REGISTERED NURSE SPECIALIST

Registered Nurse Specialist - 64037416

This is a professional clinical nursing position for the Medical Foster Care (MFC) program reporting to the Senior Registered Nursing Supervisor position. We are looking for a dedicated individual to support Medical Foster Care families and ensure medically complex children receive the highest quality care in nurturing home environments. The MFC RN will participate in compensated after hours "on-call" and travel is reimbursable.

Your Specific Responsibilities:

• Impactful Work: Help foster parents succeed while improving outcomes for children and youth.
• Collaboration: Partner with caregivers, medical teams, and community stakeholders.
• Growth & Learning: Provide training, education, and ongoing support to families.
• Family-Centered Care: Advocate for safe, supportive homes tailored to each child's needs.
• Assessment: Conduct home visits, caregiver evaluations, and child/youth care assessments.
• Communication: Act as the liaison between foster parents, Medicaid plans, and community partners.
• Training: Deliver onboarding and ongoing education for caregivers and families.
• Implementation: Coordinate daily program operations, admissions, and clinical support.
• Quality Assurance: Monitor documentation, services, and caregiver performance to ensure excellence.
• Support: Provide after-hours guidance when urgent needs arise.

What We're Looking For:

• Strong nursing and assessment skills.
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities.
• Passion for supporting foster families and children with complex medical needs.
• Commitment to quality, safety, and family-centered care.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Knowledge of nursing care of the child with special health care needs.
• Knowledge of foster care system and child/family community resources.
• Skill in performing nursing assessments.
• Skill in performing clinical nursing activities.
• Skill in providing training and education to health care professionals, parents, and Medical Foster Care parents.
• Skill in nursing documentation.
• Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing.
• Ability to plan, organize and coordinate work assignments.
• Ability to access and utilize community resources.
• Ability to access information from computer data systems and websites.

Qualifications:

• Minimum Must be licensed as a Registered Nurse in the State of Florida in accordance with Florida Statutes Reference: 464, F.S. Valid Florida Driver's License. Willing to take compensated on-call after hours and on weekends or holidays.
• Preferred Pediatric nursing experience. Experience working with children with special health care needs. 1-3 years Nursing experience. Preference will be given to applicants with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing or higher. Experience in use of technology in your daily work including computer systems/applications. Experience working with or familiarity with the child welfare system, Medicaid Managed Care or Care Coordination/Case Management.

Where You Will Work: 1313 N. Tampa Street, Suite 809 Tampa, FL 33602 Counties Covered: Hillsborough, Polk, Highlands, Hardee Travel Time: 15%

This is not a remote position.

The Benefits of Working for the State of Florida:

• Annual and Sick Leave benefits.
• Nine paid holidays and one Personal Holiday each year.
• State Group Insurance coverage options, including health, life, dental, vision, and other supplemental insurance options.
• Retirement plan options, including employer contributions.
• Flexible Spending Accounts.
• Tuition waivers; and more!

For a more complete list of benefits, including monthly costs, visit

Your responses to qualifying questions for this position must be verifiable by documentation provided through the electronic application process. This position requires a security background check and/or drug screening and participation in direct deposit. Any misrepresentations or omissions will disqualify you from employment consideration.

Note: You will be required to provide your Social Security Number (SSN) in order to conduct this background check Successful completion of a drug test is a condition of employment for safety-sensitive positions.

Male applicants born on or after October 1, 1962, will not be eligible for hire or promotion unless they are registered with the Selective Services System (SSS) before their 26th birthday, or have a Letter of Registration Exemption from the SSS.

For more information, please visit the SSS website:

If you are a retiree of the Florida Retirement System (FRS), please check with the FRS on how your current benefits will be affected if you are re-employed with the State of Florida. Your current retirement benefits may be canceled, suspended or deemed ineligible depending upon the date of your retirement.

The successful candidate will be required to complete the Form I-9 and that information will be verified using the E-Verify system. E-Verify is operated by the Department of Homeland Security in partnership with the Social Security Administration to verify employment eligibility.

Incumbents may be required to perform emergency duty before, during, and/or beyond normal work hours or days.

All Florida Department of Health positions require the incumbent to be able to learn and communicate effectively, orally and in writing, in English. Applicants who do not meet this requirement will not be considered.

The State of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer and does not tolerate discrimination or violence in the workplace.

Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center View phone number on click.appcast.io). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.

Florida has the third largest population of veterans in the nation with more than 1.5 million service men and women. The Florida Department of Health (department) is committed to serving members of the United States Armed Forces, veterans and their families by encouraging them to apply for vacancies that fit their area of knowledge and/or expertise. Through the Department's VALOR program, which expedites licensing for military veterans, the Department also waives initial licensing and application fees for military veterans who apply for a health care professional license within 60 months of an honorable discharge. These initiatives help ensure that the transition from military service into the workforce is as smooth as possible and reflects our appreciation for the dedication devoted to protecting our country.

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center View phone number on click.appcast.io). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.

VETERANS' PREFERENCE. Pursuant to Chapter 295, Florida Statutes, candidates eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive preference in employment for Career Service vacancies and are encouraged to apply. Certain service members may be eligible to receive waivers for postsecondary educational requirements. Candidates claiming Veterans' Preference must attach supporting documentation with each submission that includes character of service (for example, DD Form 214 Member Copy #4) along with any other documentation as required by Rule 55A-7, Florida Administrative Code. Veterans' Preference documentation requirements are available by clicking here. All documentation is due by the close of the vacancy announcement.