• A Recompete period has been changed on an Exam Plan.

The information below will help you determine which classification(s) is(are) appropriate for you. Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications as stated on this bulletin to compete in this examination.

Open and Open, Non-Promotional Examination(s):

• NURSE PRACTITIONER, CORRECTIONAL FACILITY - Open

For all Classifications, once you have participated in any of the following examinations, you may not recompete for 3 months:

Exam Code(s):

3124

Submit an Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) to apply for this examination.

Electronic applications can be submitted through your account at www.CalCareers.ca.gov.

If you require assistance or alternative testing arrangements due to a disability, indicate on your application that you need reasonable accommodation. You will be contacted by a representative of the testing department to make the necessary arrangements. If you have not been contacted by the time you receive notification of testing, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

If you are unable to submit your application or complete the test due to a disability, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this exam bulletin to be accepted to the examination.

Unless otherwise stated in the Minimum Qualifications, qualifying experience may be combined on a proportionate basis if the requirements stated below include more than one pattern and are distinguished as "Either" 1, "or" 2, "or" 3, etc. For example, applicants possessing qualifying experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern 1 and additional experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern 2 may be accepted to an examination as meeting 100% of the overall experience requirement.

Applicants possessing the required license/certificate at the time of application must show the number, title, and expiration date on their Examination Application (Std. Form 678).

Special Personal Characteristics:  Empathetic understanding of patients of a State correctional facility; willingness to work in a State correctional facility; emotional stability; patience; tact; alertness; and keenness of observation.

Special Physical Characteristics:  Persons appointed to this position must be reasonably expected to have and maintain sufficient strength, agility, and endurance to perform during stressful (physical, mental, and emotional) situations encountered on the job without compromising their health and well-being or that of their fellow employees or that of incarcerated patients.

Assignments may include sole responsibility for the supervision of incarcerated patients and/or the protection of personal and real property.

State Civil Service Out of Class Experience:  A completion of an “out-of-class (OOC) assignment memorandum”, dated within one year of assignment completion, is required to use OOC experience to meet the minimum qualifications for examination purposes.  Employees may obtain this documentation from their Classification and Pay Analyst or institutional Personnel Liaison.  OOC experience without the required documentation cannot be considered for examination purposes.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and the California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS) are committed to building an inclusive and culturally diverse workplace. We are determined to attract and hire more candidates from diverse communities and empower all employees from a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and personal experiences. We are proud to foster inclusion and drive collaborative efforts to increase representation at all levels of the Department.

CDCR/CCHCS values all team members.  We work cooperatively to provide the highest level of health care possible to a diverse correctional population, which includes medical, dental, nursing, mental health, and pharmacy.  We encourage creativity and ingenuity while treating others fairly, honestly, and with respect, all of which are critical to the success of the CDCR/CCHCS mission.

Commitment to CA Model: CDCR and CCHCS are proud to partner on the California Model which will transform the correctional landscape for our employees and the incarcerated. The California Model is a systemwide change that leverages national and international best practices to address longstanding challenges related to incarceration and institution working conditions, creating a safe, professional, and satisfying workplace for staff as well as rehabilitation for the incarcerated. Additionally, the California Model improves success of the decarcerated through robust re-entry efforts back into the community.

This examination consists of the following component(s):

A final score of 70% must be attained to be placed on the eligible list.

In addition to evaluating the applicant's relative knowledge, skill and ability as demonstrated by quality and breadth of education/experience, emphasis in each test component will be on measuring competitively, relative to job demands, each applicant's:

Knowledge of:

1. Current trends and concepts of professional nursing practices;
2. Laws and regulations relating to the nurse practitioner scope of practice;
3. Principles and practices of clinical assessment of common health problems;
4.  Principles of mental health;
5. Causes, treatment, and prevention of communicable diseases, chronic diseases, mental illness, and other disabling conditions;
6. Continuity of patient care and the community health care resources.

Ability to:

1. Work effectively with individuals to assist them in solving physical, mental, and social health problems;
2. Communicate effectively;
3. Prepare clear and concise reports;
4. Recognize social problems which affect health;
5. Instruct in the prevention of disease, good health practices, and the health care of an ill or injured person;
6. Participate in the development of standardized procedures;
7. Construct and interpret a medical history, perform a physical assessment, evaluate patient behavior, perform and interpret laboratory tests, and identify problems and develop and implement treatment plans for patients;
8. Maintain effective working relationships with health care professionals and others.

A Departmental Open eligible list for the NURSE PRACTITIONER, CORRECTIONAL FACILITY Classification will be established for:

• California Correctional Health Care Services

The names of successful competitors will be merged onto the eligible list(s) in order of final score regardless of test date. Eligibility expires 12 months after it is established. Applicants must then retake the examination to reestablish eligibility.

