Psychiatric Nurse Resume Examples and Templates for 2023

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Jacob Meade

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Jacob Meade is a resume writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience. His writing method centers on understanding and then expressing each person’s unique work history and strengths toward their career goal. Jacob has enjoyed working with jobseekers of all ages and career levels, finding that a clear and focused resume can help people from any walk of life. He is an Academy Certified Resume Writer (ACRW) with the Resume Writing Academy, and a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) with the Professional Association of Resume Writers & Career Coaches.

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When you begin working on your resume for psychiatric nurse positions, you may be unsure where to start. It can be hard to know what to include or leave out, given patient confidentiality and how to describe your work highlights and experience caring for people with mental illnesses.

The following guide can help. We have provided some examples and advice to help you determine:

  • •   Which skills to consider focusing on for your psychiatric nurse resume
  • •   How to organize the details and highlights of your work history
  • •   Aligning your resume with a particular job description

Downloadable Resume Examples

Entry-level
Psychiatric-Nurse_Entry-level.pdf

Example #1 Entry-level

Mid-career
Psychiatric-Nurse_Mid-career.pdf

Example #2 Mid-career

Senior-level
Psychiatric-Nurse_Senior-level.pdf

Example #3 Senior-level

Psychiatric Nurse Text-Only Resume Examples

Years of Experience
  • Entry-level Entry-level
  • Mid-career Mid-career
  • Senior-level Senior-level

Hideo Araki
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
123 Bridge Street, Boston, MA 12345

Profile

Psychiatric Nurse with recent experience at a major regional psychiatric hospital. Dedicated to providing quality nursing care to adult patients in coordination with other health team members. Skilled communicator who redirects and de-escalates patient behaviors to minimize the need for restraint measures and promote consistent intake of medications. Draw on strong knowledge of the latest evidence-based practices (EBP). Committed to ongoing professional development and education.

Professional Experience

Psychiatric Nurse, ABC Psychiatric Hospital, Boston, MA
April 2021 to Present

  • Monitor and support the well-being of adult patients at this psychiatric hospital
  • Assist patients with diagnoses such as bipolar disorder, eating disorders, conversion disorder, and borderline personality disorder
  • Observe, document, and help manage patients’ behavior to ensure physical safety at all points
  • Collaborative role working with psychiatrists, case managers, social workers, and nurse assistants
  • Prepare and administer patients’ medications per instructions from the psychiatrist

Education & License

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN),
Boston College, Boston, MA, 2021

Registered Nurse (RN),
State of Massachusetts, 2021

Key Skills

  • Behavioral Healthcare
  • Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)
  • Family Relations & Education
  • Intake Assessment
  • Patient Redirection & De-escalation
  • Reporting & Documentation
  • Therapeutic Conversations

Amar Singh
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
123 Santa Maria, San Francisco, CA 12345

Profile

Psychiatric Nurse with 5+ years of experience supporting adult patients in large hospital settings. Highly skilled communicators focused on effectively managing patient behaviors and de-escalating situations to minimize the need for physical or chemical restraints. Draw on broad, up-to-date knowledge of psychiatric medications, research, and best practices.

Professional Experience

Psychiatric Nurse, ABC Hospital, San Francisco, CA
April 2020 to Present

  • Help to stabilize and monitor adult patients on the psychiatric floor at this major hospital
  • Provide care and support to patients with psychiatric diagnoses, including bipolar disorder, conversion disorder, and schizophrenia
  • Coordinate with health team comprising psychiatrists, case managers, social workers, and nurse assistants
  • Advocate modifying patients’ psychotropic medications as appropriate

Psychiatric Nurse, XYZ Hospital, San Francisco, CA
April 2017 to April 2020

  • Supported patients with psychiatric diagnoses including borderline personality disorder, major depressive disorder, and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
  • Completed rounds to observe and document patients’ behavior, ensuring safety at all points
  • Maintained utmost diligence in preparing and administering patients’ medications

Education & License

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)
University of California, Berkeley, CA, 2017

Registered Nurse (RN)
State of California, 2017

Key Skills

  • Behavioral Healthcare
  • Crisis Intervention
  • Family Relations
  • Intake Assessment
  • Mental Health Assessment
  • Patient Redirection & De-escalation
  • Patient Safety
  • Reporting & Documentation
  • Team Collaboration
  • Therapeutic Conversations
  • Verbal Communication

Allison Rosenberg
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
123 Convoy St, San Diego, CA 12345

Profile

Psychiatric Nurse with 10+ years of experience focused on caring for geriatric patients. Expertly redirect and de-escalate patient behaviors, helping to minimize the need for physical or chemical restraints. Offer strong, up-to-date knowledge of evidence-based practice (EBP). Committed to ongoing professional skills development.

