Field Based AOD Counselor III

Clare Foundation, Inc.•Santa Monica, CA

About The Position

As an individual contributor under general supervision, the Field-Based Services (FBS) Counselor III provides advanced SUD counseling, care coordination, and crisis intervention in community settings such as shelters, interim housing, permanent supportive housing, and encampments. The counselor delivers trauma-informed, culturally responsive services, completes assessments and treatment plans, facilitates counseling, and supports program quality through collaboration and mentorship.

Requirements

Certification: Must hold an active and valid advanced certification: CADC-II (CCAPP), CAODC-S (CADTP), or CATC IV–V (CAADE).
Experience: Must meet SAPC staff requirements for FBS providers; experience working with high-acuity, community-based populations, including co-occurring disorders, strongly preferred.
Travel Requirement: The role requires the ability to travel independently and reliably between multiple work sites and community locations during scheduled work hours to deliver services.
Safety Training: Must complete and maintain CPR/First Aid certification; Naloxone training, Overdose prevention, agency-required field safety training completed upon hire.
Trainings: All agency trainings as needed.
Knowledge: Demonstrates understanding of SUD treatment models, ASAM criteria, harm reduction principles, community-based systems of care, and trauma-informed practice.
Skills: Exhibits strong counseling, de-escalation, communication, and documentation skills adaptable to fluid, nontraditional settings.
Competencies: Maintains professionalism, cultural responsiveness, emotional maturity, and ethical judgment in high-intensity environments.
Experience: Shows ability to work effectively in field settings including shelters, permanent supportive housing programs, encampments, and outdoor community environments.
Sobriety: Candidates who identify as being in recovery must demonstrate at least one (1) year of continuous sobriety.

Responsibilities

Screening: Conduct field-based screenings for substance use risk using validated tools to determine service needs and eligibility for outpatient treatment.
Intake: Complete intake documentation in the field, gathering relevant background, environmental factors, and immediate needs to inform level-of-care placement.
Orientation: Provide participants with orientation to available services, expectations, rights, and program processes within community settings, ensuring understanding despite nontraditional environments.
Assessment: Complete biopsychosocial assessments and ASAM-informed evaluations in shelters, interim housing, permanent supportive housing communities, or encampments to determine clinical needs and level of care.
Treatment Planning: Develop individualized treatment plans that integrate participant goals, ASAM criteria, harm reduction principles, and field-based environmental realities. Monitor process and adjust treatment plan as necessary.
Counseling: Facilitate individual and group counseling using evidence-based models, Matrix Model, motivational interviewing, harm reduction, relapse prevention, trauma-informed care, and CBT-informed strategies appropriate for mobility-based service delivery.
Crisis Intervention: Provide high-level crisis intervention for issues such as withdrawal concerns, suicidality, behavioral escalation, and environmental safety risks, engaging emergency support when necessary.
Client/Family Education: Educate participants about substance use, relapse prevention, coping strategies, MAT options, harm reduction, and recovery concepts using accessible language and culturally responsive methods.
Referral: Refer participants to appropriate levels of care, medical providers, mental health services, housing support, and community partners using warm handoffs and field-based accompaniment when needed.
Consultation: Engage in case consultation with supervisors, clinical leadership, and partner agencies to ensure high-quality, coordinated care across systems.
MAT Support: Educate participants on medication-assisted treatment (MAT) options and coordinate linkage with prescribers; support adherence through motivational support and care coordination with proper ROI.
Service Coordination: Provide field-based care coordination linking participants to mental health care, medical services, housing resources, and social support systems.
Advocacy: Advocate for participant needs in community settings by working collaboratively with shelter staff, outreach teams, housing providers, medical partners, and allied community agencies.
Resource Navigation: Assist participants in obtaining IDs, benefits, transportation, and other essential supports necessary for stability and treatment engagement.
Transitions of Care: Facilitate transitions between levels of care such as OP, IOP, residential treatment, withdrawal management, or harm reduction programs.
Discharge Planning: Develop discharge plans centered on continuity, safety, and recovery supports, even when clients remain in the community or permanent supportive housing settings.
Documentation: Complete timely and accurate documentation in the agency EHR consistent with SAPC, DHCS, and agency requirements for field-based services.
Medical Necessity: Document interventions, risk factors, environmental conditions, and participant progress to establish and maintain medical necessity.
Billing Compliance: Ensure documentation supports billing for allowable FBS services, following SAPC guidelines for mobile service delivery.
Confidentiality: Maintain strict compliance with HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 when providing services and documenting care in nontraditional, public, or dynamic field environments.
Safety Practices: Follow CAL/OSHA, IIPP, and agency safety procedures appropriate for field-based outreach, including dynamic risk assessment of encampments and community locations.
Naloxone Readiness: Carry naloxone or another FDA-approved opioid antagonist medication during all outreach activities unless prohibited by site-specific regulation.
Environmental Awareness: Recognize environmental hazards in shelters, outdoor settings, and interim housing communities; adapt service delivery accordingly.
Regulatory Compliance: Deliver services consistent with SAPC Field-Based Service Standards, including cultural competency (CLAS), harm reduction integration, and confidentiality requirements.
Communication: Communicate effectively and professionally with supervisors, clinical leadership, housing partners, and multidisciplinary team members regarding participant needs, safety concerns, and care coordination tasks.
Collaboration: Work in close partnership with shelter staff, case managers, street outreach teams, healthcare providers, and behavioral health collaborators to support integrated care.
Mentorship: May provide guidance and field-based modeling to AOD I and AOD II counselors, supporting development of trauma-informed and community-based counseling skills.
Interdisciplinary Participation: Participate in case reviews, coordination meetings, safety briefings, and supervision sessions to support program continuity and clinical quality.
Outreach: Support community outreach strategies to engage individuals who may not access traditional treatment settings, aligned with the “Reaching the 95% initiative”.
Program Development: Contribute to program improvements, curriculum refinement, training initiatives, and field-based service workflows.
Additional Duties: Perform other duties as assigned to support field-based operations, agency needs, or clinical services.