Head Nurse

State of Connecticut • Middletown, CT

1d • Onsite

About The Position

Are you a dedicated Registered Nurse seeking a fulfilling role where you can truly impact the lives of individuals with disabilities? At the State of Connecticut, Department of Children and Families (DCF), John Dempsey Hospital, we are recruiting to fill three Head Nurse roles in Middletown, CT. Incumbents in this class must possess a current license as a Registered Nurse (RN) in CT or hold a Multistate or Compact RN License. Connecticut has joined the Nurse Licensure Compact effective October 1, 2025.

POSITION HIGHLIGHTS:
PCN: 154807 Full-time, 40 hours per week, first shift, 7:00 am - 3:30 pm. Days Off Week 1: Friday, Monday. Days Off Week 2: Saturday, Sunday. Acadia Unit, Middletown, CT.
PCN: 154808 Full-time, 40 hours per week, first (1st) shift, 7:00 am - 3:30 pm. Days Off Week 1: Saturday, Sunday. Days Off Week 2: Friday, Monday. Passaic Unit, Middletown, CT.
PCN: 154809 Full-time, 40 hours per week, second (2nd) shift, 2:45 pm - 11:15 pm. Days Off Week 1: Friday, Monday. Days Off Week 2: Saturday, Sunday. Sachem Unit, Middletown, CT.

YOUR ROLE AS A HEAD NURSE:
Coordinate all medical services necessary to meet the health and safety needs of individuals in our care. Collaborate effectively with an interdisciplinary team to optimize individual outcomes; and ensure compliance with clinical quality standards, policies, and regulations. Utilize your supervisory skills to provide clinical oversight to LPNs providing direct nursing care to individuals with an intellectual and/or developmental disability. Demonstrate your organizational and interpersonal skills as you communicate health and safety information to internal and external partners, in both verbal and written format. Showcase your knowledge and experience with rehabilitative and interdisciplinary healthcare practices and processes.

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU:
Professional growth and development opportunities. A healthy work/life balance to all employees.

FOR SECOND SHIFT POSITIONS – YOU MAY BE APPROVED FOR AN ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION BONUS: Each Registered Nurse who is permanently assigned to the second or third shift shall receive a “recruitment and retention” yearly bonus of three thousand dollars ($3,000.00). This bonus shall be prorated for part-time Registered Nurses. In order to be eligible for this bonus, the Employee must have completed one year of service in the Registered Nurse classification.

OUR MISSION:
At DCF our mission is partnering with communities and empowering families to raise resilient children who thrive. We are proud of our diverse and dedicated workforce who strive every day to meet the needs of those we encounter. Currently we are seeking individuals who are looking to advance their career and make a difference. START WITH US. STAY WITH US. GROW WITH US.

Requirements

• Current license as a Registered Nurse (RN) in CT or hold a Multistate or Compact RN 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.
• Knowledge of 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.
• Knowledge of 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.
• Ability to 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

• Experience working in a hospital, regional, institutional, or psychiatric setting.
• Experience working with children in a hospital, regional, institutional, or psychiatric setting.
• 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

• Coordinate all medical services necessary to meet the health and safety needs of individuals in our care.
• Collaborate effectively with an interdisciplinary team to optimize individual outcomes; and ensure compliance with clinical quality standards, policies, and regulations.
• Utilize supervisory skills to provide clinical oversight to LPNs providing direct nursing care to individuals with an intellectual and/or developmental disability.
• Demonstrate organizational and interpersonal skills as you communicate health and safety information to internal and external partners, in both verbal and written format.
• Showcase knowledge and experience with rehabilitative and interdisciplinary healthcare practices and processes.
• 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 assists 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

• Professional growth and development opportunities.
• A healthy work/life balance to all employees.
• Recruitment and retention yearly bonus of three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) for second or third shift assignments (prorated for part-time, requires one year of service).

What This Job Offers

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