Palliative Care Nurse Practitioner I

About the Role

The Palliative Care Nurse Practitioner I (NP I) provides specialized, person- and family-centered care for adults living with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), and complex comorbid conditions. The primary mission is to connect patients with external palliative and hospice care aligned with their personal values and goals. The NP I identifies eligible patients, leads goals-of-care discussions, facilitates orders and referrals within scope, and champions equitable access to concurrent hospice and dialysis care. Acting as a clinical leader, the NP I guides an assigned Interdisciplinary Team (RNs and LCSWs), driving collaborative care planning, case reviews, and seamless transitions across care settings.

Key Responsibilities

• Hospice & Palliative Care Transitions: Coordinate external palliative care and hospice transitions from initial recommendation through start of care; confirm clinical eligibility, assess patient/family goals, complete orders/referrals within scope, partner with hospice agencies, nephrology practices, dialysis clinics, and payers, and execute warm handoffs.
• Pain & Distressing Symptom Management: Evaluate and manage complex symptoms common in advanced kidney disease and serious comorbid illnesses using evidence-based pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic interventions, including prescribing/deprescribing within scope, renal drug dosing, and ordering diagnostic studies.
• Comprehensive Palliative Assessments: Conduct in-depth assessments of physical symptoms, functional/cognitive status, psychosocial and spiritual needs, caregiver support, health literacy, treatment burden, prognosis, and quality-of-life priorities; create individualized care plans with the patient, family, and IKC IDT.
• Serious Illness Communication & Goals of Care: Lead culturally responsive, values-based conversations around illness understanding, prognosis, and treatment preferences; facilitate shared decision-making, advance directives, healthcare proxy documentation, and portable medical orders (e.g., POLST/MOLST).
• Interdisciplinary Clinical Leadership: Provide clinical guidance to an assigned IDT (RNs, LCSWs), leading regular case reviews, care planning, clinical prioritization, and closed-loop communication; partner with Care Coordinators, clinical operations, quality improvement, and leadership stakeholders.
• Documentation, Quality & Compliance: Maintain prompt, accurate documentation of assessments, shared decision-making, referrals, provider collaboration, barriers, and transition milestones; support clinical quality metrics.
• Other Duties as Assigned.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Master’s or Doctoral degree from an accredited Nurse Practitioner program (Required).
• Current, unrestricted RN and APRN/NP license in state(s) of practice (Required).
• Current national board certification in an adult-focused population (e.g., AGPCNP, AGACNP, or FNP) (Required).
• Current BLS/CPR certification (Required).
• Eligibility to obtain DEA registration and state controlled-substance authority as applicable (Required).
• Advanced Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse (ACHPN®) certification (Preferred).
• Minimum of 5 years of Nurse Practitioner experience managing adults with serious or complex illness (Required).
• Experience in Palliative Care, Hospice, Nephrology, Geriatrics, or Complex Care Management (Required).
• Demonstrated expertise in serious illness communication, advance care planning, pain and symptom management (including controlled substances and renal dosing), and conservative kidney management (Required).
• Experience guiding interdisciplinary clinical teams (RNs, social workers) and navigating multi-stakeholder care coordination (Required).
• Ability to become credentialed with DaVita Kidney Care, Medicare, and commercial payers (Required).
• Proficiency with Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems (Cerner and EPIC) and ability to demonstrate functional proficiency within 90 days (Required).
• Intermediate proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook) (Required).
• Strong commitment to patient confidentiality, compliance, and ethical clinical practice (Required).