Patient Safety Companion

Akron Children's; Akron (OH); Hybrid; USD 22,041 - 30,307; Part time

Job summary

Akron Children’s Hospital is seeking a Part Time Patient Safety Companion for on-site 24 hours per week, scheduled 7:00pm to 7:30am with weekend and holiday rotation. The role provides continuous one-on-one observation to promote patient safety, including potential remote telemonitoring, and requires BLS.

High School diploma and healthcare familiarity preferred. The position emphasizes calm professional presence, rapid communication with nursing staff, and accurate documentation in EPIC.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or equivalent required.
• Basic Life Support (BLS) certification required.
• Minimum one year of relevant experience preferred.
• Knowledge of medical terminology preferred.
• Experience in healthcare environment preferred.
• Experience with EPIC EMR or similar software preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide continuous, one-on-one observation of assigned patients to ensure safety in person or via telemonitoring.
• Maintain constant alertness and a calm, professional presence while staying within line-of-sight.
• Utilize verbal de-escalation techniques to reduce agitation or unsafe behaviors.
• Promptly communicate and escalate changes in patient condition or safety concerns to licensed nursing staff.
• Identify safety risks and address hazards in accordance with observation responsibilities.
• Accurately document patient observations, behaviors, and interventions in the EHR (e.g., EPIC).
• Prioritize and complete assigned tasks and support unit workflow and patient needs.
• Follow organizational policies, safety protocols and procedures related to observation and safety.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills

Calm professional presence

Verbal de-escalation

Observation skills

Education

High School Diploma or equivalent

Tools

EPIC EMR

Job description

Part Time (24 hours per week)

7:00pm to 7:30am

Includes weekend and holiday rotation

Onsite for Resource Pool

Summary

The Patient Safety Companion provides continuous observation of assigned patients to promote a safe environment and help prevent. The role may be assigned to provide in‑person 1:1 observation and/or virtual (remote) observation using a telemonitoring system. In the virtual setting, the companion provides real‑time observation of multiple patients, uses two‑way audio to verbally redirect as appropriate, and promptly alerts bedside clinical staff when immediate intervention is needed.

Responsibilities

1. Provide continuous, one-on-one observation of assigned patients to ensure safety and prevent harm. In the virtual environment, provide continuous remote observation of patients from a centralized monitoring location using a telemonitoring system.
2. Maintain constant alertness and a calm, professional presence while remaining within required line-of-sight of the patient. In the virtual environment, use two‑way audio to verbally redirect patients away from unsafe behaviors as the first response when appropriate.
3. Utilize approved, evidence-based verbal de‑escalation techniques to reduce agitation or unsafe behaviors.
4. Promptly communicate and escalation any changes in patient condition, behavior, or safety concerns to licensed nursing staff.
5. Maintain a safe patient environment by proactively identifying safety risks and communicating or addressing hazards in accordance with assigned observation responsibilities.
6. Accurately document patient observations, behaviors, and interventions in the electronic health record (e.g., EPIC) in a timely manner.
7. Prioritize and complete assigned tasks efficiently while supporting unit workflow and patient needs.
8. Follow all organizational policies, safety protocols and procedures related to patient observation and safety.
9. Other duties as assigned.

Technical Expertise

• Knowledge of and experience in medical terminology preferred.
• Experience working in healthcare environment is preferred.
• Experience working in an electronic medical record (i.e., EPIC) or similar software is preferred.

Education and Experience

• Education: High School Diploma or equivalent is required.
• Certification: Basic Life Support (BLS) training from the American Heart Association is required.
• Years of relevant experience: Minimum one (1) year of experience is preferred.
• Years of supervisory experience: None.

Part Time

FTE: 0.600000

Status: Onsite