Position Description

Maternal & Child Health Nurse / February 2017

Position Title / Maternal and Child Health Nurse
Position No / 61771
Directorate / Community Wellbeing
Department / Community Service
Unit / Maternal and Child Health
Appointment Type / Permanent Part Time
Classification / Maternal and Child Health Nurse
Location / Various Maternal and Child Health Centres within the Shire
Date / February 2017
Manager Organisational Development / Signature
Employee / Signature

Position Objective

·  To support the development, health and well-being of children through monitoring, early identification and appropriate follow up/referral on health and related issues.

·  To enhance the health and well-being of mothers through health monitoring and support.

·  To optimise the health, well-being and effective functioning of the child and family.

·  To contribute to an increase in the vaccination rate for preventable infectious diseases.

·  To ensure that the Maternal and Child Health Service is managed and administered in an effective, efficient and accountable manner.

Organisational Values

Macedon Ranges Shire Council is committed to an organisational philosophy in which respect, care, honesty & openness are core values & responsibility, accountability and confidentiality are aspired to at all times.

Key Responsibilities and Duties

Service delivery

·  To make initial contact with all families upon receipt of birth notifications.

·  To promote and monitor health, growth, physical, social, emotional and intellectual development of children in the 0 –6 years age group, through centre consultations and home visits.

·  To monitor maternal health and well-being through consultations and home visits where appropriate and to provide advice, information, support and referral as appropriate.

·  To provide a service which meets local needs as determined by Council.

·  To provide the Maternal and Child Health Service in accordance with the unit’s business plan, best value principals and the DET guidelines.

Service administration

·  To be responsible for the overall administration of the designated Maternal and Child Health Centre, security of the building and operating within the Council’s annual budget allocation.

·  To prepare and keep accurate, confidential and up to date records for each child.

·  To prepare reports as required by Council.

Education and Information

·  To plan and provide appropriate information and educational programs as required. eg. Parent groups.

·  To maintain professional knowledge and skills by attending relevant in-service training, meetings, and seminars and by reading appropriate journals, reports and research analysis.

Occupational Health and Safety and Risk Management

·  Create, maintain and foster a safe work environment at all times.

·  Perform all duties in a manner that ensure personal health and safety, and that of others in the workplace and the general public.

·  Regularly inspect own immediate work environment and report all hazards or incidents that can cause harm or that represent a threat to public safety

·  Ensure staff follow safe work practices, procedures, instructions and rules at all times and report potential breaches.

·  Ensure compliance with the provisions of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations at all times.

·  Ensure that identified risks are reported to line managers and identified risk reduction strategies are implemented.

·  Ensure compliance with Council’s Occupational Health & Safety and Risk Management Policy and Procedures.

Record Keeping

This position is responsible for ensuring that records are created which will adequately document the business activities in which they take part, and that the records created and received are captured into the appropriate and authorised recordkeeping systems in accordance with records management policy.

Organisational Relationships

Reports to / Coordinator Maternal and Child Health Service
Supervises / MCH students
Medical students
Internal Contacts / All council staff
External Contacts / Department of Education and Training
Hospitals and Medical services
Community organisations
Residents and other service users
Maternal and Child Health nurses.

Accountability and Extent of Authority

·  Accountable to Coordinator Maternal and Child Health Service.

·  Accountable for the effective and efficient delivery of Maternal and Child Health Services at the designated Centre according to State and Macedon Ranges Shire Council guidelines.

Judgement and Decision Making

·  Decision making occurs within the context of delivering a quality service whilst ensuring program standards are met.

·  Authority to make decisions on routine and procedural matters that fall within the role and responsibility of the position.

Specialist Knowledge and Skills

·  Knowledge of child development from 0 to 6 years.

·  Proficiency in the use of computers particularly the CDIS program.

·  Familiarity with the business and organisational context of local government.

·  Knowledge of state policy directions and Program Standards for Maternal and Child Health.

Management Skills

·  The ability to responsibly manage the designated centre on a day to day basis.

