Coordinator – CRCL- CASUAL

AVI Health and Community Services • Courtenay, BC

54d • Onsite

About The Position

AVI Health & Community Services (AVI) is a multi-disciplinary community-based organization providing HIV, hepatitis C, harm reduction, and mental health services on Vancouver Island, operating within a social justice and health promotion framework. The organization offers services in the Comox Valley and Campbell River, including harm reduction education, positive wellness, health promotion, prescribed Alternatives (PA), and mental health crisis response. The AVI Crisis Response, Community-Led (CRCL) program, funded by the Province of British Columbia and the Canadian Mental Health Association, is a mobile crisis response team. It is led by individuals with lived/living experience and mental health professionals, focusing on de-escalating crises and developing community care plans. This approach emphasizes health, well-being, and community support, utilizing a community-based, client-centered, trauma-informed, and peer-assisted model of care. K'ómoks First Nation provides guidance to ensure cultural safety and Indigenous perspectives are integrated into the CRCL program, which serves persons 13 years of age and older experiencing mental health and/or substance use related crises. CRCL Coordinators report to the CRCL Team Manager and are responsible for the supervision and support of the CRCL Team, including daily operations and systems. This role is not office-bound, requiring responsiveness and flexibility to attend calls, perform outreach, meet stakeholders, and be present in staff work areas, all while being grounded in person-centered, harm reduction, and trauma-informed approaches.

Requirements

• Strong understanding of colonialism and the ways in which historical and ongoing colonization impacts Indigenous People
• Minimum 3-5 years relevant clinical and operational leadership experience including, overseeing mental health programs and leading diverse staff teams
• Minimum 2-3 years Program Coordination/Management experience in the fields of health and/or social care
• University degree in mental health, health, or social services, (e.g., public health, social work, psychiatric nursing)
• Ability to coach and mentor staff, engage in group process work (i.e. goal setting & debriefing), facilitate conflict resolution, foster empathic communication and demonstrate clear boundaries
• Able to respectfully engage and support Indigenous relationships, with a trauma informed and decolonial lens
• Demonstrated skills, experience, and knowledge of harm reduction and health promotion practices
• Demonstrated practice of social justice, cultural humility, and trauma-informed approaches to care
• Relevant or applicable training/experience in anti-racism and an analysis of colonialism and the ways in which historical and ongoing colonization impacts Indigenous People
• First aid and CPR level C
• Valid Class 5 BC Driver’s License with “Normal” Drivers Status
• Driver’s Abstract (AVI will review the past year’s driving record. Drivers will need to have no suspensions or prohibitions or 1 passenger only restrictions or a Driver's Factor of 1.1 or lower)
• Employment subject to criminal record check for working with vulnerable population
• Ability to supervise diverse, busy work environments including multi-tasking, directing, and supporting multiple team members, and navigating complex situations to ensure staff safety and quality program delivery
• Ability to manage hostile interactions, utilizing non-violent communication, situational awareness, and diffusing techniques
• Emotional Resilience and ability to center the needs of the person in crisis, including persons who are angry, hostile, expressing values and beliefs that are opposed to yours/the teams
• Humility, flexibility and self-directed
• Ability to critically assess and remain grounded in complex, changing situations
• Ability to work mandatory overtime, to continue to provide emergency responses, where and as needed

Nice To Haves

• Crisis de-escalation and intervention skills and experience with situational safety and/or mental health assessments is an asset

