What Do LVN Unit Manager's Do?

[bluegeegoo2, LPN]

I have an interview next week for the Unit Manager position on a skilled/rehab unit. I have some managerial experience related to having been a MCR/MCD MDS coordinator, but I honestly do not know what all is involved with being a Unit Manager. The only facilities that I have worked in that used them seemed to use them for mostly compliance purposes. I would like to go into this interview armed with at least a basic knowledge of what the job entails. I had put in a general application and resume with this company and they called me for the interview for this position for some odd reason. I am more than willing to go for it, but I would like to know what exactly "it" is, lol. Please advise.

[Havin' A Party!, ASN, RN]

Job duties / expectations may vary widely from facility to facility. Best to discuss the same with your interviewer and request a copy of their spec.

Good luck!

PS. Stayed in a UM position for only two months, after realizing it was more like an accounting job than nursing. (Eg, tracking number of FCs, G-tubes, WC, blind residents, pressure sores, etc. Hated it.)

[JBMmom, MSN, NP]

Our UM position is responsible for calling the MDs, putting in all new orders, answering phones, taking care of admissions, paperwork, etc. Mostly freeing up the floor nurses to cover their med/treatment passes without interruption. Sounds like it can be a very different position based upon the facility. Good luck.

[ktwlpn, LPN]

I think you'll find that every comment here gives you a different description of the unit manager position.Your best bet is to go in there with a long list of questions and ask to see the job description.The UM's at my LTC seldom do anything on the units-they are currently responsible for scheduling,payroll,performance evals and something they call "putting out fires" which means that when we have a disgruntled family member we say " that is really an issue you should discuss with the unit manager".They make sure we are all doing everything we should be doing-they get report on the residents and make sure we are following through with issues.They are supposed to attend team meetings (but often don't) Ours do NOT do anything on the units day to day,do not do physician's rounds or prep for same, do not do admissions or hospital returns,do not pass meds,do treatments or any of the regular assessments.They do attend many department head meetings and a LENGTHY daily report meeting with admin. Ours are all RN's,on occassion they are called upon to sign off on something an LPN should not do in this state but usually a float RN is available on a unit somewhere in the facility to do that.We have an RNAC department,a quality assurance dept and also a huge staff dev. so they are not responsible for any of those duties. Some of ours are very comfortable standing back a bit and letting the LPN's with years of experience keep things running on the units,others micro-manage and a few actually have tried to encourage a team approach on their units.Good Luck

[sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN]

I think you'll find that every comment here gives you a different description of the unit manager position.Your best bet is to go in there with a long list of questions and ask to see the job description.The UM's at my LTC seldom do anything on the units-they are currently responsible for scheduling,payroll,performance evals and something they call "putting out fires" which means that when we have a disgruntled family member we say " that is really an issue you should discuss with the unit manager".They make sure we are all doing everything we should be doing-they get report on the residents and make sure we are following through with issues.They are supposed to attend team meetings (but often don't) Ours do NOT do anything on the units day to day,do not do physician's rounds or prep for same, do not do admissions or hospital returns,do not pass meds,do treatments or any of the regular assessments.They do attend many department head meetings and a LENGTHY daily report meeting with admin. Ours are all RN's,on occassion they are called upon to sign off on something an LPN should not do in this state but usually a float RN is available on a unit somewhere in the facility to do that.We have an RNAC department,a quality assurance dept and also a huge staff dev. so they are not responsible for any of those duties. Some of ours are very comfortable standing back a bit and letting the LPN's with years of experience keep things running on the units,others micro-manage and a few actually have tried to encourage a team approach on their units.Good Luck

i have a post graduate degree in " putting out fires"

[Havin' A Party!, ASN, RN]

i have a post graduate degree in " putting out fires"

Hey, Sally. You're not the only one with that qualification, ya know. ;~)

[bluegeegoo2, LPN]

Thank you all for your responses. I went to the interview, not realizing it was a 5 person oral board type interview of which I was woefully unprepared. I feel I did OK under the circumstances, but holy COW was that intimidating! I plan to call in a little while to follow up and see if the position has been filled or not. Either way, I can chalk it up to an experience and experiences make me better at what I do and who I am. Thanks again. :)

[Havin' A Party!, ASN, RN]

Good luck, Blue!

Keep us posted.

[bluegeegoo2, LPN]

It appears I did not get the job. I called back and left a message for a return call to please let me know either way. Their lack of response tells me they chose someone else. Better luck next time. Thank you all for your responses and support. :)

[Havin' A Party!, ASN, RN]

Stay positive, B. Every experience brings us closer to our goals.

[NurseGuyBri]

I know this is an older post, but our LPN UM's handle all operations of the floor, kind of like little don's of their units. They put out fires, help families, manage the medications, help assess, watch for changes, monitor Coumadin and therapeutic medications, review charts, help with scheduling, audit physician's orders, labs, etc. It's a heavy QA position where I'm at.