Nurse Practitioner

The Nurse Practitioner (NP) reports to the Director of Ambulatory Services and the Chief of Interprofessional Practice. The NP will provide advanced nursing care to meet the needs of the outpatient Pediatric Infectious Diseases clinic at McMaster Children's Hospital (MCH). This will include assessment, evaluation, diagnosis and treatment management of acute and chronic pediatric infections in close collaboration and consultation with the Infectious Diseases specialists. The NP will actively participate in promoting and providing quality, family-centred care in the outpatient clinic setting. They will also coordinate care with clinicians (nurses, NPs, physician assistants, MDs, etc.) from other Divisions to ensure that MCH is delivering the best quality care to all that it serves; this may include assessing whether children have received the appropriate vaccinations, making recommendations with respect to antimicrobial-resistant organism colonization, etc.
The NP will also support the coordination of care for all infants identified in our region who have screened positive for congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) on the dried blood spot with Newborn Screening Ontario. The NP will perform retrieval for cCMV screen positive infants which includes contacting the family or the primary care provider to inform them of the screen positive result, prognosis, and planning, and, referring infants to community pediatrician for initial evaluation to ensure timely and comprehensive care is provided. The NP will ensure that symptomatic infants are urgently referred to the McMaster Pediatric Infectious Diseases clinic, where the NP will assess, diagnose and provide advance-nursing care as needed in close collaboration with the Infectious Diseases specialists. The NP will also collect and interpret initial evaluation results on all asymptomatic infants, maintain and complete required documentation for Newborn Screening Ontario and MCH, and ensure ongoing follow up for all screen positive infants. The NP will review and revise Newborn Screening Ontario medical directives for retrieval, evaluation, and treatment of cCMV screen positive infant. The NP will serve as a key resource and point of contact for community pediatricians, other regional program partners, audiologists, family physicians, midwives, and families.

• Current Registration with the College of Nurses of Ontario as a Registered Nurse in the Extended Class – RN(EC).

• Completion of a Master's Degree in Nursing, with an Advanced Practice Nurse Certificate in Pediatrics (NP-Pediatrics)

• Membership in the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO) and other professional organizations relevant to the role

• Minimum of 4-6 years recent pediatric nursing experience

• Minimum of 3 years recent acute/primary clinical experience in pediatrics

• Knowledge and experience in change theory and pediatric learning principles

• Current driver's license and ability to travel in Southwestern Ontario/own transportation

• Certification in PALS preferred

• Proficiency in performing history and examination of the infant, toddler, child, and adolescent

• Knowledge and assessment of developmental milestones at all stages of pediatric development and ability to access appropriate community or hospital-based resources in setting of developmental delays

• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of health professional resources, community services, and resources relating to the pediatric population

• Experience in the development and maintenance of medical directives

• Demonstrated ability for independent action, initiative, problem solving, organization, and prioritization

• Demonstrated interpersonal and communication skills, both written and verbal

• Demonstrated ability to work in a consultative role with the members of the multidisciplinary team

• Demonstrated ability to utilize information technology

• Ability to deliver culturally sensitive care, recognize and celebrate diversity, navigate complex situations, and advocate for children and families

• Ability to act as a leader, teacher, mentor, and change agent for the interprofessional health team both within the institution and in the community

• Able to effectively lead program design and evaluation, including identification and measurement of outcome indicators

• Commitment to ongoing professional development