Professional Experience

Psychiatric Nurse, XYZ Psychiatric Hospital, San Diego, CA
April 2018 to Present

  • Provide quality nursing care and support to geriatric patients of this psychiatric hospital
  • Assist patients with diagnoses including bipolar disorder, conversion disorder, and schizophrenia
  • Collaborative role working with psychiatrists, case managers, social workers, and nurse assistants
  • Recommend modifying patients’ psychotropic medications and dosage as appropriate
  • Member of the project group that coordinated a significant expansion of the hospital’s community library collection

Psychiatric Nurse, ABC Behavioral Health, San Diego, CA
April 2012 to April 2018

  • Gained strong foundation in psychiatric nursing over six years at this psychiatric hospital
  • Supported patients with psychiatric diagnoses including borderline personality disorder, major depressive disorder, and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
  • Completed rounds to observe and document patients’ behavior, ensuring safety at all points
  • Prepared and administered patients’ medications in close coordination with the psychiatrist
  • Facilitated daily group therapy sessions to provide additional support and communication with patients

Select Prior Experience

Supported patient intake operations at XYZ Community Health Clinic.

Education & Professional Development

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)
University of California, San Diego, CA, 2012

Registered Nurse (RN)
State of California, 2012

Additional specialized training in therapeutic conversation methods

Key Skills

  • Behavioral Healthcare
  • Crisis Intervention & Management
  • Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)
  • Family Relations
  • Intake Assessment
  • Mental Health Assessment
  • Nursing Plan of Care
  • Patient Redirection & De-escalation
  • Patient Safety
  • Reporting & Documentation
  • Team Collaboration
  • Therapeutic Conversations
  • Verbal Communication

Tips for Writing a Better Psychiatric Nurse Resume

1. Describe your communication skills

Psychiatric nurses are versatile, expert communicators. In addition to their daily interaction with patients, they help de-escalate crises situations, coordinate with other health professionals, and serve as a point of contact for family members. Describe your various communication skills in your resume profile. You’ll show hiring managers you have the adaptability to the job demands.

Example


Psychiatric Nurse with recent experience at a major regional psychiatric hospital. Dedicated to providing quality nursing care to adult patients in coordination with other health team members. Skilled communicator who redirects and de-escalates patient behaviors to minimize the need for restraint measures and promote consistent intake of medications. Draw on strong knowledge of the latest evidence-based practices (EBP). Committed to ongoing professional development and education.

2. Highlight recent medical training

Psychiatry is an evolving field. You can show you’re keeping pace with that change by emphasizing up-to-date medical training or continuing education in your resume’s profile.

Example


Psychiatric Nurse with recent experience at a major regional psychiatric hospital. Dedicated to providing quality nursing care to adult patients in coordination with other health team members. Skilled communicator who redirects and de-escalates patient behaviors to minimize the need for restraint measures and promote consistent intake of medications. Draw on strong knowledge of the latest evidence-based practices (EBP). Committed to ongoing professional development and education.

3. Show how you’ve brought about change

While it can be hard to quantify results as a psychiatric nurse, consider if there are broader projects or improvements you’ve helped bring about at your organization. Did you suggest any process changes for a better quality of care? Or contribute to projects that improve patients’ daily life somehow? Even without hard data, details like these give the hiring manager a glimpse of the positive changes you might make at their facility.

Example


  • Member of the project group that led a significant expansion of the hospital’s community library collection

Key Skills Hiring Managers Look for on Psychiatric Nurse Resumes

Psychiatric nurses should use a resume to present their strong blend of communication skills and medical expertise. A great way to capture these details is to add a “Key Skills” section just below your profile paragraph (as shown in the above resume examples). Consider including any of the below terms in your own skills section to help your resume get noticed:

Key Skills and Proficiencies
Behavioral Healthcare Crisis Intervention
Crisis Management Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)
Family Relations Intake Assessment
Mental Health Assessment Nursing Plan of Care
Patient Redirection & De-escalation Patient Safety
Reporting & Documentation Team Collaboration
Therapeutic Conversations Verbal Communication

Common Action Verbs for Psychiatric Nurse Resumes

We know it’s easy to get stuck when writing the professional experience section of a resume. You might find that you start to run out of action verbs to describe your work. To help you over the hump, we put together this list of strong resume verbs:

Action Verbs
Administered Assisted
Collaborated Created
Decreased Enhanced
Generated Improved
Increased Initiated
Introduced Monitored
Observed Prepared
Provided Raised

How to Align Your Psychiatric Nurse Resume With the Job Description

What age group of patients have you worked with most? And have you been employed on the psychiatric floor of a hospital or a separate facility with full-time residents? Keep these factors in mind while looking at psychiatric nurse job postings. When you find a posting that intrigues you, decide whether the facility or patient type overlaps with your background. If so, consider adding a mention of that in your resume’s profile.

Taking this extra step will make your resume more relevant to the job at hand and more likely to attract the hiring manager’s notice.