Registered Nurse, Ambulatory Psychiatry - Department of Psychiatry, 40 Hours (Days)

Registered Nurse

The Registered Nurse adheres to the rules and regulations of the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing and is primarily responsible for professional performance and direct patient care. The role encompasses comprehensive nursing assessment, diagnosis, planning, intervention, evaluation, and coordination of care for patients and families across the health care continuum.

The RN serves as a bridge between psychiatry, primary care, and community resources to ensure holistic, coordinated care. This role is instrumental in ensuring that all patients are connected with a primary care provider (PCP), and that medical and psychiatric needs are managed collaboratively. The RN coordinates with psychiatrists, resource specialists, and PCPs to facilitate safe transition of psychiatric medication management when the patient is stable, and the PCP is comfortable continuing prescribing.

In addition to care coordination, the RN provides preventive health screenings, patient education, administers long-acting injectable (LAI) medications as part of ongoing psychiatric treatment, oversees the discharge clinic for patients recently discharged from inpatient psychiatric units, and participates in additional nurse visits as needed to meet evolving clinic needs.

Essential Responsibilities / Duties:

• Identify patients without a primary care provider and collaborate with resource specialists to establish a PCP connection.
• Communicate and coordinate with PCPs and psychiatric prescribers to support smooth transitions of care.
• Facilitate transfer of psychiatric prescribing responsibilities to PCPs when clinically appropriate.
• Ensure continuity of care through follow-up coordination and patient education.
• Collaborate with providers and pharmacy to administer long-acting injectable (LAI) antipsychotic medications safely and accurately.
• Monitor and document patient response, including side effects and adherence.
• Provide education regarding LAI medications and possible side effects.
• Maintain accurate documentation of all injections, assessments, and patient interactions.
• Perform health screenings such as tobacco use, HIV risk, TB history, and substance use assessments.
• Provide patient education based on individual responses and clinical priorities.
• Offer Narcan and harm reduction education.
• Promote wellness, safety, and health literacy in all patient interactions.
• Oversee the Discharge Clinic for patients recently discharged from inpatient psychiatric units.
• Review all incoming referrals for the Discharge Clinic to ensure that appropriate documentation (e.g., discharge summaries, medication lists, and clinical notes) has been received prior to scheduling an appointment.
• Coordinate with the Medical Director, Clinical Supervisor, and Medical Assistant to confirm discharge readiness and ensure appropriate provider follow-up is scheduled.
• Ensure discharge planner/ patients are contacted promptly and scheduled to be seen by a behavioral health provider within 7 days of discharge, per CBHC standards.
• Review and clarify hospital discharge instructions, including medications, safety plans, and follow-up expectations.
• Document all nursing encounters, screenings, education, and coordination efforts in the electronic health record.
• Participate in interdisciplinary team meetings.
• Communicate changes in patient condition or treatment plan to the appropriate providers.
• Supporting WRAP and APTP programs as needed.
• Perform other duties as specified by supervisor.
• Must adhere to all of BMC's RESPECT behavioral standards.

(The above statements in this job description are intended to depict the general nature and level of work assigned to the employee(s) in this job. The above is not intended to represent an exhaustive list of accountable duties and responsibilities required.)

Job Requirements

Education:

• Nursing degree: Diploma, ASN or BSN (preferred), Ability to obtain BSN within 4 years

Certificates, Licenses, Registrations Required:

• Massachusetts licensure as a registered nurse.
• Maintain R.N. staff competencies on an annual basis.
• Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification.
• Minimum 2 years of clinical experience in behavioral health, community health, or psychiatric nursing preferred.

Experience:

• Prior experience administering LAI medications in an inpatient or outpatient psychiatric setting preferred.
• Familiarity with integrated behavioral health models and care transitions preferred.
• Experience with motivational interviewing, harm reduction, or trauma-informed care preferred.
• Knowledge of Epic preferred

Knowledge and Skills:

• Computer skills required, preferably with Word, Excel and Access.
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Strong patient communication and patient education skills.
• Ability to be highly organized, detail-oriented, and timely.
• Ability to work productively across academic clinical departments.
• Ability to effectively delegate appropriate patient care activities.