Behavioral Intake Counselor - Remote

UnitedHealth Group•San Diego, CA

9h•Remote

About The Position

Optum is a global organization that delivers care, aided by technology to help millions of people live healthier lives. The Behavioral Intake Counselor (BIC) position is for the County of San Diego’s 24/7 Access and Crisis Line (ACL), which provides free, confidential access to behavioral health services and crisis intervention for the 3.3 million San Diegans. ACL clinicians need to quickly establish an emotional connection with individuals seeking help, identify their needs, conduct a behavioral health screening (including an adapted ASAM screening), recognize and properly follow up on any risk factors, and help provide linkage to the most appropriate type and level of care based on collective screenings and caller/chatter preferences.

Requirements

Master’s Degree or Doctorate within human services such as Psychology, Sociology or equivalent
If Registered with a licensing entity such as the Board of Behavioral Science, must have a “cleared” status- not on probation and no pending corrective actions
2+ years of post graduate degree providing direct clinical services: psychosocial assessments, individual therapy, substance use disorder drug/alcohol treatment, case consultation with multidisciplinary team; case management; developing treatment plans with short/long-term goals; maintain confidential files; in-service training and discharge planning
1+ years of experience in responding to individuals in crisis by applying de-escalation strategies, motivational interviewing skills, and empathetic, trauma informed care
1+ years of experience working with diverse multi-ethnic/socioeconomic populations; myriads of psychological disorders and addictions
Ability to access and enter accurate relevant clinical information into Medi-Cal beneficiary electronic health record (EHR)
Bilingual: Spanish/English

Nice To Haves

1 or more years of prior experience in a call center

Responsibilities

Adhere to all applicable laws and ethics (HIPAA, Exceptions to confidentiality, Reporting Abuse, Duty to Warn etc.)
Answer calls/chats within standard service levels
Apply sound clinical judgement and consult with fellow clinical professionals when indicated
Triage calls/chats based on presenting mental health and/or substance use disorder symptoms
Conduct appropriate behavioral health screenings, including suicide, homicide (when indicated) and adapted ASAM
Provide customized, behavioral health referrals
Conduct crisis work and ensure safety
Document all interaction in a succinct, clinical manner in the designated database; documentation must adhere to Dept. of Health Clinical Service (DHCS) requirements
Access and enter accurate relevant clinical information into Medi-Cal beneficiary electronic health record (EHR)
Meeting individual performance goal
Problem solves technical issues
Elevate operational issues/ concerns to supervisor or manager
Gain experience training crisis line staff to support adherence to established protocols, quality benchmarks, and compliance requirements, while strengthening personal competency on the crisis line
Other duties as assigned