Registered Nurse - Psychiatric � Inpatient Behavioral Health Unit

Matrix Providers • Jacksonville, FL

1d • Onsite

About The Position

Matrix Providers is hiring a Registered Nurse - Psychiatric to provide healthcare services to Military Service Members and their families at Jacksonville Naval Hospital. The nurse coordinates comprehensive psychiatric nursing care with multidisciplinary healthcare teams to support safe, high-quality, and cost-effective outcomes. The role assesses and monitors patients through physical examinations, health histories, behavioral observations, screenings, and ongoing evaluation; provides direct nursing care; and supports patients and families through therapeutic communication, psychiatric nursing practices, and crisis intervention.

The nurse helps maintain a safe therapeutic environment, documents care and patient progress, educates patients and families, and leads or supervises assigned healthcare personnel. The position also supports group and individual activities, rehabilitation services, specialty referrals, and transitions to appropriate levels of care, while following facility policies, clinical standards, and required training and contributing to quality improvement and evidence-based practice.

The inpatient behavioral health unit has an average daily census of approximately three patients, with at least two nurses and three technicians or corpsmen assigned per shift. The setting is generally steady-paced and focuses on individualized crisis stabilization and management, including for patients experiencing suicidal ideation, anxiety, and occasional psychotic symptoms. The team is described as supportive and collaborative. Initial hospital processing typically takes several days to one week. Training includes two-day Command Indoctrination when scheduled, followed by a six-week unit orientation, primarily on day shift and concluding with one week on night shift. Employees are considered fully independent after orientation, and staffing maintains at least two nurses on every shift.

This is a full-time hourly position, paid bi-weekly at $40.85 per hour plus $5.42 H&W. The facility operates year-round, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Typical shifts are 12 hours, either 6:45 a.m.–7:15 p.m. or 6:45 p.m.–7:15 a.m. The two-week schedule totals 80 hours: six 12.5-hour periods and one 8.5-hour period, each inclusive of an uncompensated 30-minute meal break. Contractors work six 12-hour shifts and one 8-hour shift per two-week period. The posting describes a two-week block schedule with workdays and days off alternating across the two weeks.

Requirements

• Possess a baccalaureate degree in nursing, a graduate diploma in nursing, or an associate degree in nursing from an accredited agency such as ACEN or CCNE.
• Hold Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certifications through the American Heart Association or American Red Cross.
• Have six months of experience within the preceding 24 months working in an inpatient behavioral health unit.
• Possess and maintain a current unrestricted license to practice as a registered nurse in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, or the U.S. Virgin Islands.
• Provide two letters of recommendation from practicing physicians or peers attesting to clinical skills. Letters must include the reference’s name, title, phone number, date, address, and signature, and must have been written within the preceding two years.
• Be open-minded, adaptable, and willing to learn the processes and standards of a military healthcare facility.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate comprehensive psychiatric nursing care with multidisciplinary healthcare teams.
• Assess and monitor patients through physical examinations, health histories, behavioral observations, screenings, and ongoing evaluation.
• Provide direct nursing care, including triage, medication administration, wound care, treatments, safety rounds, and execution of provider orders.
• Use therapeutic communication, psychiatric nursing practices, and crisis-intervention techniques to support patients and families.
• Maintain a safe therapeutic environment by managing precautions, infection-control practices, restraints, elopement risks, and emergency situations.
• Accurately and promptly document assessments, interventions, medications, observations, patient progress, and unusual findings.
• Educate patients and families on treatment plans, medications, wellness, coping skills, health promotion, and available services.
• Lead and supervise assigned healthcare personnel, delegate care based on scope and skill level, and support coordinated team performance.
• Facilitate individual and group activities, rehabilitation services, specialty referrals, and transitions to appropriate levels of care.
• Follow facility policies, clinical standards, and required training, and contribute to quality improvement and evidence-based practice.
• Conduct individual assessments, coordinate with providers, support admissions and discharges, and facilitate group sessions.

Benefits

• Competitive financial package
• Comprehensive insurance package including health, dental, vision, and life coverage
• Accrued paid time off (PTO)
• Paid holidays
• 401(k) plan

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Education Level: Associate degree