Nurse Practitioner (Critical Care & Stepdown) - Critical Care - Full Time 12 Hour Rotating Shif[...]

University of Southern California; Glendale (CA); On-site; USD 110,208 - 181,843; Full time

Job summary

The Nurse Practitioner at Keck Hospital of USC will join the intensive care team to manage critically ill patients in ICU and stepdown units, applying advanced nursing practice, examinations, data collection, and protocol-driven interventions. This role emphasizes leadership, teaching, and collaboration with residents, fellows, and supervising physicians.

Responsibilities include diagnosing, ordering tests, prescribing treatments, performing procedures, documenting care, and counseling patients

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Nursing from an accredited program.
• Five years of clinical nursing experience.
• Two years of critical care/ICU NP experience.
• CA RN license and NP licensure as required by CA Board.
• Ability to intubate and manage critical situations.
• Current DEA certificate for controlled substances.
• BLS and ACLS certifications as required.
• ACNP/AGACNP or ACNP certification per ANCC/AACN at hire.

Responsibilities

• Manage critically ill patients in ICU and stepdown units.
• Develop plans of care with individualized interventions and timely updates.
• Order and interpret diagnostic tests and laboratory results.
• Perform approved procedures and document patient responses.
• Prescribe interventions and medications per established protocol.
• Educate patients and families; provide leadership and teaching.
• Collaborate with supervising physician and ICU team to optimize outcomes.

Skills

ICU/critical care nursing

Intubation capability

BLS certification

ACLS certification

DEA certification

NP board certification (ANCC/AACN)

RN license (CA BRN)

Education

MSN degree

Job description

The Nurse Practitioner is a member of the intensive care team and has as his/her primary responsibility the management of critically ill complex patients in an intensive care and stepdown care setting. The NP has specialized skill and knowledge related to the unique ICU setting in which s/he practices and performs physical exams, collects and documents data, conducts approved diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, orders and schedules laboratory studies and professional consultations, prescribes appropriate interventions and medications, and provides direct patient care services in a specific ICU or Stepdown, according to established protocols and utilizes evidence-based clinical practice standards. The NP contributes to excellence in patient care, research, teaching, consulting, and provides leadership to the organization and nursing profession. Duties may include obtaining patient health histories and complete physical examinations, documenting findings noting pertinent normal and abnormal findings, ordering and interpreting appropriate diagnostic and laboratory tests. May also need to explain the necessity, preparation, nature and anticipated effects of procedure(s) to patients, patient's family, staff, and healthcare learners. Perform approved therapeutic or diagnostic procedures based upon patient's clinical status. Document patient preparation and response to procedure(s). Formulate and implement treatment plan for acute illness management in collaboration with the designated primary supervising physician and/or attending back-up physician(s). The Nurse Practitioner will work alongside trainees (residents and fellows) as part of the ICU Team.

Essential Duties

• 1. Primary responsibility is the management of critically ill complex patients in an intensive care setting and stepdown.
• 2. Demonstrates the ability to manage high acuity patients requiring specialized monitoring and care.
• 3. Develops Plans of Care with individualized interventions and completes patient care procedures correctly.
• 4. Conducts in-depth interviews with patients and/or family, constructs comprehensive medical histories, performs initial and periodic physical examinations and explores patient's interpretation of health needs. Identifies and treats patients' diseases. Manages treatment of hospitalized patients.
• 5. Directly performs or orders appropriate diagnostic studies and interprets finished results including lab studies, professional consults and approved diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
• 6. Develops and implements long and short range treatment plans. Formulates and implements treatment plans for acute illness management in collaboration with the designated primary supervising physician and/or attending back-up physicians.
• 7. Performs procedures such as obtaining specimens, performing injections, immunizations, lumbar punctures, skin biopsies, suturing, wound care establishing central access, emergency airways, insertion of A-lines, thoracentesis, paracentesis and management of conditions produced by trauma or infection.
• 8. Writes orders to increase, decrease or change medication, subject to checking and counter-signing by physician.
• 9. Prescribes appropriate interventions and medications and provides direct patient care services in the ICU and stepdown settings, according to established protocols and utilizes evidence-based clinical practice standards.
• 10. Identifies records pertinent progress of patients, updating and summarizing charts, changing orders when appropriate and notifying the responsible physician of changes in the patient's condition.
• 11. Instructs and counsels patients and families regarding preventive care, medical problems, psychological problems, and use of prescribed treatments and drugs.
• 12. Maintains compliance with established University and department policies and procedures, quality assurance, safety, environmental, infection control and complies with requirements of accreditation and regulatory agencies.
• 13. Participates in in-service education programs and professional associations. Provides leadership to the organization and nursing profession.
• 14. Responsible for responding to emergency codes (i.e.: RRTs and Code Blue alerts) when assigned to emergency response teams.
• 15. Performs other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Req Master's degree Graduate from an accredited school of Nursing (MSN).
• Req 5 years Five years clinical nursing experience required.
• Req 2 years 2 years minimum Critical Care Nurse Practitioner experience required
• Req 2 years 2 years minimum ICU/critical care nursing experience required.
• Req Must be able to intubate patients (or willing to perform this function once trained) and manage critical situations and codes.

• Req Registered Nurse - RN (CA Board of Registered Nursing)
• Req Nurse Practitioner - NP (CA Board of Registered Nursing)
• Req Nurse Practitioner Furnisher (CA DCA) Current license to furnish medications in the State of California.
• Req DEA Certificate Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Certificate issued by the U.S. Department of Justice for Schedule II-V controlled substances.
• Req NP Board Certified Possession of National Board Certification in Nurse Practitioner area of specialty accredited by Accreditation Board of Specialty Nursing (ABSNC) or National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA). If work in Hospital/Acute Care Setting must have Certification from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) as an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (ACNP) or Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (AGACNP) upon hire. * (*Grandfathered from Acute Care Certification requirement if hired/transferred prior to 12/2015.)
• Req Basic Life Support (BLS) Healthcare Provider from American Heart Association
• Req Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) Healthcare Provider from American Heart Association - *ACLS as required by the NPs Job description for NPs in the Hospital/Acute Care Setting and Ambulatory Infusion Centers (*Required for Hospital/Acute & Infusion Center Clinic settings only)
• Req Fire Life Safety Training (LA City) If no card upon hire, one must be obtained within 30 days of hire and maintained by renewal before expiration date. (Required within LA City only)

Keck Hospital of USC, a 343-bed acute care hospital, provides exceptional and innovative care for complex medical and surgical conditions across a wide range of specialties. The hospital's world-renowned physicians deliver compassionate, customized, patient-centered care and treat the most acutely ill patients with highly innovative techniques and treatment plans. As a leading academic medical center, hundreds of clinical trials are currently taking place at Keck Hospital and its affiliated research institutions, giving patients access to novel and promising therapies that are generally not available elsewhere. Every day at Keck Hospital, physicians, nurses and staff go beyond the science of exceptional medicine to bring patients breakthroughs in the art of caring. Join this world-class team providing highly specialized care, up-to-the-minute research, and innovative clinical trials.

The hourly rate range for this position is $80.75 - $132.08.

When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate's work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

Job ID REQ20177728

Posted Date 07/21/2026