Department:
SOM KC The Alzheimer's Disease Center (ADC) -----
Alzheimer's Disease Center Staff Position Title:
Clinical Research Nurse Coordinator - Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) (Brain Health Network & Brain Health Care Accelerator (BHCA)) Job Family Group:
Professional Staff Job Description Summary:
The Clinical Research Nurse Coordinator provides nursing expertise and clinical guidance in support of the Brain Health Network and the Brain Health Care Accelerator (BHCA), complementary initiatives focused on expanding access to brain health assessment, diagnosis, care planning, and dementia-related support. The Network supports participating sites statewide, while the BHCA engages clinicians across the KU Health System. The coordinator works closely with the Program Manager, clinical leadership, the KU Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (KU ADRC), and participating organizations to support both initiatives.
The coordinator applies nursing knowledge and clinical judgment within the scope of licensure and established clinical protocols to help healthcare professionals recognize cognitive concerns, navigate assessment and care pathways, identify appropriate referrals, and address clinical questions related to brain health and dementia care. The role also supports clinical education, patient safety, and evidence-based practices while identifying gaps in care and opportunities to improve clinical resources and processes. Job Description:
Job Duties
Clinical Nursing Consultation and Care Coordination
Apply professional nursing judgment to review clinical information and assessment findings, support care recommendations, and determine appropriate referrals and care coordination activities.
Help teams determine next steps following screening or assessment results, diagnostic findings, referrals, or identification of cognitive concerns.
Provide clinical guidance on appropriate referrals to KU Memory Care, e-consult services, the Cognitive Care Network (CCN), LEAP!, Treatment Hub resources, and other services, including referral appropriateness, urgency, and patient care coordination.
Identify and escalate clinical, patient safety, and quality-of-care concerns to the appropriate clinical leader or specialist in accordance with established protocols.
Document clinical support and care coordination activities in accordance with program requirements.
Clinical Partner Support and Care Pathways
Serve as the primary clinical contact for participating Network partner sites and BHCA clinicians.
Build working relationships with physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, care coordinators, and site champions.
Respond to clinical and workflow questions using approved protocols, Clinical Action Briefs, the Cognitive Care Roadmap, and other resources.
Clarify referral requirements, including necessary information, documentation, and testing.
Address challenges related to assessment, documentation, communication, care planning, and referral workflows.
Identify and address workflow barriers that delay or prevent appropriate referrals in collaboration with partner sites.
Partner Education and Onboarding
Participate in onboarding discussions with prospective partners to assess clinical readiness, including workflows, staffing, clinical capabilities, access to testing and imaging, and referral resources.
Support new clinician and care support champions during onboarding, including education on assessment workflows, referral processes, care planning, available resources, and Brain Health curriculum content.
Provide education on brain health assessment, cognitive concerns, dementia diagnosis, communication, treatment planning, and referral pathways.
Help sites integrate brain health practices into routine care.
Quality Improvement, Evaluation, and Network Learning
Identify trends in clinical questions, workflow barriers, referral patterns, and implementation challenges across sites.
Contribute clinical and workflow context to evaluation…