June Kippeny RN

Responsible for maintaining standards established at the unit and divisional level by the nurse manager and director of Nursing, modifying those standards if it's in the best interest of the hospital's customers. I provide nursing administrative coverage in the absence of the directors of Nursing and hospital administrative coverage in the absence of administration at a higher level.

• Monitor unit censuses and make adjustments to staffing according to need and resources available
• Function in the role of Patient Flow Coordinator to assure the appropriate placement of patients from various departments in-house and those admitted or transferred from other institutions
• Function as a Patient Advocate when needed and assist with conflict resolution on all levels

Under the direction of our Clinical Education staff:

• Provide educational assistance with our Companion and Patient Care Assistant programs
• Develop and maintain appropriate Competency Assessment Tools for the Companion role
• Assist with bedside training specific to the requirements of the job description and the needs of our patient population

Over 33 years of my practice, I've fulfilled various roles within UM BWMC's Department of Nursing; listed in descending order from my currently held position detailed above:

As a CN, manage patient flow for admissions, transfers and discharges from our Critical Care/Surgical Intensive Care Unit throughout various levels of care within UM BWMC.

• Appropriately assign critically ill patients to caregivers based upon the skill level of the team member and the acuity of the patient
• Act as an expert resource and support for staff as deemed necessary by the needs of the patients and the unit

As a Rapid Response Nurse, provide critical care expertise, assessment and intervention for patients in non-critical care areas to optimize patient outcomes.

As a Preceptor, orient new and/or newly hired RNs to their role in the Critical Care Department.

• Teach the skills required to succeed in their critical care practice, including but not limited to, assessment skills, diagnostic equipment, medications and interventions that are specific to the needs of patients in a critical care setting

For eighteen months, in the role of RN in our Post-Anesthesia Care Unit, I managed the care and recovery of patients in the acute post-operative phase.

Acted as the on-site Nursing Administration representative during the evening and night hours.

• Managed patient flow from the Emergency Department throughout various units within the hospital
• Assigned RNs as needed based upon unit acuity and patient need
• Assisted with house-wide management across all departments to ensure optimal function within the hospital
• Expert conflict resolution as needed across all departments among staff, patients and visitors

As a Staff RN, I manage the assessment and care of critically ill patients on multiple levels and support their families and loved ones.

• Skilled in critical care assessment and the use of diagnostic and interventional tools including CRRT, IABP, Swan-ganz, Flo trac and arterial monitoring tools
• Expertly familiar with the management and coordination of multiple medical therapies in emergency situations
• Maintain BLS and ACLS and serve on the code team

Entry position at BWMC: Served as staff and Charge RN for a busy 26+ bed telemetry unit.

• Management of all levels of care for patients in a telemetry setting
• Management of staff as Charge Nurse to appropriately care for peers and patients on a demanding, high turn-over telemetry unit

As a staff RN, I managed all aspects of care, in a primary care model, for 6-8 oncology and orthopedic patients on a busy medical/surgical unit.