LARA ALLEN, RN, BSN
Baxley,GA
Summary
Registered Nurse with hospice, supervisory, and clinical quality experience across admissions, patient assessment, chart review, and interdisciplinary care coordination. Reviews clinical records for hospice eligibility, documentation accuracy, regulatory compliance, and plan-of-care support while identifying gaps, safety concerns, and changes in condition. Supports staff education, corrective follow-up, and quality improvement.
Overview
1
1
Certification
21
21
years of professional experience
Work History
Hospice Registered Nurse | Nurse Supervisor | Admissions Nurse | QAPI/Clinical Quality
SPANISH OAKS HOSPICE
Savannah, GA
04.2019 - Current
- Provide comprehensive clinical assessment and skilled nursing oversight for patients with complex and terminal illnesses across hospice and residential care settings.
- Coordinate hospice admissions and transitions of care while evaluating clinical needs, caregiver resources, available services, and appropriateness of the hospice plan of care.
- Review clinical information supporting hospice admissions, continued eligibility, recertification, transfers, respite services, discharge/readmission, changes in condition, and plan-of-care requirements.
- Evaluate clinical documentation for consistency with diagnosis, prognosis, functional status, nutritional status, symptom burden, disease progression, and ongoing clinical needs.
- Identify and escalate clinical concerns involving changes in condition, falls, medication-related issues, behavioral changes, safety risks, nutritional decline, functional decline, and increasing symptom burden.
- Perform systematic quality assurance audits and identify documentation deficiencies requiring clarification, correction, education, or follow-up.
- Communicate clinical and audit findings to nursing leadership and interdisciplinary team members and participate in the development of appropriate follow-up actions.
- Provide staff education and corrective feedback based on audit findings, documentation trends, regulatory requirements, and identified performance gaps.
- Participate in interdisciplinary review and coordination of patient care plans involving physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, hospice aides, facility personnel, patients, and caregivers.
- Collaborate with leadership to identify opportunities for process improvement, documentation standardization, quality improvement, and regulatory compliance.
- Provided clinical leadership and mentorship to nursing staff, fostering professional development and ensuring adherence to best practices in patient care.
- Maintain timely, accurate, clinically appropriate, and defensible documentation consistent with organizational policies and applicable regulatory standards.
Staff Registered Nurse, Emergency Room
Optim Healthcare
Reidsville, Georgia
12.2019 - 01.2023
- Administered medications and intravenous therapies per emergency physician orders.
- Collaborated with physicians and care teams during urgent patient treatment.
- Monitored vital signs and documented care in electronic health records.
Case Manager
Agage Care Group
Vidalia, Georgia
03.2022 - 09.2022
- Coordinated care plans for Agage Care Group clients across housing, health, and support services.
- Provided case management services including intake, assessment, crisis intervention, advocacy, referral and monitoring of families.
- Assessed client needs and documented case notes in agency records.
- Monitored follow-up tasks and maintained contact with assigned caseload.
- Communicated with families, providers, and community partners about service updates.
- Ensured compliance with confidentiality, reporting, and care documentation standards.
Charge Nurse
Appling HealthCare System
Baxley, Georgia
01.2006 - 01.2020
- Coordinated physician communication to ensure timely updates on patient treatment plans.
- Directed unit staff and promoted quality care for diverse patients.
- Provided direct patient care, including assessments and treatments, to a variety of patients.
- Responded to urgent patient needs and escalated clinical concerns.
- Responded quickly to emergent situations such as cardiac arrest or respiratory distress.
- Managed admissions, transfers, and discharge workflows.
- Assisted with admission and discharge planning for assigned patients.
- Oversaw daily activities of licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants to ensure effective patient care.
- Educated patients, caregivers, and families on diagnoses and treatment options to promote informed health decisions.
Travel Registered Nurse
Premiere Health Group
01.2018 - 01.2019
- Provided compassionate bedside care to enhance patient comfort and recovery during Jackson Nurse Professionals travel assignments.
- Monitored vital signs and swiftly addressed urgent patient needs to maintain safety and well-being.
- Administered medications and intravenous therapies per facility protocols.
- Evaluated patient conditions and accurately documented changes to ensure continuity of care in medical records.
- Collaborated with physicians and care teams on treatment plans.
- Educated patients and families on care instructions and recovery steps.
- Followed hospital policies and infection control standards.
- Performed assessments and evaluations of patients' health condition, while providing comprehensive nursing services.
Travel Registered Nurse
Jackson Nurse Professionals
05.2016 - 01.2018
- Provided comprehensive bedside care during Jackson Nurse Professionals travel assignments, contributing to patient comfort and recovery.
- Administered medications and intravenous therapies per facility protocols.
- Monitored vital signs and responded to urgent patient needs.
- Collaborated with physicians and care teams on treatment plans.
