Orthopedic Nursing Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced Orthopedic Nurse Navigator for a travel contract assignment in Salinas, California.

This role is ideal for a Registered Nurse with a strong orthopedic background, experience coordinating care across multiple departments, and the ability to guide patients throughout the orthopedic care journey.

The Orthopedic Nurse Navigator will serve as a central point of coordination for orthopedic patients, helping patients move efficiently from diagnosis and preoperative preparation through treatment, hospitalization, rehabilitation, and follow-up care.

Candidates should have at least 4 years of clinical nursing experience, recent orthopedic experience, strong knowledge of regulatory and quality standards, and recent hands-on experience using Epic.

Key Responsibilities

        Serve as the primary clinical point of contact for orthopedic patients throughout their continuum of care.

        Coordinate care between patients, physicians, surgeons, nursing teams, rehabilitation services, case management, and other departments.

        Guide patients through preoperative, inpatient, postoperative, rehabilitation, and follow-up phases of orthopedic care.

        Educate patients and families regarding procedures, recovery expectations, medications, rehabilitation, and discharge planning.

        Identify barriers that may delay or interfere with treatment and coordinate appropriate resources.

        Facilitate timely referrals, appointments, testing, consultations, and follow-up care.

        Track patient progress and ensure continuity of care across departments and care settings.

        Collaborate with orthopedic surgeons and clinical teams to support evidence-based care pathways.

        Assist with development, implementation, and improvement of orthopedic programs and patient-care initiatives.

        Support quality-improvement and performance-monitoring activities.

        Maintain accurate clinical documentation in Epic.

        Monitor orthopedic program outcomes and identify opportunities for process improvement.

        Support compliance with hospital policies, clinical standards, and regulatory requirements.

        Participate in interdisciplinary meetings, care conferences, and program-development initiatives.

        Help ensure patients understand their treatment plans and have access to appropriate support resources.

        Coordinate with rehabilitation, physical therapy, occupational therapy, case management, and discharge planning teams as needed.

Required Qualifications

Candidates must have:

        Active Registered Nurse (RN) license in the State of California

        Minimum 4 years of clinical nursing experience

        Recent clinical experience in orthopedics

        Experience with program development and implementation

        Current BLS / Healthcare Provider certification through the American Heart Association

        Orthopedic Nurse Certification through the Orthopaedic Nurses Certification Board or another relevant specialty certification

        Recent Epic experience, with approximately 6-12 months of hands-on Epic use within the past year

        Strong knowledge of orthopedic patient-care pathways

        Strong written and verbal communication skills

        Excellent coordination and problem-solving abilities

        Ability to work effectively with patients, physicians, clinical staff, and community resources

Education Requirements

        Nursing degree from an accredited nursing program

        Bachelor's Degree in Nursing / BSN preferred

        Candidates with an Associate Degree in Nursing may be considered when supported by appropriate experience, licensure, and specialty qualifications

Preferred Qualifications

Strong candidates may also have:

        Clinical Nurse Specialist certification

        Nurse Practitioner certification

        Extensive orthopedic nursing experience

        Experience developing or managing orthopedic service-line programs

        Joint replacement or orthopedic surgery program experience

        Experience coordinating multidisciplinary patient-care pathways

        Experience with quality improvement and accreditation initiatives

        Previous nurse navigator or patient navigator experience

        Experience in an acute-care hospital environment

Regulatory & Quality Experience

Candidates should have a strong understanding of:

        The Joint Commission (TJC) Disease-Specific Certification requirements

        Healthcare quality and regulatory standards

        Patient safety initiatives

        Clinical documentation requirements

        Quality-improvement processes

        Performance measurement

        Evidence-based orthopedic care pathways

        Program compliance and continuous improvement

Key Clinical & Operational Skills

Successful candidates should be comfortable with:

        Orthopedic nursing

        Patient navigation

        Care coordination

        Orthopedic surgery pathways

        Preoperative patient preparation

        Postoperative care coordination

        Discharge planning

        Patient education

        Rehabilitation coordination

        Interdisciplinary collaboration

        Program development

        Quality improvement

        Regulatory compliance

        Epic documentation

        Microsoft Word

        Microsoft Excel

        Patient tracking and follow-up

        Problem solving and workflow coordination

Schedule Requirements

        Monday through Friday

        Day Shift

        8:00 AM - 4:30 PM

        40 hours per week

Schedule may occasionally vary based on patient-care needs, meetings, program responsibilities, or departmental requirements.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is an experienced Registered Nurse with a strong orthopedic background who enjoys coordinating complex patient care and helping patients successfully navigate the healthcare system.

You should be highly organized, comfortable communicating with physicians and multidisciplinary clinical teams, and able to manage multiple patients and priorities simultaneously.

Strong candidates will combine clinical orthopedic expertise, patient education skills, program-development experience, regulatory knowledge, and care-coordination abilities.

This opportunity may be a strong fit for professionals currently working as an:

        Orthopedic Nurse Navigator

        Orthopedic RN

        Nurse Navigator

        Joint Replacement Nurse Navigator

        Orthopedic Care Coordinator

        Clinical Nurse Navigator

        Surgical Nurse Navigator

        Orthopedic Program Coordinator

        Total Joint Coordinator

Equal Opportunity

We are an equal opportunity employer and consider qualified applicants based on experience, education, licensure, certifications, clinical skills, and the requirements of the position.