McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth Houston), a leading academic health center, invites applications for multiple full-time, UT Health Houston Children’s Heart Institute Physician Assistants – Acute Care to work in the Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital Heart Center Intensive Care Unit (CMHH HCICU). 

The Children’s Heart Institute (CHI) is looking for a dedicated team member to join our Pediatric and Congenital Heart family. We are a team that is passionate about caring for children and their families affected by congenital heart disease and committed to the advancement in healthcare. Our patients in the CMHH HCICU are among the most complex patients in the world. The diversity of our program is reflected in the care we provide as well as advanced, ground-breaking surgeries.

You will be a full-time employee at UTHealth of Houston and work as part of the team with the Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. You will enjoy all of our benefits, including first rate healthcare options and an outstanding retirement program offered by the State of Texas.

We reward our team members for the excellent service they provide. Our total rewards package includes the benefits you’d expect from a top healthcare organization (benefits, competitive pay, insurance, etc.) 

What we do here changes the world. UTHealth Houston is Texas’ resource for healthcare education, innovation, scientific discovery, and excellence in patient care. That’s where you come in.

Once you join us you won't want to leave. It’s because we reward our team for the excellent service they provide. Our total rewards package includes the benefits you’d expect from a top healthcare organization (benefits, insurance, etc.), plus:  

100% paid medical premiums for our full-time employees   Holidays, preventative leave day, both vacation and sick time  Longevity Pay (Monthly payments after two years of service)  Build your future with our awesome retirement/pension plan! 

We take care of our employees! As a world-renowned institution, our employees’ wellbeing is important to us. We offer work/life services such as... 

Free financial and legal counseling  Free mental health counseling services  Gym membership discounts and access to wellness programs  Other employee discounts including entertainment, car rentals, cell phones, etc.  Resources for child and elder care  Plus many more! 

Position Summary:

Provides advanced nursing care to patients with complex acute, critical, and/or chronic health conditions in a clinic or hospital setting in one or more specialized areas under the direction of a physician in the Heart Center Intensive Care Unit (HICU). Schedule includes a mixed rotation of shifts covering weekdays, nights, swing, holidays, and weekends.  

Position Key Accountabilities:

1.  Conducts complex, standardized patient care procedures which require experience and specialized training which would otherwise be performed by a physician, but which do not constitute the practice of medicine.
2.  Conducts independent and physician supervised rounding on unit.
3.  Performs relevant patient evaluations and assessments, and provides appropriate treatment; including monitoring and ordering medications.
4.  Coordinates, directs, and implements the patient’s plan of care.
5.  Assists in collecting patient histories, screens for co-morbidities, and provides guidance and preventative health care as needed.
6.  Performs physical examinations and provides episodic care, or problem-oriented care, under the supervision of a physician.
7.  Orders appropriate laboratory, diagnostic and radiographic tests, and interprets results.
8.  Monitors the treatment program of the patient to inform the attending physician of pertinent medical information.
9.  Facilitates patient education relating to medical processes, medication, nutrition, and health promotion or preventative health care.
10.  Assists physicians in formulating therapeutic decisions.
11.  Maintains appropriate records, and prepares charts for review and counter signature by physician.
12.  Prepares and cares for supplies and equipment.
13.  Responds to emergency situations.
14.  Performs within the scope of practice prescribed by licensure and certification.
15.  Performs other duties as assigned.

Certification/Skills:

Current Texas Licensure as a Registered Nurse
Current Texas Licensure as an APRN-NP
Current specialty certification as required by department, excluding FNP certification unless paired with a post master’s certification in specialty.
Basic Life Support (BLS) certified or specialty certification as required by department.

Minimum Education:

Masters in Nursing as NP or Masters in Nursing with completion of a post-masters Nurse Practitioner Certification Program.

Minimum Experience:

None; previous experience in area of clinical focus preferred.

Physical Requirements:

Exerts up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 20 pounds frequently and/or up to 10 pounds constantly to move objects.

UTHealth does not currently have a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy. However, affiliated partners maintain their own immunization policies. All UTHealth employees who are assigned to work at a location that is subject to the affiliated partner’s hospital, clinical offices, or agency are required to abide by UTHealth’s rules and regulations, as well as the affiliate's rules and regulations, including COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

 This position is subject to a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy of an affiliate institution

Security Sensitive:

This job class may contain positions that are security sensitive and thereby subject to the provisions of Texas Education Code § 51.215