Public Health Nurse III -Primary Care

Wilson County Health Department is seeking a highly motivated and skilled Public Health Nurse III to join our Primary Care team. This is an advanced-level nursing position focused on providing comprehensive nursing services in a public health primary care setting. The successful candidate will play a critical role in promoting, protecting, and maintaining the health of individuals and the community through direct patient care, health education, disease prevention, and chronic disease management.

This is advanced and specialized professional level nursing work in providing primary,
preventive, and rehabilitative care to individuals, families, and communities in a Public Health
program. Employees may have duties similar to the Public Health Nurse I and II, but spend the
majority of the time in one or more of the following roles:
1. Function in the expanded nursing role with duties relating to the employees' expertise in any
of the practice areas supported by the Division of Public Health. Employees obtain a health
history, perform a physical examination sufficient to determine if there is a deviation from
normal, help the client to maintain a state of wellness through periodic screening procedures,
health counseling, treatment under physician's standing orders, and/or referral to the
appropriate physician or clinic.
2. Serve as Project Managers or Clinic Coordinators:
Employees spend time in assessing,
planning, and coordinating a variety of services in a specific practice or geographical area and
have strong input into administrative and personnel duties and responsibilities. Employees
will also be more aware of agency and program policies, procedures, and changes and ensure
that these are followed. Employees will have responsibilities for gathering, managing, and
reviewing data, and will report it to higher management in a usable format. Employees in
this role might be assigned specific (typically supervisory level) tasks for staff in the project
or clinic, such as performance appraisals or making work assignments; however, a higher
level manager will monitor these tasks and have ultimate responsibility for them.
3. Provide skilled nursing services as staff of a specific Home Health program located within
the Public Health Department. Staff in Home Health programs perform skilled nursing
functions with a goal of allowing homebound patients to remain in their homes. Patients in
Home Health programs often have multi-system diagnoses and critical care needs, and might
vary in age from infancy to old age. Tasks and assessments performed by Home Health
nurses are often highly technical. Employees make referrals to medical facilities, social
service agencies, etc. when needed and agreed on by the patient or family. Employees,
working in partnership with patients and their families, take a lead role in coordinating all
plans and resources for these clients.
I. DIFFICULTY OF WORK:
Variety and Scope - Employees spend the majority of the time in one of the described roles,
which require performing a greater variety of duties, responsibilities, and coordination of work
with others (employees will be making professional and/or administrative decisions of higher
complexity than Public Health Nurse IIs). Employees serving in the Expanded Nurse role will be
expected to determine if findings are normal or abnormal, and to intervene based on standing
orders. Employees in the Project Manager or Clinic Coordinator role will be expected to assist
higher level supervisors in determining staffing and resource needs, be the first-line contact for
the program area, make recommendations for policy development or change, orient new staff and
assist students. Project Managers will often have the responsibility for making formal
presentations regarding the program. Employees in the Home Health role will be expected to
assess complex patient conditions, recognize deviations from the patient's baseline, and report to
the medical care provider. They will also be expected to recognize needed changes in patient
treatment, and provide this information to the medical provider. Employees will be expected to
participate in Public Health Preparedness activities as directed by agency management. They will
usually be expected to perform staff nursing duties in the event of a natural or induced disaster or
in related practice drills, or might be expected to assist in coordinating or overseeing specific
operations related to the event or drill.
Intricacy - Work requires considerable assessment, data gathering and study and analysis to plan
and determine the best course of action in all roles. Employees must also be able to assemble and
report data to higher level management.
Subject Matter Complexity - Work requires a thorough understanding of public health concepts
and programs, nursing theory and practices, general medicine, and of administrative
responsibilities if in the Project Manager or Clinic Coordinator role. Work requires an
understanding of the same professional standards as the Public…