Psychiatric Liaison Nurse

1. Screens psychiatric referrals from a variety of internal and external sources, gathers background information and determines service priorities. Works with Emergency Department staff in the identification of potential psychiatric referrals.
2. Performs psychosocial assessments and collects collateral related to patients' primary support group, social environment, occupation, education, housing, finance, health service access, and legal problems. Completes emergency psychiatry patient assessments for patients triaged to psychiatry.
3. Develops care plans with final dispositions authorized by the Emergency Room Physician or consulting psychiatrist and provides general and crisis counselling to patients and their families including short term crisis follow-up in accordance with approved treatment plans.
4. May provide short-term follow-up treatment and case management services at the Mental Health Centre for adults treated in the Emergency Department.
5. Communicates and consults with Coordinators and other members of the interprofessional mental health and substance use team on patient care issues, resources and discharge planning; organizes and participates in interprofessional conferences; engages patients and their family in plan of care and refers patients to other services as required.
6. Provides patient advocacy services with other agencies, services and service providers.
7. Documents assessments, care plan, observations, interventions, patient/family responses, outcomes/evaluations, and referrals according to practice standards and Fraser Health procedures.
8. Completes and maintains electronic Psychiatric Liaison Contact Sheets before the end of each shift or within the designated and hours of work.
9. Participates in patient care conferences of admitted psychiatric patients as required to ensure appropriate discharge planning and linkages to appropriate community mental health services.
10. Liaises with appropriate departments and professionals and facilitates transition to aftercare by sharing emergency treatment outcomes and care plans with Mental Health & Substance Use staff. Acts as patient advocate by assisting patients and their family members to access appropriate community resources.
11. Provides guidance to hospital staff involved in caring for psychiatric patients and provides input for team members actively involved in violence de-escalation, suicide prevention, seclusion, and restraint practices. Ensures safe patient management and adherence to restraint policies and procedures.
12. Participates in quality improvement activities by identifying patient care issues, collecting data, and identifying needs and recommendations for corrective action and changes to practices, procedures or protocols.
13. Provides input to the Managers regarding policies, procedures, and operational requirements by observing service needs and providing spoken or written suggestions that address patient and family needs and promote effective use of resources.
14. Identifies own learning needs/goals, reviews these with the Manager or designate and engages in a variety of activities to meet these needs/goals.
15. Maintains a safe environment for patients, families and staff by adhering to established safety and emergency practices and procedures.
16. Participates in the orientation and ongoing education of nursing staff and students by providing information and acting as a preceptor or mentor as appropriate. Identifies self-learning needs and attends educational programs to maintain and enhance clinical competency.
17. Performs other related duties as assigned.

• Ability to complete initial and ongoing mental health and substance use patient assessment and provide nursing care through appropriate/prescribed technical, therapeutic, safety type interventions including crisis intervention.
• Knowledge of mental illness and substance use treatment.
• Knowledge of psychopharmacology (indications and side-effects).
• Counselling and group facilitation skills.
• Knowledge of legislation and government policies and procedures that relate to mental health and substance use practices.
• Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing with patients/families/care givers, the public, medical staff and members of the interprofessional care team.
• Ability to promote person-centered care that demonstrates empathy for patients/families/care givers, sensitivity to diverse cultures and preferences, including advocacy for special populations.
• Ability to educate patients and families/care givers about topics essential to their health care and well-being.
• Ability to organize and prioritize work.
• Ability to collaborate with and promote cooperation among members of the interprofessional care team.
• Ability to use factual information and basic principles and procedures to support nursing decisions and actions with relevant research-based evidence/evidence-informed practice.
• Ability to operate related equipment including relevant computer applications.
• Physical ability to perform the duties of the position.

Fraser Health is the heart of health care for over two million people in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley in British Columbia, Canada, on the traditional, ancestral and unceded lands of the Coast Salish and Nlaka’pamux Nations and is home to 32 First Nations within the Fraser Salish region.

People - those we care for and those who care for them - are at the heart of everything we do. Our hospital and community-based services are delivered by a team of 48,000+ staff, medical staff and volunteers.

We are committed to planetary health and value diversity in the work force. We strive to maintain an environment of respect, caring and trust. Fraser Health’s hiring practices aspire to ensure all individuals are treated in an inclusive, equitable and culturally safe manner.

Together, we are the heart of health care.

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