Senior Behavioral Interventionist - UI Health, General Psychiatric Nursing

The Adult Psychiatry Inpatient Unit is seeking a full time Senior Behavioral Interventionist. This position will work under the direct supervision of a Registered Nurse (RN). The Senior Behavioral Interventionist delivers patient care utilizing the Relationship-Based Care model as a framework. The Senior Behavioral Interventionist also provides care and takes initiative to improve patient outcomes by supporting Shared Leadership, Evidence Based Practice and Magnet's Five Models of Care in clinical practice. Through therapeutic relationships with patients, families, self and colleagues, the Senior Behavioral Interventionist functions as an interdisciplinary team member who provides patient care and fulfills unit and organizational goals. The Senior Behavioral Interventionist will also be a unit-based instructor in Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI) who will be providing training to staff year-round.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Demonstrates clinical knowledge, skills, and expertise.
• Provides direct patient care under the supervision of a registered nurse.
• Systematically observes, reports, and documents subjectively and objectively the covert and overt baseline data regarding patients’ psychological and behavioral states
• Implements appropriate actions to respond to needs of patients and patients’ significant others
• Monitors and documents the patient’s response to therapeutic interventions and progress toward outcomes.
• Assures safety and security of patients, significant others, and staff
• Plans therapeutic outings, off-unit tests, and procedures; assists patients with the activities of daily living, accompanies patients to off-unit tests/procedures/outings when necessary
• Shows flexibility and cooperation when assignments and priorities are adjusted in response to a changing workload, considering the needs of all patients.
• Recognizes and responds to needs and behaviors of adolescent to geriatric patients and utilizes knowledge in planning and interventions.
• Participates in individual or group therapeutic activities; observes and documents patient’s response to activities
• Assists with verbal de-escalation, distraction, redirection, seclusion, and restraining patients exhibiting explosive and aggressive behaviors
• Maintain a safe environment, evaluates and plans unit activities that emphasize close observation of psychiatrically unstable patients. Such activities include one-to-one coverage, 15-minute checks, on-unit and/or off-unit activities, etc.
• Conducts in-service classes to teach other health team members the theories of psychiatric care and interviewing techniques
• Consistently demonstrates courteous service to internal and external customers.
• Performs duties of a Behavioral Interventionist as required
• Other duties as assigned
• Perform other related duties and participate in special projects as assigned.