- Educated patients and families on care instructions and recovery steps.
- Utilized specialized equipment such as ventilators, oxygen delivery systems, and IV pumps for individual patient needs.
- Instructed patients and families on effective health maintenance techniques to promote long-term wellness.
Emergency Department Staff Registered Nurse
Adventist Health System
Altamonte Springs, Florida
04.2014 - 05.2016
- Triaged patients in high-volume emergency department, prioritizing care based on urgency.
- Initiated trauma, stroke, and sepsis protocols under Adventist Health guidelines.
- Monitored cardiac rhythms and vital signs during acute episodes.
- Performed rapid emergency assessments using Adventist Health patient care standards.
- Administered medications and IV therapies per provider orders.
- Coordinated care with physicians, technicians, and respiratory therapists.
- Documented assessments, interventions, and responses in electronic health records, ensuring accurate patient history.
- Evaluated the physical and psychological condition of incoming patients to identify nuances of protocols and treatments required for drugged or traumatized patients.
- Educated patients and families on discharge instructions and follow-up care, enhancing understanding of post-discharge needs.
Nurse Manager
Optim Healthcare
Reidsville, Georgia
04.2013 - 03.2014
- Managed nursing operations for Optim Healthcare clinics and coordinated daily patient care.
- Supervised nursing staff scheduling, coverage, and workflow across Optim Healthcare departments.
- Reviewed patient records for compliance with Optim Healthcare policies and care guidelines.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Nursing
Western Governors University
Salt Lake City, UT01-2023
Associate of Science - Nursing
South Georgia University
Douglas, GA01-2001
Skills
- Record analysis
- Documentation evaluation
- Clinical Appropriateness Review
- Hospice eligibility review
- Clinical Assessment
- Quality Assurance & Auditing
- Quality Improvement
- Performance Improvement
- Regulatory adherence
- Regulatory Readiness
- Medical Necessity Concepts
- Utilization Management Concepts
- Documentation Integrity
- Plan-of-Care Review
- Electronic Medical Records
- Clinical Documentation Systems
- Audit systems
- Documentation Accuracy
- Collaborative communication
- Care Coordination
- Risk Identification
- Patient Safety
- Clinical Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Clinical Judgment
- Staff Education
- Leadership
- Problem Solving
- Organization
- Communication
Personal Information
Title: Registered Nurse
Certification
- CPHQ Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality, In Progress, BLS | ACLS | PALS
- Registered Nurse (RN), Georgia /Compact License
QUALITY ASSURANCE & CLINICAL AUDITING
- Conduct systematic clinical documentation audits for accuracy, completeness, consistency, and regulatory compliance.
- Review documentation supporting patient eligibility, continued services, changes in condition, functional decline, nutritional decline, symptom management, and plan-of-care requirements.
- Identify recurring documentation deficiencies and communicate trends and risk areas to leadership.
- Apply clinical judgment to complex medical records and identify inconsistencies, missing information, or documentation concerns requiring clarification or intervention.
- Provide targeted education and corrective feedback based on audit findings and identified documentation trends.
- Monitor follow-up actions related to identified quality and documentation concerns.
- Participate in quality-improvement initiatives designed to improve documentation accuracy, clinical consistency, compliance, and patient outcomes.
- Support regulatory and accreditation readiness through ongoing quality monitoring, auditing, documentation review, and staff education.
CLINICAL LEADERSHIP
- Provide clinical direction, support, mentoring, and education to nursing staff and interdisciplinary team members.
- Educate staff regarding clinical assessment, documentation standards, regulatory expectations, quality requirements, and patient-safety practices.
- Coordinate communication among physicians, nurses, facility personnel, patients, caregivers, and hospice leadership.
- Assist with complex clinical situations involving changes in condition, medication concerns, falls, behavioral concerns, symptom management, and end-of-life care.
- Promote adherence to organizational policies, clinical standards, documentation requirements, regulatory expectations, and patient-safety practices.
Timeline
Case Manager
Agage Care Group
03.2022 - 09.2022
Staff Registered Nurse, Emergency Room
Optim Healthcare
12.2019 - 01.2023
Hospice Registered Nurse | Nurse Supervisor | Admissions Nurse | QAPI/Clinical Quality
SPANISH OAKS HOSPICE
04.2019 - Current
Travel Registered Nurse
Premiere Health Group
01.2018 - 01.2019
Travel Registered Nurse
Jackson Nurse Professionals
05.2016 - 01.2018
Emergency Department Staff Registered Nurse
Adventist Health System
04.2014 - 05.2016
Nurse Manager
Optim Healthcare
04.2013 - 03.2014
Charge Nurse
Appling HealthCare System
01.2006 - 01.2020
Bachelor of Science - Nursing
Western Governors University
Associate of Science - Nursing
South Georgia University