About The Position
The Intake Worker is a primary point of access for children, youth, and families seeking services in mental health, addictions, substance use and neurodevelopmental health, development and rehabilitation, and home care services and care when needed. The Intake Worker reviews referrals, gathers key clinical and developmental information, and determines the urgency and appropriateness of each request for service. The Intake Worker completes an intake using standard screening tools to support the navigation of patients and families to the most appropriate resources. The Intake Worker maintains thorough and confidential documentation, keeps referral records current within electronic systems, and communicates clearly with families and referral sources to support understanding of next steps. Strong judgment, effective communication, and consistent, family‑centered practice allow the Intake Worker to support equitable and timely access across complex care environments.
Requirements
- Three (3) year college diploma in Child and Youth Counselling, Social Sciences, Child Development, Autism and Behavioural Science, or a related field
- Minimum three (3) years of related experience in mental health, developmental services, rehabilitation, or community‑based health services
- Knowledge of mental health, neurodevelopmental, rehabilitation, and community care systems
- Strong intake screening, interviewing, and risk‑identification skills
- Trauma‑informed, family‑centered, and culturally safe practices
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with children, youth, and families
- Ability to work independently within established procedures and collaboratively with interprofessional teams
- Sound judgment, critical thinking, and effective decision‑making.
- Strong organization, prioritization, and time‑management abilities in a high‑volume environment
- Proficiency with electronic health records, referral tracking tools, and digital communication systems
- Vulnerable Sector Check
- Bilingualism (English and French)
Nice To Haves
- Bachelor's degree in social sciences, Child and Youth Care, Psychology, Health Sciences, or related fields
- Experience in intake, screening, triage, navigation, or service coordination within health, community, or social service settings
Responsibilities
- Receive and review incoming referrals and determine the need for additional information.
- Contact families and referral sources to gather clinical, developmental, psychosocial, and functional background details.
- Conduct structured intake screenings using established guidelines and decision‑support tools.
- Identify indicators of both risk and protective factors to determine urgency and escalate concerns to clinical leadership as required.
- Prioritize referrals based on defined criteria to ensure timely and appropriate access to services.
- Determine the appropriateness of each referral within established clinical, developmental, and service-specific pathways.
- Coordinate assignment of referrals to programs, clinicians, or teams and track movement through the intake workflow.
- Support with waitlist review where expertise of an Intake worker is required
- Respond to family inquiries regarding service eligibility, navigation, wait times, and next steps in the care process.
- Ensure timely and appropriate information and support to referring physicians when referrals are made, in accordance with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) guidelines.
- Provide families with clear information and support to improve understanding and engagement with recommended services.
- Support seamless and coordinated connections to appropriate services including community partner agencies where appropriate, sharing relevant information with consent to streamline pathways and reduce the need for families to retell their story.
- Liaise with teams to clarify referral needs, share relevant information, and optimize service alignment.
- Communicate with community partners, including schools, agencies, and health providers to coordinate information exchange and referral pathways.
- Respond to urgent intake‑related requests by following established protocols to ensure timely intervention.
- Maintain accurate, comprehensive, and timely electronic documentation in approved systems.
- Track referral activity, client status, and workflow updates to support reporting, quality monitoring, and clinical planning.
- Ensure all documentation practices meet privacy, consent, and confidentiality standards as required by legislation and organizational policy.
- Use electronic health records, referral management platforms, secure communication tools, and other relevant software effectively.
- Identify patterns, recurring issues, or pressures emerging from referral activity and communicate these to leadership.
- Recommend improvements to intake workflows, communication processes, and referral decision pathways.
- Participate in quality improvement discussions, audits, or initiatives as requested to enhance access and system efficiency.
- Bring forward observations about service gaps, barriers, or policy concerns affecting families or service delivery to leadership
- Other related duties as required
Benefits
- competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package
- unique culture that fosters dedication, communication, respect and teamwork
- place where your opinions will be respected, contributions valued and your initiatives rewarded
- family-friendly environment that supports you and your own family, as well as the children, youth and families we serve
- chance to grow — personally and professionally — through our comprehensive orientation program and on-the-job learning
- support for continued education and learning
- potential for a relocation reimbursement benefit
- truly unique work environment
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
Associate degree
Number of Employees
501-1,000 employees
