CNA (1st shift)

About the role

The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services supports individuals by promoting recovery, self‑determination, and wellness in all aspects of life. DBHDS operates 12 facilities: 8 behavioral health facilities for adults, a training center, a psychiatric facility for children and adolescents, a medical center, and a center for behavioral rehabilitation. State facilities provide highly structured, intensive services for individuals with mental illness, intellectual disability, or substance use disorder needs. DBHDS is committed to a life of possibilities for all Virginians. This position is located at Southern Virginia Mental Health Institute, a 72‑bed Joint Commission accredited State Mental Health Facility in Danville, VA.

Responsibilities

• Work directly with patients to achieve therapeutic goals through activities of daily living (ADLs).
• Attend to patients’ problems and concerns.
• Encourage patients to participate in activities.
• Provide intervention for behavior problems and crisis situations.
• Promote patients’ awareness and coping skills to deal with realities of judicial controls as required.
• Understand and use the least restrictive interventions per hospital policy to avoid seclusion and restraint.
• Distinguish between appropriate and inappropriate client behavior through observation, conversation, and listening.
• Interact with patients in a therapeutic manner.
• Monitor and report changes in patients’ medical and psychiatric status.
• Lift heavy objects (greater than 50 pounds).
• Walk and/or stand a minimum of 75% of the time while on shift.

Requirements

• Licensed and in good standing as a Nurse Aide in the Commonwealth of Virginia; license must remain valid throughout employment.
• Basic computer skills for training in Electronic Health Record (EHR) documentation.
• Valid driver’s license that must remain valid throughout employment.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED.
• Experience working in a psychiatric, healthcare, acute care, long‑term, or correctional setting.
• Veterans and individuals with National Service experience are encouraged to apply.
• Bilingual fluency in Spanish and English is a plus.

Skills

• Ability to follow written and verbal directions.
• Physical and mental ability to participate in patient treatment and behavior management, including performing manual tasks, walking, sitting, standing, lifting, seeing, hearing, breathing, learning, writing, and performing mathematical calculations.

Pay

Hiring range: $42,199 – $57,255 (Pay Band 3). Shift differentials for first shift include $3.00/hour for weekends and weekday holidays.

Schedule

Works 1st shift: two 12‑hour shifts (7:00 am‑7:30 pm) and two 8‑hour shifts (7:00 pm‑3:30 pm) with a 30‑minute meal break; some holidays on a rotating basis and every other