Clinical Reentry Liaison (Grant Funded)

Cook County • Chicago, IL

6d • Onsite

About The Position

The Clinical Reentry Liaison, under the direction of the Senior Program Manager, will serve as a clinical discharge coordinator for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) within the Cook County Department of Corrections (CCDOC). The Clinical Reentry Liaison works with a multidisciplinary team of professionals to engage participants in services and assist them with care coordination. They will provide individual intervention, crisis intervention, case management services, clinical assessment, and care coordination to individuals reentering the community from CCDOC. They will monitor client progress, develop and review service care plans, assess client stability, and coordinate community services for clients as appropriate (including emergency intervention). They will coordinate efforts between the County criminal-legal system stakeholders, Cook County Health, community agencies, managed-care programs, benefit and entitlement organizations, and across the CCSO to deliver clinical reentry services to individuals in custody. They will monitor, track, analyze, and manage grant related documentation, data, and outcomes as determined by grantor.

Requirements

• Possession of a master’s or higher degree from an accredited college or university in Counseling, Psychology, Social Work, Social Sciences or a closely related field.
• Possession of active state licensure as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) or Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC).
• Four (4) years of full-time paid experience in behavioral health services and/or social services.
• Proficiency in the use of the most current version of Microsoft Suite.
• Ability to work in a professional office environment, within a jail/prison, and in the community.
• Ability to work any shift assigned, including days, afternoons, or midnights; must be capable of working holidays and weekends; must be capable of working mandatory overtime and afterhours on call shifts, as required.
• Proficiency in evidence-based practices, assessment, treatment, and care planning. Able to incorporate these practices in service delivery to diverse populations including but not limited to: persons experiencing mental health concerns, substance abuse, homelessness, incarceration, or co-occurring disorders.
• Possess a strong understanding of substance use, mental health, and forensic behavioral health issues and an expansive knowledge of County community resources and networks available to the justice-involved population.
• Ability to initiate, build, and maintain partnerships with community organizations and service providers.
• Possess a nonjudgmental approach to working with justice-involved individuals and their loved ones.
• Working knowledge of the justice system and the needs of the justice-involved population.
• Possess a nonjudgmental and professional approach to working with all individuals.
• Possess a thorough working knowledge of or the ability to grasp and utilize the policies, protocols, systems, procedures and technical vernacular of the department, agency, and County, as applicable to assigned duties and responsibilities quickly and effectively.
• Ability to meet prescribed deadlines.
• Ability to manage high-risk, high-needs cases.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, multidisciplinary environment.
• Strong attention to detail and diligent maintenance of documentation and record keeping.
• Ability to prioritize tasks, multi-task, and remain organized.
• Ability to communicate effectively (orally and written) with participants, families, partner agencies, and CCSO staff in a professional and compassionate manner.
• Ability to work effectively independently as well as on a multidisciplinary team.
• Ability to work cooperatively and professionally on a treatment team.
• Possess a strong sense of compassion and patience and an interest in being of service to an underserved population.
• Maintain competencies related to the forensic population, cultural diversity, clinical practices, communication skills, personal development, and ethics by reading professional literature and attending workshops or seminars.
• Respect for cultural diversity; and the ability to work respectfully with persons of different genders, ages, races/ethnicities, religions, sexual orientations, sexual identities, disabilities, and SES.
• Respect for specific workplace cultural diversity concerns and appropriate conduct.
• Ability to walk long distances or stand for extended periods of time throughout the course of the assigned shift.
• Ability to work remotely, if needed, in a quiet and private space to protect participant confidentiality and sensitive information acquired related to job responsibilities.
• Ability to be flexible in work location(s) and work hours, which may be subject to change.

