Nurse Manager - Family Connects (Middlesex County)

Position Summary:

The Nurse Manager supervises the nursing staff who provide home visits to families with newborns, as well as the administrative staff who support the program. The goal of Family Connects’ home visits is to support and assess family needs in 12 domains of physical and psychosocial well-being and facilitate referrals and connections to community agencies to support families in these areas.

Disclaimer:

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties and responsibilities that are required by the employee.

Essential Job Functions:

• Become fully trained in the Family Connects home visiting protocol as stated in the current program implementation manual. This will initially include online training, as well as in-person trips to Durham, N.C. for observations, training, and “certification.”
• Assist in training and evaluating new staff in the Family Connects model, eventually being responsible for certification and fidelity of all staff to the protocol.
• Track visiting rates and nurses’ fidelity to the home visiting protocol through computer-generated reports and supervisory home visits.
• Provide group/peer as well as reflective supervision to program clinical staff.
• Communicate regularly with the CJFHC Director of Professional Education and Research, the Trenton Health Team, Capital Health liaison and other local partners with updates on the progress of the program.
• Coordinate assignments to the nurses to provide home visiting service to the target region.
• Coordinate staff meetings for case review and in-service training.
• Supervise nursing and non-clinical support staff in all program functions.
• Perform home visits as needed.
• Help establish a parent recruitment protocol utilizing non-clinical Program Support Workers. These efforts may include visiting prenatal care clinics, doctors’ offices, and birthing hospitals and/or making calls based on birth records.
• Coordinate and assist with facilitation of meetings with the physician liaison for the program.
• Be open and flexible in establishing a new program with many unknowns in a new community with infrastructure challenges.

Home Visiting Functions:

The Nurse Manager should be proficient in performing and providing supervisory guidance for the following Home Visiting Nurse activities:

• Keep records of client observations and activities as required. Document information for family assessments and program evaluation. Documentation is expected to be done and letters sent out within 48 working hours of the home visit encounter.
• Provide a health and physical assessment of mother and baby in the home to determine wellbeing.
• Assess risk factors for family, including depression, substance abuse, and domestic violence. Exercise clinical skills in appraising situations and making decisions.
• Establish a trusting relationship with families during in-home visits and engage the family to establish a family support plan with goals, objectives, and activities that address family strengths and needs.
• Assist parents in making appointments for doctors, social service agencies, etc. Act as a liaison between families and other community agencies, serving as family advocate as required.
• Work with team to ensure appropriate referrals and connections to community resources as needed. Identify gaps in community services that may be addressed by local partners.
• Apply principles of reflective supervision for clinical staff support.
• Apply working knowledge of parent-child interaction, child-maternal health, child development, and child abuse/neglect to help families improve parenting skills, increase parenting supports, reduce stress, and address needs of parents; assist in creating a health plan for entire family.
• Respond to client needs through flexible scheduling of home visits. Apply effective time-management skills, organization, and multitasking skills.
• Provide respectful, culturally appropriate care and education to all clients and their families

Working Conditions:

There are no unusual work conditions associated with this position. Employees are required to attend meetings at external locations and home visits; therefore, the candidate may experience external weather conditions. Noise level in the office is moderate. Professional/business attire is required. Please refer to employee handbook for details about Field and Home Visitation Safety.

Education: B.S. degree in nursing with current N.J. license. MSN, MPH, or other advanced degree preferred but not required. Minimum 3 years clinical experience providing care for birthing people during the prenatal, intrapartum, or postpartum period including newborn care. Supervision and management expertise preferred.

The qualified candidate will have:

• knowledge and experience in home visiting and maternal child health education.
• current or compact RN licensure in the state of New Jersey.
• current CPR (adult and infant) certification.
• the ability to direct a team including clinical and non-clinical staff.
• experience working with diverse populations.
• Preferred skills include (a) Spanish language proficiency, (b) clinical experience related to domestic violence, substance abuse and/or depression, and (c) Certified Lactation Educator or Consultant.
• Computer proficiency required with Microsoft programs including Windows, Outlook, Office 2007, Access, Excel, Power Point, Publisher and Word. Strong interpersonal & oral/written communication skills required.
• Valid Driver’s license with the ability to provide proof of ongoing automobile insurance coverage is required. This position will entail reimbursable local and statewide travel utilizing personal vehicle.

Physical Requirements:

Employees are required to occasionally lift up to fifty pounds of materials or equipment.