, as needed D. Arrange for other hospice services, as needed 6. The on-call nurse will document each patient/family interaction in a clinical note. 7. The on-call nurse will maintain an on-call log of all patient contacts during on-call hours. 8. On-call staff will respond to a page within 15 minutes and must be able to reach a patient within one (1) hour. (There may be rare exceptions, depending on how far away the patient lives and if the staff member is with another patient at the time of the page.) 9. Reports will be given to the on-call nurse daily Monday through Friday. 10. The on-call nurse will report his/her evening and/or weekend patient care activities to the Clinical Director/Director of Patient Care Services. GUIDELINES The following list is meant to guide the on-call nurse. It is not an exhaustive list, but includes many problems that may require a visit from the hospice nurse. • Death, suspected death* • Unusual, severe or uncontrolled pain • Nausea/vomiting not resolved with present medications • New onset seizures or suspected seizures • IV problems • Occluded intravenous lines • Suspected bleeding • Respiratory difficulty • Report of patient falling • No BM for four (4) days or more (if taking nourishment) • No urine for 8 to 12 hours (if taking fluids and having discomfort) • Increased anxiety and/or confusion* • Duplicate calls regarding the same problem • Patient/family/caregiver perceives a problem and requests a visit