Community & Justice Liaison Nurse (Forensic Mental Health)

About the role

The Midcentral Service is looking for an experienced Mental Health Nurse, described as a Forensic Community & Justice Liaison Nurse, on a permanent full-time position (1 FTE). The nurse provides liaison and consultation between Courts, Prisons, Justice Departments, Mental Health, Police, Government and Community Agencies on mental health and addiction matters, and on the management of associated problems within each agency.

The nurse uses clinical and medical-legal knowledge and skills to give a rapid assessment of people identified as having, or possibly having, a mental health and addiction problem. The forensic community teams are multidisciplinary and provide mental health services to all prisons in the Central Region (6 prisons, holding a third of New Zealand's prison population) and to 17 court systems, and they follow up in the community people who move out of inpatient units. The Central Regional Forensic Service also acts as a Court Liaison Service for the Youth Court and completes specialist psychological or psychiatric assessments ordered by the Court under the Children, Young Persons and Families Act 1989 (section 333).

Required profile

Candidates should be able to show professional, legal and ethical responsibility and cultural safety, with knowledge and judgement and accountability for their own actions and decisions, while promoting patient safety, independence, quality of life and health. Registered Nurses must hold a pre-registration or post-registration qualification in mental health nursing (or ID) to work in MHAIDS. A full New Zealand driver's licence is required.

Required skills

• Interpersonal and therapeutic communication with clients, other nursing staff and other professionals
• Communication and documentation with inter-professional partners
• Client assessment and responsive management of client care supported by nursing knowledge and evidence-based research