LEAD REGISTERED NURSE BUTNER NC

Since our opening in 1987, New Hope Treatment Centers has been a welcoming place for young people in moments of crisis. Our programs have played a role in countless success stories through our relational approach to behavioral healthcare. The Lead Registered Nurse (Lead RN) provides clinical leadership and oversight of nursing services for adolescents receiving treatment in a secure, high-acuity behavioral health program operated in collaboration with the North Carolina Division of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (DJJ). The Lead RN oversees nursing operations, supervises nursing staff, ensures compliance with nursing standards and regulatory requirements, and promotes safe, trauma-informed, evidence-based care. The Lead RN collaborates closely with the Program Director, PMHNP, therapists, case managers, and the interdisciplinary team to ensure continuity of care and clinical excellence.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Provides clinical leadership and supervision to Registered Nurses (RNs) and Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs).
• Oversees nursing assessments, care plans, medication administration, and physician orders.
• Provides clinical consultation regarding complex medical, psychiatric, and behavioral presentations.
• Collaborates with the PMHNP regarding medication management, laboratory monitoring, and clinical concerns.
• Oversees medication storage, controlled substances, pharmacy coordination, and medication reconciliation.
• Responds to psychiatric, behavioral, and medical emergencies while directing nursing response.
• Reviews nursing documentation for accuracy, timeliness, and compliance.
• Coordinates admissions, transfers, hospitalizations, specialty referrals, and discharge planning.
• Participates in interdisciplinary treatment team meetings and discharge planning.
• Ensures compliance with HIPAA, OSHA, DHSR, Medicaid, DJJ, Joint Commission, COA, and organizational standards.
• Develops nursing schedules and assists with staffing coverage.
• Conducts orientation, competency validation, coaching, and ongoing education for nursing staff.
• Assists with recruitment, interviewing, onboarding, and retention of nursing staff.
• Participates in quality improvement, utilization review, infection control, and risk management activities.
• Reviews nursing incidents, medication variances, and quality indicators and implements corrective actions.
• Collaborates with leadership during audits and regulatory reviews.
• Promotes trauma-informed, youth-centered, culturally responsive nursing practice.
• Performs other duties as assigned within the scope of nursing leadership.

Minimum Qualifications

• BSN required; Master's degree preferred.
• Current unrestricted North Carolina Registered Nurse license.
• Current BLS/CPR certification.
• Ability to pass required background checks and complete New Hope and DJJ training.

Preferred Qualifications

• Three years of nursing experience in behavioral health, psychiatry, juvenile justice, residential treatment, emergency medicine, or child/adolescent services.
• Previous nursing leadership experience.
• Experience with electronic health records and trauma-informed care.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Advanced clinical assessment and critical thinking.
• Strong leadership, coaching, and communication skills.
• Knowledge of psychotropic medications and behavioral health diagnoses.
• Knowledge of NC Nurse Practice Act, Medicaid, DJJ, DHSR, Joint Commission, and COA standards.
• Ability to lead effectively in a fast-paced behavioral health environment.

Physical and Work Environment Requirements

• Work performed in a secure behavioral health environment serving adolescents.
• Ability to sit, stand, walk, bend, lift, and respond during emergencies.
• Ability to safely respond to behavioral and medical crises.
• May be exposed to behavioral crises, infectious diseases, and emotionally challenging situations.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made for qualified individuals with disabilities.