Dawn Knowles
Cupertino,CA
Summary
Seasoned nursing professional offering proven clinical knowledge, natural interpersonal strengths and technical abilities. Detail-oriented with extensive understanding of peri-operative environment. Dedicated to setting and meeting long-term goals. Knowledgeable about EMR charting, and interdisciplinary collaboration focused on optimizing patient care and support. Quality-focused and efficiency-driven leader. Motivated to learn, grow and excel in a clinical leadership position. Proven history of leveraging critical thinking, analysis, and medical knowledge to deliver superior care in high-pressure environments.
Overview
14
14
years of professional experience
1
1
Certificate
Work History
Assistant Nurse Manager, Perioperative Services
Sutter Health; Alta Bates Summit Medical Center
10.2022 - Current
- Develop departmental goals and objectives to improve satisfactory rating with patients, surgeons and anesthesiologists.
- Verify facility remains up-to-date and compliant with laws and regulations.
- Prepare and monitor budgets and spending to confirm departments operate within funding limits.
- Supervise, direct and motivate high-quality performance from nursing staff.
- Review department performance and adjust coverage to compensate for changing conditions.
- Investigate and independently resolve complaints from staff, physicians and patients by leveraging clinical judgment and unit management expertise.
- Improve efficiency and quality in delivering healthcare services.
- Create work schedules for multiple shifts to confirm complete floor coverage.
- Communicate with members of medical staff and department heads during weekly update meetings.
Charge Nurse
Watsonville Community Hospital
05.2022 - 09.2022
- Oversee and manage clinical and support staff in patient care activities while maintaining high level of staff morale and professionalism
- Address disruptions in patient care, including delays in pre-operative care, procedure start times, room turnover times and equipment availability
- Implement quality patient care techniques to align with safety, health and organizational regulations.
- Monitor nursing care, patient assessment processes and treatment implementations.
- Train new nurses in proper techniques, care standards, operational procedures and safety protocols.
- Supervise and manage daily scheduling, tasking and administration.
- Identify unit areas of inadequacy and adjust procedures to close gaps and improve policies.
- Participate in evidence-based practice implementation, nursing competency development and nursing simulation activities.
- Leverage feedback and process improvement opportunities to create safer and healthier environment and increase patient satisfaction.
- Coordinated nursing care on unit through staff assignments, assisting and rounding with physicians, monitoring patient orders and communicating with ancillary departments.
- Supervised and managed daily scheduling, tasking and administration.
CVOR Clinical Nurse II, Service Lead
Regional Medical Center
01.2022 - 05.2022
- Liaison between management, surgeons, and supply chain to better understand service line needs and recommend appropriate solutions.
- Resolve product or service problems by determining cause of problem and selecting best solution to solve problem.
- Provide direct support to surgical team during procedures.
- Keep optimal supply levels in treatment room to meet typical patient loads.
- Administer nursing care to cardiac patients undergoing diagnostic, therapeutic or emergency services.
- Train new nurses in proper techniques, care standards, operational procedures and safety protocols.
- Encouraged employee participation in redesigning systems and processes to minimize risk of harmful errors.
- Coordinated diagnosis, exams and care for caseload of [Number] patients per shift.
CVOR Clinical Nurse II
Stanford University Medical Center
05.2020 - 09.2021
- Apply nursing expertise to meet needs of cardiac surgery, transplant surgery, vascular surgery and thoracic surgery patients in challenging operating room environment
- Provide skilled, timely and level-headed emergency response to critically ill patients
- Strengthen training and nursing knowledge by taking part in continuing education programs
- Train new nurses in proper techniques, care standards, operational procedures and safety protocols to optimize performance and safety
- Assess team members' workloads and pitch in to help in areas where need was most evident
- Prepared OR by ensuring it meets asepsis standards, as well as setting out, organizing and counting all tools and equipment necessary for each procedure
- Collaborated with multidisciplinary team to evaluate patient data and determine patient care plans.
- Monitored patients, evaluated results and recommended further courses of treatment to quickly improve patient outcomes.
Clinical Nurse II, Operating Room
Stanford University Medical Center
05.2019 - 05.2020
- Provide surgical patient care by assessing, planning, and implementing the nursing care patients receive before, during and after surgery
- Including patient assessment, creating and maintaining a sterile and safe surgical environment, pre-and post-operative patient education, monitoring the patient's physical and emotional well-being, and integrating and coordinating patient care throughout the surgical care continuum
- Circulated and scrubbed multiple service lines; General, ortho, laparoscopic, and robotic.
- Monitor out of room times to control costs
- Monitor turnover of rooms for speed and efficiency
- Respond to emergency situations with speed, expertise and level-headed approaches to provide optimal care, support and life-saving interventions
- Monitored surgical patients and delivered quality level of care before, during and after operations to promote positive outcomes.
- Assisted surgeons with cutting of tissue, clamping and suturing during operational procedures.
Clinical Documentation Specialist
University Of Vermont Medical Center
10.2018 - 05.2019
- Performed concurrent reviews of medical records, validated diagnosis codes, identified missing diagnosis, and queried physicians and other healthcare providers for more specifics so documentation accurately reflected the patient's severity of illness
- Communicated with healthcare staff, including physicians, nurses and other caregivers to explain importance of accurate and clear documentation
- Maintained strong knowledge of medical terminology, diseases and conditions and procedures.
- Communicated with physicians, nurses and other caregivers to explain importance of accurate and clear documentation.