Veterans' Preference will be granted for this examination. Veterans' Preference is an assistance program for veterans, veteran widows and widowers, and spouses of 100% disabled veterans who seek employment with the state. Veterans' Preference is also extended to currently serving military members nearing their retirement or separation date.

You are not eligible for Veteran's Preference if you are:

• A veteran who has been dishonorably discharged or released.
• A veteran, widow or widower of a veteran, or spouse of a 100 percent disabled veteran who currently has permanent civil service status. (Permanent civil service status is the status of an employee who is lawfully retained in his/her position after completion of the applicable probationary period. This does not include limited term).

Veterans' Preference is codified in Government Code Sections 18973 – 18979.

Veteran status is verified by the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR). Directions to apply for Veterans' Preference are on the Veterans' Preference Application (Std. Form 1093), which is available at www.CalCareers.ca.gov, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Career Credits are not granted for examination(s) administered on an Open basis or a Promotional basis.

1.   Consult with patients on their physical, developmental, and/or psycho-social health status to compile a complete medical history and make appropriate referrals. 

2.   Consult with physicians on professional matters pertaining to patients' care and treatment. 

3.   Collaborate with physicians and other health care providers to develop appropriate treatment plans for patients. 

4.   Develop appropriate treatment plans, including ordering appropriate diagnostic tests (e.g. Laboratory, x-rays, electrocardiograms). 

5.   Develop a patient education plan, promoting patient participation in the plan of care (e.g., counseling, self-care skills, treatment options). 

6.   Document all treatments, medications, vital signs, etc., in a patient’s health record to maintain adequate patient health care history. 

7.   Ensure patients receive treatments (e.g., medication, therapeutic agents) as prescribed by their physician and other health care providers. 

8.   Examine patients with medical complaints to provide treatment. 

9.   Monitor status of patients' current health problems, behavior, and chronic illnesses to ensure proper diagnosis, treatment, and the effectiveness of the plan of care. 

10.  Monitor treatment of patients in inpatient and/or outpatient settings to obtain relevant medical histories. 

11.  Provide appropriate patient referrals to other health professionals (e.g., mental health, specialty services, dentistry). 

12.  Provide clinical direction to other nursing personnel (e.g., certified nursing assistants, licensed vocational nurses). 

13.  Provide nursing care to patients’ (e.g., assessment, diagnosis, management, treatment of episodic and chronic illness, health promotion, and general evaluation). 

14.  Provide patients with instructions and information on self-care tips for Tuberculosis, Hepatitis, Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS), etc. 

15.  Reassess and modify the plan of care to achieve patients' medical health goals and formulate the appropriate diagnosis. 

16.  Read and interpret medical/mental health records as part of the patient assessment to determine the appropriate level of care and treatment goals. 

17.  Review medical/mental health records as part of patients' assessment to determine the appropriate level of care, treatment goals, etc.

18.  Review patients' medical history to determine the need for early intervention and appropriateness of treatment plans. 

19.  Write referrals to address patients with urgent health conditions that require additional evaluation and treatment.

• California Correctional Health Care Services

Questions regarding this examination should be directed to:

California Relay Service: 1-800-735-2929 (TTY), 1-800-735-2922 (Voice). TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf, and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.

Examination and/or Employment Application (STD 678) forms are available at the California Department of Human Resources, local offices of the Employment Development Department, and through your CalCareer Account (www.CalCareers.ca.gov).

If you meet the requirements stated on this examination bulletin, you may take this examination, which is competitive. Possession of the entrance requirements does not assure a place on the eligible list. Your performance in the examination described in this bulletin will be rated against a predetermined job-related rating, and all applicants who pass will be ranked according to their scores.

California Correctional Health Care Services reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service, if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service laws and rules and all applicants will be notified.

General Qualifications: Applicants must possess essential personal qualifications including integrity, initiative, dependability, good judgment, the ability to work cooperatively with others, and a state of health consistent with the ability to perform the assigned duties of the class. A medical examination may be required. In open examinations, investigation may be made of employment records and personal history and fingerprinting may be required.

Eligible Lists: Eligible lists established by competitive examination, regardless of date, must be used in the following order: 1) sub-divisional promotional, 2) departmental promotional, 3) multi-departmental promotional, 4) service-wide promotional, 5) departmental open, 6) open. When there are two lists of the same kind, the older must be used first. Eligible lists will expire in one to four years unless otherwise stated on the bulletin.

High School Equivalence: Equivalence to completion of the 12th grade may be demonstrated in any one of the following ways: 1) passing the General Education Development (GED) Test; 2) completion of 12 semester units of college-level work; 3) certification from the State Department of Education, a local school board, or high school authorities that the competitor is considered to have education equivalent to graduation from high school; or 4) for clerical and accounting classes, substitution of business college work in place of high school on a year-for-year basis.

Accepted applicants must provide proof of identification at each in-person test session. Acceptable identification consists of a photo identification card or two forms of signed identification.