State of Maryland

A Home Health Nurse Supervisor is the supervisory level of work providing in-home acute care nursing services to patients requiring complex nursing care under the direction of a Physician.  Employees in this classification supervise Home Health Nurses and other health care staff.

Employees in this classification receive general supervision from a Community Health Nurse Program Manager or higher-level Nurse.  Employees may be assigned to day, evening, night or rotating shifts which may include holidays and weekends.  Employees are subject to call-in and overtime based on staffing needs.  The work is performed in an office setting and in patients’ homes.  Travel is required and the work environment is often unpredictable.  Employees are required to observe infection control precautions in order to prevent contamination and spread of disease.  The work may require lifting and positioning non-ambulatory patients and lifting wheelchairs and other heavy equipment.  The work may require long periods of standing, walking, bending, and reaching.

Positions in this classification are evaluated by using the classification job evaluation methodology.  The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.

The Home Health Nurse Supervisor is differentiated from the Home Health Nurse in that the Home Health Nurse Supervisor has supervisory responsibility for Home Health Nurses and may supervise Community Health Nurses while the Home Health Nurse performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision providing in-home acute care nursing services to patients requiring complex nursing care under the direction of a Physician.  The Home Health Nurse Supervisor is differentiated from the Community Health Nurse Supervisor in that the Community Health Nurse Supervisor only has supervisory responsibility for Community Health.

Supervises Home Health Nurses providing in-home nursing care;

Schedules and assigns the work of Home Health Nurses and other health care staff;

Provides in-home nursing care of acutely ill patients requiring complex nursing care under the direction of a Physician and in conformity with accepted home health nursing standards;

Coordinates the admission processes and assesses the home environment to determine the ability of the patient and primary caregivers to manage care in the home;

Develops patient care plans using nursing diagnoses and measurable outcomes in coordination with members of the health care team and the patient;

Assesses the ongoing health status of the patient and the effectiveness of nursing intervention; and, in collaboration with attending Physicians, adjusts patient treatment plans;

Performs telephone triage in order to assess problems and evaluate need for immediate intervention, such as scheduling a nursing visit, notifying the attending physicians or calling 911;

Monitors health status and instructs patients and caregivers on appropriate home care, medical treatment and management of the condition;

Makes appropriate referrals to a variety of health care services and community resources;

Provides guidance and instruction to team members in the implementation of the patient care plan;

Documents and maintains accurate statistics on nursing care provided;

Fields complaints and concerns from patients, families and advocates, and responds appropriately;

Conducts multi-disciplinary team meetings and patient care conferences;

Participates in the development of home health nursing policies and procedures;

Participates in staff and health services student’s development;

Participates in nursing research and in the investigations of communicable diseases;

Collects, analyzes and reports statistics related to the home health program;

Audits records for billing purposes;

Participates in the public relations and marketing for the home health program;

May provide hospice care;

Performs other related duties.

Knowledge of the theories, principles and practices of nursing treatments of acutely and chronically ill persons and practices of home health nursing;

Knowledge of disease processes;

Knowledge of the programs and resources of federal, State and local agencies concerned with home health and community health services;

Knowledge of federal, State and private insurance and certification regulations;

Skill in the application of the nursing process and performing nursing procedures;

Skill in assessing physical, emotional and social needs of patients;

Skill in developing a plan of care for the patient;

Skill in adapting nursing interventions to the home setting;

Skill in observing and evaluating the effectiveness of nursing interventions in a home setting;

Skill in performing specialized nursing procedures;

Skill in providing accurate nursing documentation and recordkeeping;

Ability to supervise professional nursing staff and other health care staff;

Ability to assess use of home health services;

Ability to communicate effectively and to establish and maintain effective working relationships with patients, families, professional and nonprofessional staff, personnel of other agencies, and the general public.

Education:   Determined by the Maryland State Board of Nursing under the licensing requirements for Registered Nurses.

Experience: Two years of experience as a Registered Nurse in a home health care setting.

Note: Candidates may substitute U.S. Armed Forces military service experience as a commissioned officer in Nursing classification or Nursing  specialty codes in the Nursing field of work on a year-for-year basis for the required education.  

1. Candidates for positions in this classification must possess a current license as a Registered Nurse from Maryland State Board of Nursing, 4140 Patterson Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland 21215.

2. Employees in this classification may be assigned duties which require the operation of a motor vehicle. Employee assigned such duties will be required to possess a motor vehicle operator’s license valid in the State of Maryland.

3. Employees in this classification may be required to successfully complete and maintain current certification of cardiopulmonary resuscitation training.

1. Employees in this classification are subject to call-in and, therefore, will be required to provide the agency with a telephone number at which they can be reached.

2. Employees in this classification are subject to substance abuse testing in accordance with Code of Maryland Regulations 17.04.09, Testing for Illegal Use of Drugs.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies. Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

This is a Professional Service classification in the State Personnel Management System.  All positions in this classification are Professional Service positions.  Some positions in Professional Service classifications may be designated as Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is not assigned to a bargaining unit, as indicated by the designation of S (Supervisor), M (Manager), T (Agency Head), U (Board or Commission Member), W (Student), X (Used by Agency or Excluded by Executive Order), or Z (Confidential).  As provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded collective bargaining.  Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.