State of Maryland

A Clinical Nurse Specialist is the full performance level of work responsible for the clinical quality of direct nursing care for an assigned area of a facility. A Clinical Nurse Specialist Psychiatric provides specialized psychiatric nursing care. A Clinical Nurse Specialist Medical provides specialized medical nursing care. Employees in this classification do not supervise but may give advice and guidance to Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical Nurses and non-licensed nursing care staff.

Employees in this classification receive general supervision from an Assistant Director of Nursing or the Director of Nursing. Employees may be assigned to day, evening, night or rotating shifts which may include holidays and weekends. Employees may be subject to call-in and overtime based on staffing needs. The work is usually performed in a residential or inpatient treatment facility providing twenty-four hour care. 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 of wheelchairs and other heavy equipment. The work may require long periods of standing, walking, bending and reaching.

Positions in this classification are evaluated 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 Clinical Nurse Specialist is differentiated from the Registered Nurse Supervisor classification in that the Clinical Nurse Specialist is responsible for the clinical quality of nursing care and staff training in an assigned area of a facility. When a Clinical Nurse Specialist is present, the Clinical Nurse Specialist is responsible for the quality of nursing care, staff training and staff development and the Registered Nurse Supervisor has supervisory responsibility for lower-level Registered Nurses and is responsible for staffing schedules and coverage, patient care assignment, staff counseling and discipline and other administrative responsibilities.

Provides training and guidance to nursing staff on clinical nursing practices;

Observes adequacy of nursing care and documentations;

Assumes responsibility for the nursing care of a designated group of patients;

Collaborates with members of the therapeutic team in planning the overall program for patients on both individual and programmatic levels;

Assesses the educational needs of nursing staff and may assist in developing, implementing and evaluating in-service educational programs;

Provides input into the evaluation of the clinical practice of individual nursing and support staff;

Educates patients and families in the areas of health problems, health maintenance and self-care skills;

Coordinates nursing activities related to the discharge of patients and their re-entry into the community;

Participates in research studies;

Collaborates with nursing leadership in the development and establishment of standards of clinical nursing practice in the agency/facility;

Provides nursing process supervision in various treatment modalities for other clinical personnel;

Acts as a nursing consultant to related clinical programs and/or community agencies;

Represents the agency/facility on a regional or statewide level with regard to matters of clinical nursing practices;

Evaluates clinical nursing care in an assigned area;

Develops policies and procedures pertinent to clinical programs;

Develops, implements and evaluates plans for nursing care;

May provide group and individual psychotherapy;

Performs other related duties.

1. Employees in this classification may be subject to call-in and, therefore, may be required to provide the facility with a phone number at which they can be reached.

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

Class Descriptions 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.

Class Descriptions provide information about the Nature of Work, Examples of Work, General Requirements and Acknowledgements.  The Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities; Minimum Education and Experience Requirements; Special Requirements; and recruitment and testing procedures are set by the using agency.

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.