Health Access Navigator

Glide•San Francisco, CA

5d•Onsite

About The Position

GLIDE’s Health Access Programs use collaborative approaches to improve community wellness through connections to medical services, partnerships with community and city providers, advocacy for underserved and marginalized individuals, and engagement in recovery and health improvement activities. The Health Access Navigator supports people with histories of substance use and co-occurring disorders who need harm reduction supplies, health services, and other support. The role provides supplies, information, early intervention, help overcoming barriers, and links to long-term services and care. Though trained across harm reduction navigation services, this position specifically supports on-site and outreach-based syringe access services, which provide sterile supplies and equipment to people who use drugs along with wraparound and integrated services. This is a full-time, 40-hour-per-week, non-exempt position covered by a collective bargaining agreement. GLIDE’s buildings are in San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood and maintain an open-door policy for community members and clients, who frequently enter and leave the building.

Requirements

Direct experience providing harm reduction services, including syringe access, outreach, and health navigation.
Experience providing direct social services to homeless and/or very low-income clients who are dually diagnosed and/or have experienced involvement in the criminal justice system.
Knowledge of violence prevention, intervention and de-escalation, harm reduction practices, and motivational interviewing techniques.
A minimum of 1–2 years of harm reduction services, case management, or advocacy experience working with socially and/or economically marginalized, multiply diagnosed populations.
Experience providing direct social services to homeless and/or very low-income clients who are dually diagnosed and/or have experienced domestic violence and/or incarceration.
Proficiency in spelling, grammar, and writing to draft documentation.
Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to maintain effective working relationships with clients.
Experience with crisis management and the ability to de-escalate situations in individual and group settings.
Ability to work professionally and ethically and maintain confidentiality and privacy of people, documents, data, and communications.
Demonstrated ability to work independently while meeting client demands.
Ability to plan and implement outreach objectives and other programs and services, collect data, and prepare reports.
Physical stamina and high energy; ability to move quickly to address emergencies and repeatedly climb multiple flights of stairs during a shift.
Ability to hear within normal range and communicate effectively in person, by telephone, or by Zoom.
Finger dexterity and ability to use standard office equipment.

Nice To Haves

CA Rapid HIV/HCV Testing and/or Harm Reduction certification.
A current valid California driver’s license in good standing.

Responsibilities

Provide harm reduction supplies, including safe-sex and safer-use supplies, through the syringe access services desk and community outreach.
Promote and recruit clients for syringe access, HIV and Hepatitis C services, other social and health services, and recovery and treatment services.
Assist the SAS Manager with data collection and preparation of monthly reports.
Assist the Community Engagement Coordinator with engaging community navigators during their training and shifts at the SAS desk and during outreach.
Provide group education, support groups, and presentations, and assist with preparing outreach materials.
Provide prevention and health education, including safer sex, safer injection, and overdose prevention education for people who inject drugs; distribute condoms, dams, lubrication, hygiene kits, and other harm reduction and prevention supplies.
Assist GLIDE’s DOPE Program and distribute Narcan to prevent opioid overdose and overdose involving methamphetamine or other substances.
Help coordinate community outreach activities and special events that promote testing, connections to care, health and wellness, and prevention education.
Build rapport and trust with clients using motivational interviewing techniques to support successful transitions to long-term services and providers.
Develop and maintain collaborative working relationships with GLIDE service providers and community agencies to provide comprehensive client services.
Document service contacts and other efforts in the program database, and maintain accurate, current data, records, files, and documentation of client progress.
Use a strength-based, client-centered approach grounded in cultural humility, trauma-informed service, and harm reduction principles.
Attend weekly individual supervision and other administrative meetings as directed by the supervisor.
Maintain professional boundaries and standards, including HIPAA and confidentiality practices and applicable reporting requirements.
Meet professional obligations through effective work habits, including collaboration, meeting deadlines, honoring schedules, and attending and participating in staff and individual meetings, supervision, and in-service training.