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Lighthouse 115 Parkside - Colorado Springs, CO 80910

Salary Range $77,000.00 - $110,000.00 Salary Position Type Full Time Job Shift Day

FLSA Status: EXEMPT – This position is classified as Exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act and is not eligible for overtime pay.

Job Summary:

The ATU Nurse Leader – Day Shift is responsible for the day-to-day clinical and operational leadership of the ATU during daytime hours. This role oversees nursing staff, mental health technicians, and therapeutic programming to ensure safe, high-quality, patient-centered care in a structured treatment environment. The Nurse Leader promotes a culture of safety, accountability, collaboration, and therapeutic engagement while supporting staff performance, patient flow, regulatory compliance, and interdisciplinary coordination.

Essential Functions:

• Provide day-shift leadership and operational oversight for the inpatient mental health unit, ensuring effective coordination of patient care, staffing, and daily therapeutic programming.
• Supervise, support, and hold accountable registered nurses, licensed practical nurses if applicable, and mental health technicians assigned to the day shift.
• Coordinate and monitor daily programming to ensure groups, therapeutic activities, milieu management, and patient engagement interventions are carried out as planned.
• Partner with interdisciplinary team members, including providers, therapists, case managers, and other support staff, to support individualized treatment plans and continuity of care.
• Ensure safe staffing, appropriate assignment distribution, and real-time response to changes in census, acuity, admissions, discharges, and patient behavioral needs.
• Provide clinical guidance and leadership in psychiatric and behavioral health interventions, including crisis response, de-escalation, observation practices, and therapeutic communication.
• Oversee medication administration practices, nursing documentation, patient assessments, care planning, and handoff communication for compliance, timeliness, and quality.
• Monitor unit operations to promote a safe, therapeutic, trauma-informed environment for patients, staff, and visitors.
• Coach staff on performance expectations, workflow efficiency, patient engagement, professionalism, and adherence to policies, procedures, and standards of care.
• Participate in hiring, onboarding, orientation, training, competency validation, and ongoing development of nursing staff and mental health technicians.
• Address staff concerns, patient care issues, and operational barriers promptly and escalate issues as needed to nursing or administrative leadership.
• Support performance improvement initiatives, patient safety efforts, restraint and seclusion reduction strategies, and quality outcome monitoring.
• Review incidents, patient concerns, and staff-reported events; assist with follow-up, documentation, corrective action, and process improvement planning.
• Ensure compliance with applicable regulatory, accreditation, and organizational standards related to behavioral health care, staffing, documentation, and patient treatment programming.
• Lead or support shift huddles, safety rounds, interdisciplinary communication, and daily coordination meetings to align care priorities and operational needs.
• Serve as a role model for therapeutic leadership, customer service, professionalism, accountability, and respectful team collaboration.
• Handle with Care Instructor which helps train all staff and perform ongoing drills.
• Back up support for operations in ordering clients' needs such as food and supplies.
• Resolves client grievances and properly documents outcomes.
• Supports Prior Authorizations for medications and reviews any Laboratory denials.
• Orientates new staff and performs ongoing competency assessments and trainings.

• Current, active Registered Nurse (RN) license in the applicable state.
• Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) preferred
• Minimum of 3 – 5 years of nursing experience, with behavioral health, psychiatric, or inpatient mental health experience strongly preferred.
• Prior leadership, charge nurse, supervisor, or management experience required.
• Demonstrated knowledge of psychiatric nursing practice, crisis intervention, trauma-informed care, and therapeutic milieu management.
• Experience supervising or coordinating the work of multidisciplinary staff, including nursing staff and mental health technicians, preferred.
• Current CPR certification and other required facility-based training or certifications.

• Strong leadership, team supervision, and conflict resolution skills.
• Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced inpatient behavioral health environment.
• Strong clinical judgment and decision-making skills related to psychiatric and medical needs.
• Effective verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to coach staff, foster accountability, and build a collaborative team culture.
• Knowledge of safety practices, observation levels, risk assessment, and behavioral crisis response.
• Proficiency in documentation standards, electronic health records, and quality monitoring processes.
• Ability to coordinate programming, staffing, and patient care operations simultaneously.
• Commitment to patient-centered, trauma-informed, and recovery-oriented care.
• Able to perform all aspects of Handle with Care to include the physical management portion.

Work Environment

• Services are provided in office-based, community-based, and outreach settings.
• Dynamic behavioral health environment requiring flexibility and adaptability.
• May include evenings or weekends based on community needs and outreach activities.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to sit for extended periods and work at a computer workstation.
• Ability to stand, walk, bend, reach, and move within office and community settings.
• Ability to use standard office equipment and mobile devices.
• Sufficient visual acuity, hearing, and manual dexterity for effective communication and documentation.
• Ability to lift, carry, push, or pull materials up to 25 pounds.

Mobility Clause

This position requires flexibility to work at various Diversus Health locations based on operational and business needs. While a primary work site will be designated, employees may be reassigned temporarily or permanently to alternate sites to ensure adequate coverage, respond to facility needs, or support organizational initiatives. Reasonable notice will be provided whenever possible.