PUBLIC HEALTH NURSE SPECIALIST- 40001139

Durham County Government employs approximately 1,900 employees that work towards providing needed services throughout the community. With a wide array of services, Durham County Government is at the heart of a rapidly growing and diverse area offering residents, employees and visitors exciting opportunities to live, work, grow and play. For more information about Durham County Government, visit www.dconc.gov.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

The School Health Program is one of the programs within the Medical Services Division. The primary purpose of the School Health Program is to provide nursing services to students and families enrolled in the fifty-seven (57) Durham Public Schools (DPS), to include the Alternative Educational Programs, school faculty and staff, administrators, and the larger community. The School Health Program exists to promote the health and welfare of children enrolled in Durham Public Schools. This is done by organizing or collaborating with health promotion activities in schools, establishing plans of care for individual students with special health needs, providing input regarding health and safety in the school environment, and assisting with health policy development.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The functions listed below are those that represent the majority of the time spent working in this position. Management may assign additional functions related to the type of work of the position as necessary.

• Identify and help address health issues, needs and barriers to care;
• Knowledge of importance of medical compliance and ability to educate clients to importance;
• Assist in relationship building with Durham community, Public Health and other community partners as needed;
• Document work related tasks in electronic medical record per policy/protocol;
• Participate in outreach and community events as indicated;
• Participation in Emergency Response and Preparedness task as assigned;
• Performs additional related work as assigned.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

• Must possess thorough knowledge of and skill in the application of principles and techniques employed in the field of public health in general and school health in particular.
• The ability to work independently and have critical thinking skills to be utilized in a variety of complex health-related situations.
• Must have good verbal and written communication skills.
• Must have considerable knowledge of relevant resources and organizations and the ability to coordinate and utilize these as needed.
• The ability to deal tactfully with others and to foster and maintain effective working relationships with others.
• The ability to accurately interpret medical documents and plan, coordinate, and evaluate related nursing interventions.
• The ability to proficiently use computer systems such as Microsoft Word and Excel.
• The ability to be flexible and receptive to change in staff, program and agency needs, changing patient populations, program requirements and community agencies.

MINIMUM EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS:

Graduation from a four-year college or university with a B.S. in Nursing which includes a Public Health Nursing rotation and one year of Public Health Nursing experience; or Master's in Public Health and graduation from a school of professional nursing and one year of professional nursing experience; or graduation from a school of professional nursing and two years of professional nursing experience including one year of Public Health Nursing experience; or an equivalent combination of training and experience.

SPECIAL CERTIFICATIONS AND LICENSES REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be licensed to practice as a registered nurse in North Carolina by the NC Board of Nursing.
• Requires current valid driver's license in North Carolina.

EMERGENCY PREPARDNESS REQUIREMENTS:

Primary work hours are between the hours of 8:30 AM and 5:00 PM.  Employee is subject to be called upon at any time to help the agency respond to a public health emergency, which may include but is not limited to outbreak investigations, staffing mass dispensing or immunization clinics, providing disaster relief, or incidents (man-made or natural and intentional or non-intentional) as they arise, or any public health response as requested by the Health Director.

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT COMPLIANCE:

Durham County is an Equal Opportunity Employer. ADA requires Durham County to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified persons with disabilities. Prospective and current employees are encouraged to discuss ADA accommodations with management.

To further the mission of the Durham County Department of Public Health (DCoDPH) to partner with our community to advance health equity, protect the environment, and promote health and wellness for all, DCoDPH is implementing the employee vaccination and tuberculosis screening policies. All DCoDPH employees are considered healthcare personnel (HCP) working in a health care setting with the potential for exposure to patients and/or infectious materials and, therefore, are required to comply and provide documented proof of the following:

• Measles, Mumps & Rubella (MMR) vaccination/immunity 
• Varicella-Zoster Virus (Chicken Pox) vaccination/immunity 
• Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis)
• Tuberculosis (TB) baseline screening within the last twelve (12) months prior to employment
• Hepatitis B vaccination/immunity – only required for DCoDPH employees with potential Bloodborne Pathogen (BBP) exposures.

Identified DCoDPH HCP with potential Bloodborne Pathogen (BBP) exposure have an additional requirement for the Hepatitis B vaccination. Required vaccination, serological testing to determine immunity, and baseline tuberculosis screening are available for all Public Health employees who elect to become DCoDPH patients upon request and at no cost.

Proof of vaccination and tuberculosis screening must be provided to Human Resources within seven (7) business days prior to the date of employment.

Durham County Government is an Equal Opportunity Employer