Maternal Child Health Nurse

Employment Type: Permanent part time
Hours: 0.6 FTE, 48 hours per fortnight
Salary: RPN 4 grade 1
Location: Werribee Mercy Hospital
Contact: Carmen Kong, Nurse Unit Manager
Email: *****@mercy.com.au

Where there's life, there's Mercy.
Where there's care, there's You.

Through the battles and the breakthroughs, we're there. Where will you be?

For over a century, our incredible teams have provided care for people when they need it most. Our people feel great pride in this, and they value the security and stability we offer. But it also means so much opportunity - to build on all that's gone before, to grow your impact and gain experience that's hard to find elsewhere.

As a for-purpose organisation with over 10,000 dedicated, compassionate people, we continue to offer more services and deeper care than ever before. With Mercy, you'll have the chance to make an impact and gain experience that's hard to find elsewhere.

At Mercy Health, it's all about taking what we have and making it better.
To do that, we need you.
Join us at Mercy Health, and help our teams deliver even greater outcomes.

About the opportunity

The Werribee Mother Baby Unit (MBU) treats Perinatal patients with Mental Illness and has a focus on strengthening parenting capacity by optimising the mother-Infant attachment relationship. The MBU is a 6 bed 6 cot inpatient Perinatal Mental Health Unit on the grounds of the Werribee Mercy Hospital campus. The multidisciplinary treating team members include psychiatrist, psychiatric registrar, psychologist, maternal and child health nurse, Clinical Nurse Specialist, postgraduate level nursing staff, dietician, Nurse Unit Manager and other liaising clinicians.

We are seeking an experienced and compassionate Maternal and Child Health Nurse (MCHN) to join our multidisciplinary Mother Baby Unit, based at Werribee Mercy Hospital. This unique role combines maternal and infant health expertise with perinatal mental health care, supporting mothers experiencing mental health challenges while promoting infant wellbeing, development and attachment.

About the Role

As the Maternal and Child Health Nurse, you will play a key role in coordinating and delivering infant-focused care within the Mother Baby Unit. Working collaboratively with psychiatrists, mental health nurses, allied health clinicians, paediatricians and families, you will provide comprehensive assessment, education and support to optimise outcomes for mothers and their infants.

Key responsibilities include:

• Conduct comprehensive physical, social and emotional assessments of infants admitted to the Mother Baby Unit.
• Coordinate and monitor infant care plans throughout admission.
• Promote infant health, development, attachment and responsive caregiving.
• Support mothers with infant feeding, sleep, settling and developmental concerns.
• Provide individual and group education sessions for mothers and families.
• Advocate for the safety, rights and wellbeing of infants.
• Collaborate with paediatricians, lactation consultants, dietitians and community services.
• Contribute to discharge planning and continuity of care with community Maternal and Child Health services.
• Participate in quality improvement, clinical education and service development activities.
• Provide specialist infant health consultation and education to the multidisciplinary team and broader internal services within Mercy Health to support best practice care.
• Liaise with fathers/partners regarding infant-focused care and facilitate a weekly fathers/partners group.

What you'll bring

You're resilient, compassionate and have a whole lot of heart. Most importantly, you are committed to delivering exceptional patient-centred care.

To thrive in this role, you will have:

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Strong clinical assessment and documentation abilities.
• Ability to work effectively in complex and sensitive situations.
• Commitment to culturally safe and inclusive practice.
• Passion for supporting infant mental health and early relational health.

Essential Qualifications

• Registration with AHPRA as a Registered Nurse and Midwife.
• Postgraduate qualification in Maternal and Child Health Nursing.
• Current CPR certification and mandatory training requirements for adults and infants.
• experience working in Mental Health and in Maternal and Child Health Nursing.
• Knowledge of infant development, attachment theory, and parent-infant relationships.
• Experience conducting infant developmental and psychosocial assessments.
• Ability to provide infant mental health-informed interventions and parent-infant therapeutic support.
• Experience working collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams.

Desirable Qualifications and Experience

• Experience working in perinatal and infant mental health services /Early Parenting Centre or Enhanced MCH.
• Training in Newborn Observations, Circle of Security, attachment-based, trauma-informed, or family-centred practice.
• Experience facilitating parenting programs, group interventions, and psychoeducation.
• Knowledge of recovery-oriented mental health care and family-inclusive practice.

You will also be required to provide evidence of, or in the process of obtaining:

• A current Police Record Check and Working with Children Check.
• Proof of current influenza vaccination and other vaccination status consistent with public health orders.

Ready to help us shape the future of healthcare?

Join us and make a meaningful difference in people's lives - and your career.

Please contact us if you would like to find out more or communicate any requirements to ensure we provide you with a fair and equitable interview and selection process.

We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples, traditional Custodians of the Land in which our Head Office is based, on traditional lands of the Kulin Nation and recognise their deep connections to the land, sea, and culture.

We extend this acknowledgment to the many Traditional Lands that we operate across Australia and pay our respects to Elders past and present.

The team at Mercy Health is as wonderfully diverse as the patients, residents, clients and communities we support. We're proud to be recognised as an Employer of Choice for Gender Equality by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). Mercy Health strongly encourages applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and people of all ages, sexualities, genders, abilities and cultural backgrounds.

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