Hospice Nurse Practitioner​/Physician Associate

Job Title: Hospice Nurse Practitioner/ Physician Associate

Location: Colorado Springs / Monument

Bloom Healthcare and Hospice is a pioneering and employee-owned primary care and hospice practice at the forefront of transforming healthcare delivery for vulnerable patients. We bring high-touch, innovative medicine to those living at home with chronic conditions. Bloom’s model of care is proven to provide exceptional care to the homebound population. Bloom Healthcare has generated outstanding quality results in CMS Innovation Center models compared to our peers.

At Bloom, we believe in creating an environment that fosters growth, collaboration, and a shared sense of purpose. Bloom Healthcare has been voted the "Top Workplace" for six consecutive years. By joining the Bloom family, you are embarking on a rewarding career journey and becoming part of a community that genuinely cares about you.

A Hospice Nurse Practitioner (NP) or Physician Assistant (PA) plays a crucial role in providing comprehensive care to patients who are in the final stages of a terminal illness. Their responsibilities may include:

• Assessment and Evaluation: Conducting thorough assessments of patients’ past medical histories, current treatment plans, and goals for care. Performing and documenting detailed Medicare Face-to-Face visits for initial and re-certification requirements. Anticipating symptoms needs and tracking course of illness. Acute visits for new or evolving symptoms or conditions and treating in collaboration with PCP. Knowledge of common disease trajectories and prognoses.

• Pain and Symptom Management: Working with Bloom PCP and Hospice RN to develop practical and effective symptom management plans including prescribing, following upon changes, and adjusting as patient’s condition changes. Common symptoms managed include agitation, anxiety, pain, dyspnea, depression, constipation, diarrhea, and others. An unrestricted DEA license is required.

• Coordination of Care: Collaborating with the interdisciplinary hospice team, including physicians, nurses, social workers, and spiritual counselors to ensure holistic care for patients and support for their families. Maintaining detailed communication with patients’ PCPs throughout the hospice course. Establishing trusting and collegial relationships with Assisted Living and Memory Care Unit staff and leadership personnel.

• Education and Support: Providing education to patients and their families about the disease process, treatment options, and end-of-life care, as well as offering emotional support and making appropriate referrals to other team members for specific needs. Approaching each interaction with colleagues as an opportunity to learn and to teach.

• Advance Care Planning: Assisting patients in making decisions about their end-of-life care preferences, including advance directives and hospice enrollment.

• Prognosis and Goals of Care Discussions: Facilitating discussions about prognosis and goals of care with patients and their families, helping them make informed decisions about their treatment options.

• Psychosocial Support: Addressing patients’ and families’ psychological, social, and spiritual needs, including recommendations for grief counseling and support for anticipatory mourning.

• Documentation and Communication: Maintaining accurate, detailed, and timely documentation of required Medicare Face-to-Face visits. Participating actively in Interdisciplinary Team Meetings each week. Responding promptly to all text messages, calls, and emails.

• Travel: Driving to facilities and patients’ homes for visits, maintaining a territory of facilities in conjunction with Hospice RN case managers.

• After-Hours Call: Bloom uses a team-based call model to support patient needs and provider sustainability. This position participates in a shared remote call rotation that includes a 4-day weeknight call block and a 3-day weekend call block approximately every 6 weeks, with post-weekend recovery time built into the schedule.

Overall, Hospice Nurse Practitioners and Physician Associates strive to enhance the quality of life for terminally ill patients and their families by…