Overview
Position Overview
The RN1 is part of the Newborn Screening Follow Up Program, a fast-paced, high volume, critical program with 6 day operations Monday – Saturday. Newborn Screening Follow Up Program is located in the IDPH Office of Health Promotion, Health Assessment and Screening Section in Springfield. As part of a cohesive team, under general supervision of a newborn screening nurse manager and in conformance to established standards, policies and procedures, RN1 provides professional nursing services in the care and case management of patients diagnosed with or suspected to have a newborn screening condition. Documents physician orders, treatment modalities, referrals, diagnoses and other case management activities in patient charts located in the newborn screening data system and national newborn screening data repository. Conducts initial interpretation of laboratory results to determine critical care level needed for the patient; prepares laboratory documents which include analyte values, reference ranges, units of measure, and needed subspecialty medical referrals.
Essential Functions
- Provides professional nursing services in the care and case management of patients diagnosed with or suspected to have a newborn screening condition.
- Conducts initial interpretation of laboratory results to determine critical care level needed for the patient.
- Provides medical guidance and recommendations to health care professionals regarding the urgency of care needed based on but not limited to test results, age of newborn, feeding type, gestational age and other treatment factors.
- Works closely with the medical care teams and subspecialty centers to coordinate and develop patient medical care plans.
- Assists the newborn screening nursing supervisor and data manager with compiling diagnostic screening data for assigned disorders.
- Performs other duties as required or assigned which are reasonably within the scope of the duties enumerated above.
About Illinois Department Public Health
In Illinois, if you have eaten at a restaurant ... required hospital or nursing home care ... vacationed at a campground or swam at a public beach or pool ... drank a glass of milk ... got married or divorced ... had a baby, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has touched your life in some important way.
Assuring the quality of our food, setting the standards for hospital and nursing home care, checking the safety of recreation areas, overseeing the inspection of milk producing farms and processing plants, maintaining the state's vital records and screening newborns for genetic diseases are just some of the duties of IDPH.
In fact, IDPH has 200 different programs that benefit each state resident and visitor, although its daily activities of maintaining the public's health are rarely noticed unless a breakdown in the system occurs. With the assistance of local public health agencies, these essential programs and services make up Illinois' public health system, a system that forms a frontline defense against disease through preventive measures and education. Public health has provided the foundation for remarkable gains in saving lives and reducing suffering. Today, life expectancy is 80 years for women and 74 years for men compared with fewer than 50 years at the at the beginning of the 20th century.
In the past, IDPH directed state efforts to control smallpox, cholera and typhoid, virtually eliminated polio, reduced dental decay through fluoridation of community water supplies, and corrected sanitary conditions that threatened water and food supplies.
Today, IDPH has programs to deal with persistent problems that require continued vigilance – infectious diseases, such as AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and meningococcal disease; foodborne and communicable diseases, such as E. coli 0157: H7, monkeypox, salmonella and West Nile virus; vaccine preventable diseases; lead poisoning; lack of health care in rural areas; health disparities among racial groups, breast, cervical and prostate cancer; Alzheimer's disease; and other health threats -- sexually transmitted diseases, tobacco use, violence, and other conditions associated with high-risk behaviors. In addition, IDPH has been charged with handling the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the threat of bioterrorism.
IDPH, which is one of the state's oldest agencies, was first organized in 1877 with a staff of three and a two-year budget of $5,000. IDPH, now has an annual budget of $2.9 billion in state and federal funds, headquarters in Springfield and Chicago, seven regional offices located around the state, three laboratories, and 1,200 employees.
IDPH is organized into 12 offices, each of which addresses a distinct area of public health. Each office operates and supports numerous ongoing programs and is prepared to respond to extraordinary situations as they arise.
