Nurse at Medecins Sans Frontieres

Job Summary

Providing nursing care, treatment and follow-up of patients, according to doctors’ prescriptions, protocols applied in service and universal hygiene standards/precautions, in order to ensure the quality and continuity of care for the targeted population.

Accountabilities

• Knowing, promoting, implementing and following up the universal hygiene standards/ precautions, bio-hazard prevention and infection control, security rules and other protocols and procedures in the medical premises and ensuring high standards of hygiene of his/her working environment. Respecting medical secrets and confidentiality at all times.
• Organizing and carrying out care and treatments according to medical prescriptions, and assisting during consultations, daily rounds and other medical procedures. Participating in health education of the patient (and family) when necessary.
• Identifying Sexually Gender Based Violence victims and referring them to the medical team so they can receive the necessary treatment. Knowing and is aware of the importance and appropriate use of the Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Kit
• Ensuring patients are properly received and installed and that those with lack of autonomy are assisted, especially regarding their feeding, personal hygiene, movements and comfort. For ER and OPD nurse, ensuring triage of patients in waiting areas, wards or during emergencies, detecting the priority acute/emergency cases, carrying out first aid care and referring them to the doctor when necessary
• Sending material to be sterilized and recuperates it from sterilization
• Carrying out admission, surveillance and follow-up of patients (i.e. assessment of the evolution of their state of health and the identification of any emergency situation or deterioration
• Carrying and supervising administrative procedures and documents (fill in patient’s files, forms, consumptions, statistics, registers, health files, etc.), ensuring an appropriate written/oral handover, and reporting any problematic situations and cases that may arise. Participating in data collection and keeping doctors/supervisors informed .
• Participating in the department-related pharmacy and medical equipment control and maintenance (quality and its functioning, storage conditions, follow-up of expired drugs inventories, stock takes of medicines and material at every team changeover ensuring no material is taken out of nursing area/wards without prior authorisation, etc.)
• Perform cleaning and minor maintenance for biomedical equipment used. Fol-lowing the user manual and protocols and alert supervisor in case of malfunctioning.
• Supervising and training nurse-aids, nutritional assistants, cleaners and other related staff under his/her supervision, ensuring teamwork and adherence to all appropriate protocols and procedures
• Carrying out basic health care (swabbing, applying local treatments, etc.) following the rules on hygiene and asepsis.
• Informing caretakers on the functioning of the centre: lay out, daily activity plan (number and frequency of the meals, medical visit, weight measurement, etc.) and other general information.
• Distributing meals according to medical prescriptions for each patient, ensuring that no other food is given in place. Reporting on daily basis, the intake of the patients under nutritional treatment.
• Providing hygienic training and sanitation education to children, mothers and the targeted population and stimulating mothers to breast-feed.
• Monitoring and reporting weight and other vital indicators, if necessary, (temperature, heart and respiratory rates) of each patient. Applying the correct procedures in the event of a fever or hypothermia and reporting to the nurse pathologic symptoms such as, apathetic, anorexia, not drinking, vomiting, fever, dehydration, diarrhea, etc. Preparing ORS, when required.
• Supervising drinking water availability in the ward, and ensuring it is well identified.
• Supervising the maintenance of clean premises and materials
• Performing minor maintenance and cleaning of the biomedical equipment following user manual and protocols. Alerting the supervisor in case of malfunctioning of any device. Supervising drinking water availability in the ward and ensuring it is well identified.
• Supervising the maintenance of clean unit premises and materials.
• Assist the nurses during nursing procedures.

MSF Section/Context Specific Accountabilities:
Administration:

• Carry-out and supervise administrative procedures and documents (fill in patients files, forms, consumptions, statistics, etc.), and report any problematic situations and cases that may arise.
• Documentation/tallying of all consumption from the medicine cupboard when the Nurse supervisor is absent especially at night

Medical Care:

• Know, promote, always implement and follow the universal hygiene standards/ precautions, bio-hazard prevention and infection control, security rules and other protocols and procedures in the medical premises and ensure high standards of hygiene of his/her working environment.
• Organize and carry out care and treatments according to medical prescriptions, as well as assist the doctor during consultations/ daily rounds and other medical procedures.
• Ensure aseptic technique is respected when performing sterile procedures
• Respect medical secret and confidentiality
• Carry-out admission, surveillance and follow-up of patients meaning assessment of their health state evolution, and identification of emergency or any deterioration
• Participate actively in every feeding session; giving caretakers necessary advice and help, and ensuring a calm environment
• Notifying the doctor and carry out first aid care when necessary
• Supervise and train nurse-aids, nutritional assistants, cleaners and other related staff in their work with special focus in following all appropriate protocols and procedures and ensuring teamwork
• Participate in the department-related pharmacy and medical equipment control and maintenance (carrying out inventories, carrying out stock takes of medicines and material at every team changeover, ensuring no material is taken out of nursing area/wards without prior authorisation, checking its quality and its functioning, storage conditions, doing follow-up of expired drugs, etc.).
• Sample collection and proper handover to Lab.
• Ensure an appropriate written/oral handover between shifts
• Ensure triage of patients in waiting areas, wards or during emergencies, detecting the priority acute/emergency cases, carrying out first aid care when necessary and referring them to the doctor
• Knows and aware of the importance & appropriate use of the Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Kit
• Correct waste segregation and disposal according to MSF protocol- respect the bucket system in place.

Patient orientation:

• Ensure patients are properly received and installed in the health service. Ensures that patients with lack of autonomy are assisted, especially regarding their feeding, personal hygiene, movements and comfort.
• Participate in health education of the patient and caretakers when necessary, while checking the admission checklist

Teamwork and cooperation:

• Participate and attend meetings organised by the department or supervisor
• Participate and attend all mandatory trainings as communicated by the supervisor
• Be flexible and support colleagues and other departments when situation requires it.

Minimum Required Skills and Qualifications

Education:

• Essential recognized nurse degree/diploma
• Desirable Bachelor in Science of Nursing.

Experience:

• Experience in malnutrition is an added advantage.

Language:

• English Langauge Essential Hausa or Kanuri Desirable.