·  Able to manage and organise own time, including setting priorities for practice and planning and organising own work.

·  Able to design, implement and evaluate a variety of health education programs.

·  Able to maintain accurate confidential child/family records.

·  Able to provide regular statistical reports as requested.

·  Able to provide written reports when required.

·  Able to identify and recommend maintenance and equipment requirements.

·  Able to operate within the Maternal and Child Health budget.

Interpersonal Skills

·  Ability to work independently.

·  Ability to work cooperatively as a team member.

·  High level of communications skills, written and oral

·  Commitment to achieve and customer focus.

·  Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team.

·  Ability to liaise with community and referral networks.

·  Demonstrated excellent oral, written and computer skills including the ability to write reports.

Qualifications and Experience

·  Registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency as a Registered Nurse and a registered Midwife, with additional Maternal and Child Health qualifications.

·  Current Victorian Driver’s License.

·  Current Working with Children Check.

·  Experience with CDIS computer software is highly desirable.

Selection Criteria

1.  Registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency as a Registered Nurse Div 1 and as a registered Midwife, with additional Maternal and Child Health qualifications.

2.  Current Victorian Driver’s License and access to a registered vehicle with comprehensive insurance.

3.  Recent experience in Maternal and Child Health nursing practice with excellent clinical skills.

4.  Experience, knowledge and ability in delivering primary health services for families and children 0 to 6 years.

5.  Excellent communication skills (both written and oral) and computer literacy skills (CDIS program).

6.  Enthusiasm and ability to work in a team setting.

7.  Demonstrated willingness to participate in ongoing development of work practices in order to improve service quality, efficiently and effectiveness.

8.  An understanding and commitment to the principles of the MCH service guidelines, MCH program standards and MCH practice guidelines.

9.  Willingness to undertake a National Police Check.

Note: Appointment is subject to the successful completion of this check.

Hold a current Working with Children Card prior to commencement.

Conditions of Employment

Employment conditions for all employees are in accordance with the current certified agreements at this council and employment contract or industrial agreement, organisational policies and procedures as amended.

Current certified agreements pertaining to Macedon Ranges Shire Council employees are:

·  Macedon Ranges Shire Council Enterprise Agreement 2016

·  Early Education Employees Agreement 2016

Arrangements specific to your employment and work place will be explained to you during the recruitment process. For further details Enterprise Agreements can be downloaded from www.fwc.gov.au.

You will be responsible for the duties as outlined in this position description and any such duties, which could be reasonably asked of a person in this position, as designated to you by your supervisor.

Application Process

The selection process has been designed to ensure that all eligible applicants have an equal opportunity to demonstrate their skills and suitability for the position. The selection process may include skills tests or work samples where appropriate, reference checking, psychological profiling, a medical examination or police check.

Appointment to positions within Macedon Ranges Shire Council is on the basis of merit.

Key Selection Criteria

The position description should be read very carefully as this describes the core duties and requirements of the position and outlines the criteria used as a basis for selecting the most appropriate person for the job. Unless specified it is mandatory to address the key selection criteria.

We recommend that rather than stating you can meet each criterion; give specific examples illustrating particular skills which will enable us to determine how you meet the criteria of the position.

More Information

The Contact Officer’s name is stated on the Job Advertisement. If you have any queries, please contact this person so your questions can be addressed promptly. Speaking to the contact person may assist you in your decision on whether to apply for the position.

Privacy Statement - Recruitment

Personal and Health Information will be collected by Council during the recruitment process. The Personal and Health Information will be used solely by Council for this purpose. Council may disclose this information to other organisations if required by legislation. The applicant may apply to council for access to and/or amendment of the information after finalisation of the appeals process. Information relating to unsuccessful applicants may be destroyed by Council after 12 months from this time. Requests for access and/or correction should be made to Council’s Privacy Officer.

Canvassing of Councillors and Council Officers

Canvassing of Councillors and Council Officers, either indirectly or directly that may influence the outcomes of this application may be deemed a disqualification.

Maternal & Child Health Nurse / February 2017