Nice To Haves

• Possession of certification as a Certified Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Counselor (CADC).
• Experience working in additional service settings/with other populations (e.g., housing/ homelessness, substance use treatment, behavioral health settings, community corrections, or domestic violence).
• Two (2) or more years conducting clinical supervision.
• Six (6) or more years of full time, professional work experience in a community mental health and/or hospital setting, performing mental health counseling and assessments.
• Possession of bilingual language skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage the day-to-day programmatic components of clinical initiatives including, but not limited to, screening, assessment, intake, treatment planning, case management, care coordination, documentation, maintaining participant lists and tracking systems, clinical supervision, and oversight of any/all assigned staff tasked to make sure the program is able to operate effectively.
• Operate from a trauma-informed approach during clinical and professional engagement.
• Assess participants for determination of clinical, socio-emotional and reentry service needs; focus on diagnostic and functional evaluations and make recommendations on treatment goals and plans; collect information through interviews and observations.
• Conduct crisis needs assessment, crisis intervention, and crisis safety planning.
• Provide de-escalation as needed, and emergency care coordination to include assisting with civil commitment and medical placement.
• Provide focused intervention of participants; provide consultation and training to staff to enhance their skill in providing effective management of impacted participants.
• Develop service care plans and help participants maintain stability.
• Overseeing the implementation of new programming opportunities for participants, and in collaboration with supervisors, play a key role in building and maintaining relationships with community partners related to programming.
• Communicate regularly with Sheriff’s Office leadership, civilian, and sworn staff, particularly in the CCDOC Records Department and Classification, the CCDOC Discharge Unit, and Cermak Health Services to make sure that discharging individuals coordinated releases or discharge plans are appropriately executed.
• Collaborate with relevant external partners with regard to returning citizens referrals for the purpose of setting and executing coordinated releases.
• Coordinate pre-release planning, treatment recommendations, social service referrals, and all other needs with internal and external organizations to ensure continuity of care.
• Establish a supportive, motivational, therapeutic relationship with all participants; plan, organize, and lead structured interventions; work to support behavioral changes and help individuals make healthier life choices.
• Guide participants in the development of skills to assist in dealing with specific problems; assist with the understanding and management of mental health and chemical dependency issues; serve as a role model and coach regarding development of problem solving, decision-making and conflict resolution.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment/care plan in correlation to the participant’s progress in resolving identified problems and meeting identified goals.
• Act as an advocate for the participant and CCSO in coordinating services with all treatment partners and criminal-legal system stakeholders.
• Complete and maintain service-related paperwork, in accordance with state and federal requirements; write reports, service care plans and recommendations, progress reports and other reports, as required.
• Track day-to-day operations in the Discharge Unit, to maintain or improve service quality while ensuring program sustainability and grant compliance.
• Maintain records and data that track cases to generate monthly, quarterly, and annual reports for internal purposes and grant reporting.
• Manage day-to-day clinical operations in the Discharge Unit, to maintain or improve service quality while ensuring program sustainability and grant compliance.
• Establish and maintain productive, professional relationships with a variety of community organizations.
• Propose, plan, and implement new initiatives in order to strengthen services provided to the participants.
• Provide consistent feedback to supervisor on ways of continually improving and streamlining program processes, operations, and outcomes.
• Assist in the implementation of broad-based strategies to increase access to programs which takes into account the demands of the justice population, the effectiveness of existing programming, and the need for transitional linkages to community resources.
• Complete all other duties as required by executive team.

Benefits

• Health insurance coverage includes medical, dental and vision care and is available for an employee and his/her eligible dependents.
• Thirteen (13) Holidays are granted in each Fiscal Year. Employees who are active at the beginning of the fiscal year (December 1st) also qualify for a floating holiday.
• Granted sick leave is earned and accrued at the rate of one (1) day for each month of service and may be accumulated up to one hundred and seventy-five (175) working days.
• Granted Vacation leave is earned and accrued, with employees having the opportunity to accrue fifteen (15) days within the Fiscal Year; Vacation leave accruals increase based on an employee’s anniversary date of employment.
• Basic term life insurance, equal to one (1) time the employee’s annual salary, is offered to every employee at no cost and the employee may elect to purchase supplemental coverage.
• Employees contribute into the Cook County Pension Fund and earn a prescribed percentage for each year of service; employees may be eligible for an annual annuity after ten (10) years of service and upon reaching a certain age based on when the employee started employment.
• Employees may elect to enroll in a deferred compensation plan, a tax deferred plan which may be used as a supplemental retirement option.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level