ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF NURSING

JOB SUMMARY: The ADON will assist the DON and the Nursing Department with the administration of the hospital, maintaining flexibility and assuming additional duties as assigned.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS and RESPONSIBILITIES: The list of essential functions, as outlined herein, is intended to be representative of the tasks performed within this classification with or without an accommodation. It is not necessarily descriptive of any one position in the class. The omission of an essential function does not preclude management from assigning duties not listed herein if such functions are a logical assignment to the position.

* This employee will be a registered nurse with advanced clinical and management skills in mental health nursing.
* This employee will perform administrative skills aimed at ensuring safe patient care, effective communication and program efficiency.
* This employee demonstrates clinical expertise and serves as a role model to the nursing program personnel.
* As a leader of a multi-disciplinary team on the units, this employee will designate nursing care, supervise clinical practice of the nursing team, maintain nursing standards and assure overall adherence to the philosophy, objectives and mission of the Center.
* This employee will assist the Director of Nursing in regards to orientation of all new employees to the center's mission, their role within the center and will assist in coordinating new employee orientation.
* Work in collaboration with the Medical Director and Director of Emergency & Social Services to assure a therapeutic environment.
* Demonstrates clinical expertise and acts as a role model to other nursing personnel, assuring the delivery of excellent patient care for all Center clients.
* Conducts rounds on the units and collaborates with the consulting psychiatrist to develop thorough and effective treatment plans for all clients.
* Assists in the development, implementation and interpretation of departmental philosophy, objectives, policies and procedures.
* Responsible for completing performance appraisals of nursing personnel assigned to the units as well as departmental supervisory staff.
* Verbally counsels staff and/or serves as a resource to charge and supervisory personnel in counseling situations; provides appropriate documentation.
* Assists in crisis intervention on the units.
* Performs quality improvement activities as the need arises.
* Anticipates and resolves nursing management problems.
* Assures scheduling and efficient utilization of staff on all shifts and makes adjustments as indicated by patient census and acuity level.
* Assesses, evaluates and reports the effectiveness of new procedures, equipment and nursing practices.
* Functions as a resource to locate/obtain equipment and supplies on an emergency basis. Informs nursing clerical/support personnel on supplies and equipment needs.
* Informs hospital/nursing administration regarding capital budget needs.
* Attends meetings and participates in committees as assigned.
* Provides support and encouragement to staff in educational efforts.
* Orients new staff and provides educational programs when needed or when identified through aggregation of data from a variety of sources including internal MOS' and quality indicators and/or external outcome measures or, post an adverse event.
* Conducts pre-employment interviews and makes recommendations regarding recruitment and hiring.
* Demonstrates management skills to supervise and lead nursing staff to provide safe patient care, effective communication and program efficiency.
* Demonstrates leadership knowledge and skills when planning, organizing, coordinating, monitoring and evaluating patient care given by staff s/he is supervising.
* Demonstrates advanced knowledge of mental health and basic medical/surgical nursing skills and the skill to teach the standards of practice necessary for safe and quality nursing care.
* Demonstrates the advanced knowledge and skill to assess needs of staff and provide training/policies for upgrading their skills and standard of care.
* Demonstrates current knowledge of legal changes and ethical issues in mental health nursing and communicates these to nursing staff.
* Has an understanding of the commitment process and Baker & Marchman Acts criteria.
* Demonstrates working knowledge of the DSM nomenclature.
* Critique and teach nursing assessment and documentation, write and teach effective care plans, psychopharmacology knowledge and teaching skills, provides staff with training of knowledge and skills needed to provide quality psychiatric nursing care, develop nursing policies and procedures that meet accredited standards of care, effectively communicate mission and philosophy of center.
* Any additional duties as assigned by leadership.

COMPETENCIES: Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Motivation (KSAM) required for an employee to be successful.

* Serving Our Consumers: Effectively meeting consumer needs, building productive consumer relationships, and taking responsibility for consumer satisfaction and loyalty.
* Consumer Focus: Building strong consumer relationships and delivering consumer-centric solutions.
* Values Differences: Recognizing the value that different perspectives and cultures bring to an organization.
* Effective Communication: Clearly conveying information and ideas to individuals and groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps them understand and retain the message.
* Communicates Effectively: Developing and delivering multi-mode communications that convey a clear understanding of the unique needs of different audiences.
* Manages Conflict: Handling conflict situations effectively, with a minimum of noise.
* Continuous Improvement: The ongoing process of achieving positive changes in service and processes in order to improve efficiency and quality.
* Resourcefulness: Securing and deploying resources effectively and efficiently.
* Cultivates Innovation: Creating new and better ways for the organization to be successful.
* Expertise: Demonstrating proficiency of an employee's skill or knowledge within their field of practice.
* Drives Results: Consistently achieving results, even under tough circumstances.

JUDGMENT/DECISION MAKING: Accurately assesses staff and client's needs and then is able to prioritize teaching of skills and standard of care. Makes knowledgeable decisions in psychiatric or medical emergency situations and guides staff to be able to assess a potential crisis, intervene effectively and teach proper skills to the staff. Able to recognize and intervene in conflicts between staff or with clients and assist them to move toward resolution. Keeps client information confidential and knows when to share essential information with staff involved in care.

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

* Education:
* Graduate of an accredited school of professional nursing
* Currently licensed as a Registered Nurse in the State of Florida.
* Bachelor's Degree in Nursing preferred
* Additional education and experience may be substituted at the discretion of the Clinical Director of
* Experience:
* Minimum of Three (3) years nursing management experience in a mental health facility required
* Minimum of One (1) year in a supervisory position required
* Requires thorough understanding of the principle of adult learning, preferably with experience developing and implementing educational programs

TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT: Completes all requirements according to Individual Training Plan within the first six months of hire and annually. Other training and/or professional development may be assigned due to evolution of programs.

POSITION CONTENT: This job description is not intended to be and should not be construed as an all inclusive list of all the responsibilities, skills or working conditions associated with the position. While it is intended to accurately reflect the position activities and requirements, Management reserves the right to modify, and/or remove duties and assign other duties as necessary.

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