Responsibilities

• Model a high degree of cultural competency to staff, including ensuring services are culturally sensitive and incorporate Indigenous knowledge, practices, and approaches to healing and wellness
• Oversee daily operations, including the development and support of operations and team systems
• Provide daily supervision of staff, including ensuring quality service delivery, and adherence to policy and practices
• Support staff to develop capacities and adhere to team practices, utilizing daily guidance, check-ins and 1:1 staff supervision
• Develop and maintain effective working relationships with community care providers, including emergency services personnel
• Participate in team development, including hiring, team and individual training, and staff reviews
• Oversee and supervise confidential case notes, including quality control and storage of confidential client files
• Ensure quality control and transparency of service, reporting to the CRCL Team Manager and Program Director
• Always remain available to the team including attending calls, performing outreach and being within staff work areas
• Ready and able to respond to mental health and substance use related crises
• Triage, assess and adjust responses depending on call acuity, severing and other incoming calls
• Think critically and respond quickly, especially in critical situations and when deciding the next course of action
• Respond to/answer back-to-back calls
• Communicate effectively with all teams attending calls, including collaborative and directive styles of communication
• Remain responsive to incoming calls up until the end of shift, and/or when Mandatory Emergency Overtime is in effect
• Demonstrate emotional resilience, including and especially within complex situations
• Work effectively as a team, including respectful communication throughout and following an emergency crisis response
• Continuously center the needs of the person experiencing crisis
• Effectively and professionally engage other care providers, including when advocating for a person in crisis, and/or when critically assessing and determining the next course of action
• Develop comprehensive safety plans and establish post crisis follow-up care, centering the needs of the person in crisis
• Utilize a trauma informed approach, including with persons who are escalated and who use language or express beliefs that could be offensive or triggering for staff
• Decenter themselves to provide care to all persons accessing our services
• Utilize situational awareness, assessment, de-escalation, and mental health training to work safely within changing and unpredictable environments
• Be prepared for and able to adapt to changing work environments, including all kinds of weather, for extended periods, within and around diverse types of substance use, within and around respiratory illnesses, within potentially hazardous dwellings, within unknown and unpredictable environments
• Perform over the phone and in-person assessment to critically assess and determine the next course of action, including in cases where Dispatch was unable to provide detailed information
• Remain on scene and able to critically assess, including when a situation escalates and/or requires a higher level of care
• Professionally engage service providers, including police, ambulance, fire, and healthcare providers, etc.
• Utilize ongoing assessment, rapport building and universal precautions
• Utilize direct questions (open and closed ended), direct feedback and motivational interviewing skills
• Manage the central call line for the CRCL team, including phone lines and through text
• Assess and triage calls and text messages from community including assessment screening and triage, while initiating Community Care Plans and resourcing community supports
• Develops support and safety plans for persons in crisis, and/or for Third Party Callers
• Consults with community resources, family members and peers, as directed by and appropriate to the caller's needs, as well as participating in trainings, case management, daily debriefing, client follow-up and staff check‐ins
• Where appropriate redirect callers to access pertinent resources, including 911 and/or the crisis line
• Quickly and accurately engages in assessments and obtains all information needed to assist CRCL team in responding to crisis calls
• Gather and share vital and relevant information, liaising between caller and CRCL team, updating CRCL Team of status/status change of person in crisis
• Provides non-judgmental emotional telephone and text support and crisis intervention, including assessment, problem solving and community resourcing
• Completes a thorough assessment of suicidal ideation and/or homicidally, including planning or attempt in progress
• Uses assessment and screening tools to determine urgency and involves CRCL Team or other emergency services, depending on severity and needs of individual and care provider(s) onsite
• Assess needs and risk of callers, referring to appropriate services and providing short term follow-up during wait times, and until CRCL support can be arranged
• Supports behind the scenes systems, including communication with internal AVI programs, staff scheduling, payroll and leave management
• Consults with community members and resources, as appropriate to client care
• Quickly prioritizes multiple competing tasks using a methodological approach to problem solve, make decisions, and communicate clearly
• Assess, identify, plan, intervene and evaluate bio-psycho/social/spiritual care needs in accordance with best practices and documents
• Monitor team workload and location and input/evaluate and triage according to capacity
• Implement active ‘rescue’ when an intervention is required (I.e., call 911, advise use of lifesaving First-Aid, etc.)
• Maintain confidential client case files, including Community Care Plans, safety and wellness assessments
• Maintain familiarity with Comox Valley resources, their interrelationships, and their function in delivering care in the community i.e., Mental health & substance use responsive services
• Be open to feedback, engage in self reflective practices and humility
• Understand and practice both collective and personal accountability
• Be self-directed and able to perform all duties and professional obligations, without prompting or reminding
• Demonstrate and engage in collaborative support and relationship building with K'ómoks First Nation Community, and its members
• Adhere to all CRCL Program Policies and Practices
• Adhere to AVIs Policies and Procedures and Code of Ethics

Benefits

• Pay: $37.38/hour to start with stepped increases based on your seniority with AVI. (Pay for this role is based on the BCGEU pay grid 38+10%)
• Pension: If you are already a member of the Municipal Pension Plan (MPP), you can continue with them at AVI immediately. At this time, AVI contributes an additional 9.31% towards your pension account. If you are not already a member of the Municipal Pension Plan, part time staff may become eligible after 2 years with AVI.
• Other Perks: This position receives Stat In Lieu, which means is paid an extra 5% in lieu of vacation 5% in lieu of stats, meaning your hourly rate is 10% higher than listed.

What This Job Offers

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