Call Center Triage Nurse

Description

We are North Idaho’s premier provider of integrated medical, dental and behavioral health services. Our amazing care teams deliver world-class healthcare utilizing a patient directed, community-focused approach. Providing high quality, affordable Healthcare from the Heart is our passion. Our mission is to deliver a healthcare experience that provides hope, inspires change, and extends life for our patients and our community.

Top reasons to join our team:

• Our employees are mission – minded
• We are passionate about providing excellent patient care
• Community-focused
• Committed to a fun and supportive team environment
• We offer high-quality competitive employee benefits

Summary:

The Triage Nurse provides medical information and symptom triage to assess the severity of the patient’s health concerns with the use of established medical guidelines designed to support the call center process. The Triage Nurse communicates information, makes recommendations, and verifies patient understanding regarding healthcare issues/concerns.

Requirements

The Minimum qualifications:

• Graduate of an accredited nursing program.
• Holds a current State of Idaho RN license.
• Minimum 3 years of experience in a clinical setting.
• Acute hospital experience preferred.

Your Success Factors:

1. Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.
2. Skill in telephone based clinical assessment.
3. Ability to maintain a work pace appropriate to the workload.
4. Ability to multi-task, prioritize, and organize daily responsibilities.
5. Exceptional listening skills and the ability to elicit information needed to make a brief evaluation.
6. Must possess the skill, knowledge, and ability essential to the successful performance of assigned duties.
7. Skill in making decisions and communicating clearly and calmly with the patient.
8. Ability to use independent judgement.
9. Ability to work closely with physicians and other clinicians as needed.
10. Working knowledge of electronic medical record functions and capabilities.
11. Knowledge of Heritage Health policies and procedures.
12. Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community.

Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Evaluates and assesses patient’s healthcare needs based on patient’s signs and symptoms utilizing established triage protocols and guidelines.
2. Obtains appropriate input and direction from the provider as needed to determine best clinical course of action and recommendations for specific patient healthcare needs.
3. Accurately documents symptoms/complaints, nursing assessment, advice provided, and patient/caller response. Follows policies, procedures, and protocols to ensure consistency and departmental effectiveness as well as improve healthcare outcomes of patients/callers and their access to appropriate healthcare.
4. Coordinates and schedules same day appointments on the provider’s schedules.
5. Manages prescription refills per protocol.
6. Demonstrates a commitment to patient centered care.
7. Participates in performance improvement activities as assigned.
8. Helps to establish workflows and processes.
9. Assist with patient scheduling during down time.
10. Maintains confidentiality, HIPAA and PHI compliance.
11. Heritage Health staff have an active role in our Patient Centered Medical Home model of care. This role is designated as part of the Heritage Health PCMH Care Team.
12. Regular and predictable attendance is an essential function of this position.
13. Performs miscellaneous job-related duties as assigned.

Job Overview:

Safety:

Heritage Health enforces a safety culture whereby all employees have the responsibility for continuously developing and maintaining a safe working environment. Each employee is responsible for completing all training requirements, participating in emergency response tasks as requested, and serving on safety committees and teams as requested. In addition, employees must accept the responsibility for maintaining the safety of themselves and others by adhering to all written and verbal instructions, promptly reporting and/or correcting all hazards or unsafe conditions and providing feedback to supervisors and management on all safety issues.

Physical/Mental Requirements:

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• May lift up to 15 pounds at times.
• Must be able to access and natigate various departments of a given location.
• Must be able to complete tasks in a noisy or stressful environment.
• Must be able to adhere to process protocol.

Working Conditions:

Work may be performed in a typical interior/office work environment in an office building. Work will primarily be performed at a remote location which is typically a personal home office setting. Work may be demanding and chaotic at times. May be exposed to patient population that will present a variety of contagious diseases, physical injuries and emotional states of mind.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice. Prepared by: Triage Nurse Manager Rev: March 2025 Heritage Health provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.