Charge Nurse, Operating Room
University Of Vermont Medical Center
06.2017 - 10.2018
- Charge nurse duty for off shift, weekends, holidays and nights
- Worked off shift circulating and scrubbing multiple services, including trauma, ortho, general, vascular, and robotics
- Provided skilled, timely and level-headed emergency response to critically ill patients
- Addressed disruptions in patient care, including delays in pre-operative care, procedure start times, room turnover times and equipment availability
- Oversaw and managed 5-75 clinical and support staff in patient care activities while maintaining high level of staff morale and professionalism
- Trained new nurses in proper techniques, care standards, operational procedures and safety protocols to optimize performance and safety
- Participated in education activities, including evidence-based practice project implementation, nursing competency development and nursing simulation activities
- Assisted surgeons with cutting of tissue, clamping and suturing during operational procedures.
- Cared for patients' wounds and changed dressings.
Staff Registered Nurse, Operating Room
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
03.2014 - 04.2017
- Service lead in thoracic surgery
- Successfully completed AORN PeriOp 101 training program
- Trained to circulate and scrub in multiple services; thoracic, trauma, general, vascular, transplant and ortho
- Provided skilled, timely and level-headed emergency response to critically ill patients
- Worked closely with new chief of thoracic surgery, as well as newly hired thoracic surgeons, to implement staff recruitment and training, reorganization of thoracic surgery instrumentation and trays, preference cards and in-service
- Trained in robotic thoracic surgery and worked closely with robotics coordinator to ensure safe and effective delivery of patient care
- Charge duty on holidays
- Participated in education activities, including evidence-based practice project implementation, nursing competency development and nursing simulation activities
- Trained new nurses in proper techniques, care standards, operational procedures and safety protocols to optimize performance and safety
- Assisted surgeons with cutting of tissue, clamping and suturing during operational procedures.
- Worked within interdisciplinary health care team to develop, implement and make adjustments to patient care plans, individualizing strategies and methods to improve health and meet recovery goals.
Staff Registered Nurse
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
04.2009 - 03.2014
- Delivered quality, compassionate care to acutely ill medical-surgical patients in 25-bed ICU
- Demonstrated extensive knowledge of multiple disease states and the various medications and products used to treat them
- Performed full assessments and provided total patient care for 1-2 patients in the Intensive Care Unit
- Collaborated with physicians and other medical staff to develop an integrated and holistic patient Plan of Care in alignment with patient and family needs
- Oversaw various aspects of telemetry by administering PA catheters and arterial lines, vasoactive drugs, titration, thrombolytic therapy, dysrhythmia interpretation, chest tubes, and CRRT
- Administered medications via various routes and monitored patient for adverse effects
- Performed patient treatment according to urgency of condition while multitasking and delegating treatment needs to qualified staff to ensure effective and safe care to promote better outcomes
- Performed as a first responder to Code Blues and Rapid Responses throughout the hospital
- Educated patients and families in areas of medication, safety, prevention, and symptom management
- Trained and coached new employees on protocols and best practices to promote ideal patient outcomes
- Administered medications via oral, IV and intramuscular injections and monitored responses.
- Effectively prioritized assignments, executing care based on each patient's relative condition and delegating tasks to available personnel deliver safe and efficient care.
Staff Registered Nurse
Critical Care Float Pool, Albany Medical Center
05.2008 - 04.2009
- Provided patient care, working in multiple units, possessing the unique ability to adjust, or “float,” between several different critical care areas (Neuro ICU, MICU, SICU, CCU and ED) across the nursing spectrum – often within the same shift
- Collaborated with multidisciplinary team to provide appropriate care in accordance with unit standards
- Provide integrated assessment skills, care plan development, implementation, and evaluation based on hospital and unit specific policies and procedures
- Oversaw various aspects of telemetry by administering PA catheters and arterial lines, neuro monitoring, vasoactive drugs, titration, thrombolytic therapy, dysrhythmia interpretation and chest tubes
- Performed patient treatment according to urgency of condition while multitasking and delegating treatment needs to qualified staff to ensure effective and safe care to promote better outcomes
- Assessed and managed various patient treatments for numerous patient diagnoses
- Administered medications via oral, IV and intramuscular injections and monitored responses.
- Effectively prioritized assignments, executing care based on each patient's relative condition and delegating tasks to available personnel deliver safe and efficient care.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - Psychology
State University of New York At Buffalo
Associate of Applied Science - Nursing
Adirondack Community College
MBA - Healthcare Administration
Rivier University
Nashua, NH2024
Bachelor of Science - Nursing
Rivier University
2020
Affiliations
AORN
Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society of Nursing
American Nurses Association
Certification
CNOR
ACLS
BLS
Timeline
Assistant Nurse Manager, Perioperative Services
Sutter Health; Alta Bates Summit Medical Center
10.2022 - Current
Charge Nurse
Watsonville Community Hospital
05.2022 - 09.2022
CVOR Clinical Nurse II, Service Lead
Regional Medical Center
01.2022 - 05.2022
CVOR Clinical Nurse II
Stanford University Medical Center
05.2020 - 09.2021
Clinical Nurse II, Operating Room
Stanford University Medical Center
05.2019 - 05.2020
Clinical Documentation Specialist
University Of Vermont Medical Center
10.2018 - 05.2019
Charge Nurse, Operating Room
University Of Vermont Medical Center
06.2017 - 10.2018
Staff Registered Nurse, Operating Room
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
03.2014 - 04.2017
Staff Registered Nurse
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
04.2009 - 03.2014
Staff Registered Nurse
Critical Care Float Pool, Albany Medical Center
05.2008 - 04.2009
Bachelor of Arts - Psychology
State University of New York At Buffalo
Associate of Applied Science - Nursing
Adirondack Community College
MBA - Healthcare Administration
Rivier University
Bachelor of Science - Nursing
Rivier University
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