Clinical Resource Nurse

The Clinical Resource Nurse is a sub-specialty of the Registered Nurse (RN) profession who has a specific responsibility around the overall coordination of the nursing staff that oversees the care of a specific patient group. Their responsibilities include the most efficient organization of staff work flow, accuracy in paperwork, smooth shift transitions, correct and proficient use of medical supplies and devices. Their primary traits are excellent communication abilities, top-shelf organizational skills, and leadership skills. They must also show an ability to cope with challenging situations, have a high degree of accuracy, good coaching abilities, demonstrate creative thinking and have stellar problem solving abilities. Through an emphasis on organization, critical thinking, communication and leadership skills, the Clinical Resource Nurse helps to ensure that their clinical area works together like a well-oiled machine.

Organizational ability is at the heart of the traits that are needed by a Clinical Resource Nurse as their overarching task is to organize the clinical area that they are overseeing. The efficient allocation of staff to deal with patient needs is the primary responsibility of the Clinical Resource Nurse and should be considered the area in which one has their greatest talent. Understanding how to delegate tasks to your staff, while simultaneously ensuring accuracy, quality and thoroughness of task completion is critical. You will need to be a good judge of the relative abilities of your staff, their training and also be able to quickly prioritize the various needs of patients under your care.

Leadership skills are of paramount importance as a Clinical Resource Nurse due to the fact that you will often find yourself in challenging situations with limited staff or multiple emergency situations that occur simultaneously. The ability to think creatively and problem solve will be at a premium, but the ability to delegate appropriately while modeling professionalism and also being able to effectively coach your staff will all be key areas of performance. Knowing how to communicate in a concise and accurate manner, while also instilling confidence in your staff, is one of the hallmarks of a good leader. You will also need to act as an example to your staff during crisis situations by radiating a cool, calm and collected demeanor that shows that you are in charge and are unaffected by chaotic situations. This in turn will give your staff the confidence and determination to carry out their duties and rise to meet the challenge of the moment.

Being able to maximize the output of your staff while ensuring they are not too overworked or stressed out to carry out tasks efficiently and accurately is one of the ways in which your leadership skills will be put to the task. Short staff situations are one of the testing grounds of a Clinical Resource Nurse and this is where your emphasis should be in professional development. Critical thinking, prioritization and effective communication coupled with outstanding leadership abilities are the traits that will be looked for by prospective employers. These are all areas of professional development that you will want to concentrate on as you make the transition from Registered Nurse to Clinical Resource Nurse