Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS/RN License Required), Pulmonary ICU - VUH

Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center:  Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health is committed to an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your uniqueness is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt’s mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.

Organization:

VUH Medical ICU/Medical PCU

Job Summary:

Performs a wide range of nursing clinical, consultative, educational and research activities with established expertise. Serves as a mentor and leader in the development of standards and in the training and monitoring of practice to achieve and maintain those standards.

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Schedule: Monday - Friday business hours with flexibility to support clinical operations across night shifts, as needed.

Join Our Pulmonary ICU Team!

Join Vanderbilt University Hospital’s Pulmonary Intensive Care Unit and make a lasting impact as a Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS). As the clinical expert for the Pulmonary ICU, you’ll partner with nursing leadership, physicians, and interdisciplinary teams to advance evidence-based practice, improve quality outcomes, mentor nursing staff, and promote clinical excellence.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced Clinical Nurse Specialist who is passionate about improving patient outcomes, advancing nursing practice, and supporting one of the nation’s leading academic medical centers.

Why Join the Pulmonary ICU?

• Lead Clinical Excellence: Drive evidence-based practice and quality initiatives that improve patient outcomes.
• Influence Nursing Practice: Mentor, educate, and support nursing staff while advancing professional practice across the ICU.
• Collaborative Leadership: Partner with nursing leadership, physicians, and interdisciplinary teams to implement best practices and improve care delivery.
• Academic Medical Center: Participate in research, professional development, and scholarly initiatives that shape the future of critical care nursing.
• Meaningful Impact: Help strengthen the Pulmonary ICU Clinical Nurse Specialist program while improving outcomes for patients, families, and the care team.

Qualifications

Required:

• Current Registered Nurse (RN) license.
• Current Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) certification/licensure as required.
• Master’s or Doctoral degree in Nursing with Clinical Nurse Specialist preparation.
• Adult critical care nursing experience.
• Strong knowledge of evidence-based practice, quality improvement, nursing education, and professional practice.

Preferred:

• Experience in a Pulmonary ICU, Medical ICU, or other adult critical care setting.
• Experience leading evidence-based practice or quality improvement initiatives.
• Experience mentoring nurses and collaborating across interdisciplinary teams.
• Experience practicing in a large academic medical center or teaching hospital with a complex adult critical care patient population.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Acts as an internal and external consultant and liaison to promote agreed upon clinical enterprise or Patient Care Center goals.
• reviews nursing care plans for selected patients and serves as a resource to the nursing staff
• teaches and models new skills/care modalities for the health care team
• serves as a mentor to nursing staff on clinical, professional and research practices that support high quality, satisfying and cost beneficial care across the continuum.
• Fosters individual and corporate staff development in the area of specialty
• directs and/or conducts needs assessments for individuals or groups
• develops, coordinates, implements and evaluates orientation and continuing education systems
• Participates in scholarly and/or research activities in area of expertise.
• maintains current knowledge of professional literature
• conducts, coordinates or participates in research studies
• writes for publication
• teaches, precepts or mentors nursing students
• participates in community projects
• Assists in designing tools and systems to facilitate and optimize nursing care.
• uses continuous impro