Nursing

This area also houses specialized resuscitation rooms for the treatment of all critically injured trauma patients and patients in need of cardiac resuscitation. When all other treatment areas are closed, this area cares for all patients presenting to the Emergency Department for care.

Pediatric ED is dedicated to the care of pediatric patients; it is open daily from 9 am until 11 pm. This area has four permanent pediatric emergency nurses on staff. Additional nursing support is provided by rotating all ED nurses through this area. Typically, there are two RNs and one Nursing Assistant providing care in this setting. The physician staff is comprised of Pediatric attending physicians, resident physicians and other medical service residents and interns.

The Emergency Department at UNC Hospitals cares for a variety of patient populations, ranging from minor illnesses and injuries to critical medical and trauma patients from neonates to the elderly. A total of 62,428 patients were triaged through the ED in 2006. Care was provided to 53,484 patients in the acute ED,and 8,944 pediatric patients in Pediatric ED.

Our Emergency Department staff includes registered nurses, nursing assistants, and Health Unit Coordinators. Look here for staffing opportunities.  The department provides patient-focused care while maintaining a team attitude and approach.

All of our attending physicians are board certified in Emergency Medicine. The UNC Department of Emergency Medicine sponsors one of four Emergency Medicine Residency programs in the state. Residents, interns, and medical students from other services also rotate through the ED for training, providing all members of the UNC health care team opportunities for clinical education and teaching. 

There are a wide variety of scheduling options available for the nursing staff in the ED. We have traditional day, evening and night plans as well as weekend option pay plans. UNC Hospitals recently changed the way it pays nurses shift and weekend differential from percentage pay to rate pay and is looking at retention options. Most new nursing staff enter the department on a modified evening shift but have the opportunity to move into other shifts or plans as they become available. Our department prides itself on scheduling flexibility, and many of our staff are currently pursuing advanced of additional educational opportunities at nearby colleges and universities.

 

Our department places great importance on continuing education and specialty certifications. The ED has a full-time Nurse Education Clinician who organizes required education as well as additional desired education. All nurses are required to successfully complete ACLS within 6 months of hire and PALS and the Trauma Nurse Core Course (TNCC) within the first year of employment. These classes are incorporated into your work schedule and are paid by the department. We also attempt to give each nurse additional educational days each year for pursuit of continuing education. Many nurses in the ED have the opportunity to attain instructor status in BCLS, ACLS, PALS, TNCC and other courses. Instructors are given the opportunity to teach within the institution in order to maintain current certification.

Nurses in all areas of the ED have the opportunity to actively participate in a variety of research projects conducted in the ED. Some of our most recent projects include a multi-center study examining triage systems, UNC School of Nursing Elder Study, and ENA Boating Study.

UNC Hospitals Emergency Department supports specialized training for the care of victims of sexual assault. Interested nurses may elect to pursue specialty training and certification, which allows them to function as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) or Forensic Nurse Examiner (FNE). This role allows for a great deal of nursing independence in caring for the sexual assault victim.