Head Nurse (40 Hour)

State of Connecticut • Norwich, CT

3d • Onsite

About The Position

The State of Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) is seeking a Head Nurse to join the Southeastern Mental Health Authority (SMHA) and support high-quality, recovery-oriented behavioral health services. In this leadership role, you will provide licensed nursing oversight, clinical coordination, and guidance for our Brief Care Program, which provides essential nursing services across all SMHA Community Programs. This position is critical to ensuring the planning, implementation, and evaluation of nursing care within a trauma-informed, culturally responsive environment.

DMHAS is a health care agency whose mission is to promote the overall health and wellness of persons with behavioral health needs through an integrated network of holistic, comprehensive, effective, and efficient services and supports that foster dignity, respect, and self-sufficiency in those we serve. SMHA is a community mental health agency operated by DMHAS. Its primary goal is to provide high quality behavioral health services to those in our community with mental health and substance use disorders who are 18 years or older and reside in New London County and its surrounding towns. Services, which include case management, outpatient behavioral health, crisis intervention, respite care, and forensic services, are recovery oriented and offered in a trauma informed and culturally sensitive manner. We support individuals to identify and achieve their own goals in recovery, fostering independence, dignity, and ability.

The Brief Care Program is a 15-bed, subacute residential program for individuals who need stabilization but do not require psychiatric hospitalization. It also serves as a step-down option following an inpatient stay. The program is voluntary and supported by a full multidisciplinary team, including an APRN, nurses, social workers, a certified addiction counselor, and mental health workers. Staff are on site 24/7, and weekly treatment team meetings focus on progress, barriers, and discharge planning. Community support providers and family members are encouraged to participate for continuity of care. Clients are connected to community programs during their stay to ensure ongoing support after discharge.

Requirements

• Experienced Registered Nurse
• Possess and retain a license or temporary permit as a Registered Nurse in Connecticut OR hold a Multistate or Compact Registered Nurse license.
• Two (2) years of experience as a Registered Nurse
• Considerable knowledge of and ability to independently apply nursing principles, techniques and standards
• specialized individual care applicable to nursing assignment
• medications, their actions, interactions, uses and side effects
• Knowledge of general and mental health conditions and treatment interventions through utilization of assessment, nursing diagnosis, outcome identification, health planning, implementation and re-evaluation
• adult learning and family systems theory
• sensitivity to cultural and socio-economic differences
• Considerable interpersonal skills
• oral and written communication skills
• Ability to establish and maintain collaborative relationships with other professionals, community resources and providers
• act as a role model to health care staff
• Supervisory ability
• Considerable knowledge of behavioral health of individuals
• Skill working with individuals, groups and families
• Ability to provide therapeutic treatment with a variety of individuals

Nice To Haves

• Fluent in a foreign language or proficient in the use of the American Sign Language in certain designated positions.
• May be required to travel.

Responsibilities

• Lead, develop, and support licensed nursing staff delivering care within the Brief Care Program
• Oversee the planning and implementation of the nursing process to ensure high-quality, person-centered care
• Strengthen clinical outcomes across all SMHA Community Programs through coordinated nursing practices
• Play a key leadership role in a public behavioral health setting and make a meaningful impact on individuals served
• Leads the planning of care and implementation of the nursing process
• Plans unit workflow and determines priorities
• Schedules, assigns, oversees and reviews work
• Makes recommendations for personnel actions such as selection, discipline and performance
• Conducts or assist in conducting performance evaluations
• Leads professional and paraprofessional nursing staff in provision of patient/individual care
• Maintains and promotes standards of nursing
• Ensures controlled drugs are properly stored, administered and ordered
• Identifies staff development needs
• Provides staff training and assistance
• Instructs staff regarding policies and procedures
• Participates in interdisciplinary meetings to promote and ensure adjustment and continuity of patient/individual care programs
• Responds to emergencies
• May make recommendations on policies and standards
• May prepare reports or correspondence
• May serve as Qualified Intellectual Disability Professional (QIDP)
• Performs related duties as required
• Independently develops, implements and evaluates nursing and/or health care plans
• Provides nursing consultation in the assigned specialty program
• Conducts nursing assessments
• Provides admission and discharge nursing assessments including plans for continuing care
• Maintains records and makes reports
• Provides for nursing services to comply with intermediate care facility (ICF) regulations and Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) standards
• Maintains records of stored and secured medications
• Independently manages and provides direct care to patients/individuals
• Participates in individual, group or family therapy
• Participates as a member of an interdisciplinary team in the assessment, development, implementation and evaluation of patient/individual treatment or health care plans
• Manages an assigned caseload of other appropriate clinical activities
• Provides clinical direction and/or training to staff in individual, group and family service delivery programs
• May participate in home visits and crisis intervention
• May provide in-service training to nursing and paraprofessional staff with regard to signs and symptoms of illness, dysfunction, injury and prevention of same
• May conduct patient/individual- centered conferences with nursing personnel
• may consult with and make recommendations to physicians concerning health needs
• Independently provides counseling and health education services to students and staff
• Serves as member of crisis intervention team
• Provides assessment of medical problems
• Determines need for physician or medical care
• Performs basic evaluative procedures and tests
• Performs primary first aid
• Makes referrals and follows up on health needs
• Provides counseling on health- related issues
• Maintains accurate medical records
• Writes reports
• May administer medication
• May administer routine tests or exams

Benefits

• State Employee Benefits Overview
• Opportunities for professional growth and development
• Healthy work/life balance
• Recruitment and retention yearly bonus of three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) for second and third shift positions (pro-rated for part-time Registered Nurses, eligible after one year of service).

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager