Intake Registered Nurse (RN) - Full-time

Oceans Healthcare; Norman (OK); On-site; USD 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

Oceans Healthcare is expanding mental health services with a new behavioral hospital in south central Oklahoma. The Intake Clinician will manage admissions inquiries, obtain necessary information, and direct patients to appropriate care while coordinating with referral sources and internal teams.

The role emphasizes customer service, confidentiality, regulatory compliance, and the ability to navigate a busy hospital setting to support optimal patient disposition and timely admissions.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Behavioral Health or RN preferred/required.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills are essential.
• Excellent time management and organizational abilities.
• Ability to read, write, and follow verbal and written instructions.

Responsibilities

• Process admission requests from referral sources and community partners.
• Collect required information for admissions and present clinical summaries to admitting physician.
• Complete Level of Care Assessments for patients needing evaluation.
• Collaborate with providers, referrals, and departments to support admissions and patient care.
• Ensure confidentiality and HIPAA compliance in all communications.
• Handle duties as assigned by supervisor and contribute to a fast-paced environment.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Effective communication

Time management

Organizational skills

Education

Masters degree in Behavioral Health

RN license

Job description

Norman Regional Health System and Oceans Healthcare have partnered to expand access to behavioral health services in south central Oklahoma through construction of a new, state-of-the-art behavioral hospital.

Behavioral Health Center at Porter Health Village, a 48-bed facility, will more that double Norman Regional Health System’s inpatient capacity for adult and senior behavioral health patients and add new services, including an intensive outpatient program and a dedicated geriatric behavioral health unit. The freestanding hospital will be located on the Norman Regional Porter campus and replace the existing 20-bed behavioral health unit.

The Intake Clinician receives and responds to call inquiries for potential admissions and generalized questions. The Clinician obtains the required information to facilitate admissions and makes referrals for persons who are not appropriate for admission to the facility. The Clinician reviews pending admissions daily to ensure that clinical, financial, insurance, and administrative information has been accurately obtained and acted upon. The Intake Clinician completes Level of Care Assessments for any patient in need of evaluation within Intake. The Clinician works collaboratively with referral sources, community members, patients, the provider, and interdepartmentally to ensure the facility’s mission of providing exemplary patient care and customer service is upheld. The Clinician maintains the ability to provide excellent customer service to internal and external customers. The Clinician displays the ability to effectively listen, process received information, and express ideas verbally and in writing. The Clinician ensures that confidentiality of hospital employees and patient information to meet HIPAA and hospitals standards is upheld. The Clinician shows the ability to initiate action, take personal responsibility, suggest improvements, and solve problems within the scope of the position without being asked. The Clinician shows an understanding and complies with government regulations, regulatory and accreditation requirements, and hospital policies. The Clinician shows the ability to complete assigned work in an acceptable manner, in the time allotted, with minimal prompting or reminders.

Essential Functions

• Admissions Process
  • Processes request for admission from outside referral agencies and from within the community
  • Maintains ability to review clinical packet for criteria in alignment with the capability and capacity of the facility
  • Maintains understanding of Admission and Exclusionary Criteria
  • Maintains understanding of EMTALA
  • Ensures that prior authorizations are obtained for admissions
  • Organizes information of patient’s current needs and provides a succinct clinical presentation to admitting physician
  • Completes Level of Care Assessments/Evaluations
  • Collaborates with On-Call Provider to determine appropriate disposition for the patient
• Communication
  • Handles sensitive information appropriately and acts in a fair and honest manner consistent with the Company’s Code of Conduct including reporting and violations
  • Builds and maintains communication processes to ensure efficient and effective transmission of information
  • Works collaboratively with all departments to create an environment that supports the facility’s mission
  • Ensures current state and federal regulatory and standards related to communication of incidents are met
  • Demonstrates timely communication of information to appropriate leadership channels commensurate with situation
• Customer Focus
  • Interacts with patient, family members, external entities and internal staff professionally and respectfully
  • Adheres to systems and processes that promotes a high level of commitment to anticipating, understanding and meeting the needs of patients, family, and other employees
  • Demonstrates an understanding of the community’s continuum of behavioral health resources
  • Acts to preserve patient and family dignity and safety
• Values Diversity
  • Takes measures to gain the perspectives from persons having diverse opinions, motivations, abilities, and ethnic and/or cultural backgrounds
  • Show appreciation for gender, race, age, and other differences
• Documentation
  • Completes required Admission documentation within electronic medical record and through internal web-based systems
  • Documentation for medical records and reports is timely, legible, thorough, and in required format
  • Adheres to documentation standards for the department and facility in compliance with regulatory requirements
  • Documentation as required including inquiry calls, assessments, managed care data, etc.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Educational / Experience Requirements

• Masters’ degree in Behavioral Health field from an accredited college or university preferred; or Registered Nurse.
• Experience with crisis management or intake preferred

Qualifications / Skills

• Must understand admission criteria for varying levels of care, medications commonly prescribed for treatment of psychiatric illness and community resources.
• Must possess interpersonal skills to develop rapport with presenting patient, family members and referral sources.
• Must demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to assess for care appropriate to any age-related/disability-related needs of the patient served.
• Must demonstrate knowledge of the principles of growth and development appropriate to the patient population served.
• Must be able to assess and interpret data about the patient's status in order to identify each patient's needs and provide appropriate referrals, including age related care and disability related care by Chronically Mentally Ill, Adult, Geriatric and Chemically Dependent patient populations.
• Must demonstrate knowledge of mental illness and chemical dependency and family dynamics which accompany them.
• Must have basic knowledge of Chronic Mental Illness and have knowledge of clinical therapy modalities.
• Must have excellent communication and skills as related to age specific patient needs.
• Must be able to demonstrate assessment skills.
• Must be able to read, to write and to follow verbal and written instruction.
• Must have good time management and organizational skills.
• Must be versatile, flexible and able to perform in stressful situations.
• Must have good time management and organizational skills.
• Must be able to read, to write and to follow verbal and written instruction.
• Must be knowledgeable concerning DSM-IV-R diagnosis.
• Must successfully complete CPR certification and an Oceans approved behavioral health de-escalation program.

Work Environment

Subject to many interruptions. Occasional pressure due to multiple calls and inquiries. This position can be high paced and stressful; must be able to cope mentally and physically to atmosphere. This person might sometimes experience disagreeable odors, sights and/or unpredictable patient behavior. Work requires spending approximately 90% or more of the time inside a building that offers protection from weather conditions but not necessarily from temperature changes.