Research RN - Clinical Translational Research Center

The Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) is seeking a dedicated and skilled Clinical Research Nurse to join our team. In this pivotal role, you will provide specialized care for patients enrolled in cutting-edge clinical trials and serve as a key research infusion nurse within the Clinical and Translational Research Center.

You will play an essential part in the administration of investigational therapies, including chemotherapy, gene therapy, first-in-human agents, and other novel therapeutics, while ensuring the highest standards of safety, precision, and patient support. This position offers a dynamic and varied practice environment, with opportunities to provide research-related care across UCLA Health clinics, inpatient units, and community-based settings.

Working under the guidance of the Unit Director, you will deliver exceptional direct patient care, collaborate with study teams to optimize protocol-specific workflows, and help advance promising innovations from bench to bedside. You’ll also apply strong leadership, communication, and teaching skills as you educate patients and staff, support operational excellence, and uphold professional standards across all aspects of research nursing.

Required

• BSN or MSN
• Current licensure as a Registered Nurse in the State of California
• BLS certification from the American Heart Association
• ACLS certification from the American Heart Association (or American Red Cross)
• PALS certification from the American Heart Association (or American Red Cross)
• Ability to follow and manage complex research protocols, document accurately and in a timely fashion, and report protocol deviations; role requires working PM shifts, holidays, and weekends as needed
• Ability to complete a nursing physical assessment
• Willingness to adapt to changing workload requirements, including flexibility in work location as needed to support the unit's mission to investigators and research participants
• Demonstrates responsibility for effect on others by respecting others' opinions and ideas, maintaining cooperative and collaborative relationships with co-workers, demonstrating professional control in stressful situations, and readily assisting co-workers while maintaining interdepartmental communication
• Demonstrated ability to assess patients, synthesize and analyze data, and make decisions to ensure patient safety in a research environment
• Ability to perform with limited supervision amid frequent changes in priorities and deadlines, and to delegate tasks in a management style consistent with promoting leadership and teamwork
• Knowledge base or willingness to learn new information to educate patients, families, and staff on clinical research and patient care issues
• Ability to read a clinical trial protocol, meet with the principal investigator and study team, synthesize a written protocol summary, and work with the team to create a plan to open the study in the CTRC
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to effectively determine priorities
• Interpersonal skills to communicate positively and effectively with patients, colleagues, and people from diverse cultures and backgrounds
• Ability to work in different areas of the Health System and in the community, including nights, weekends, and holidays as needed for operational needs
• Ability to use computer systems to manage documentation and patient care through the EMR, use internal databases to retrieve information, and send emails, calendar invites, and create teaching documents
• Ability to complete required competencies throughout the year to maintain up-to-date skills and knowledge in rapidly changing patient care and clinical research situations

Preferred:

• Experience with peripheral IV access and maintenance and venipuncture
• Clinical research experience, particularly with administration of investigational products
• Oncology experience, including administration of chemotherapy and immune effector cell therapy
• Pediatric experience
• Experience with a wide variety of diagnoses, treatments, and severity of illness, as well as managing emergency situations