Lead Mental Health Technician (Nursing) (Santa Rosa)

Northern California Behavioral Health System•Santa Rosa, CA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Santa Rosa Behavioral Healthcare Hospital (SRBHH), formerly Aurora Santa Rosa Hospital, opened in 2016 and is an integral part of the greater Santa Rosa and Northern California mental health system of care. Located in the North Bay, SRBHH serves adolescents and adults with mental health and co-occurring psychiatric and substance abuse conditions. The Lead Mental Health Technician (MHT IV) provides direct patient care, supports the therapeutic milieu, and ensures patient safety and well-being. This role includes general nursing assistance for adolescent, adult, or older adult patients, maintaining knowledge of occupational health hazards, and supervising other Mental Health Workers (MHWs) during their shift and assigned areas.

Requirements

High School graduate or equivalent.
Behavioral science undergraduate degree required (Psychology, Social work, Sociology).
Candidate may be considered if pursuing advanced degree in nursing or relevant field.
May consider combination of relevant college coursework completion and extended relevant experience.
Current CPR (or obtained during initial orientation period).
Verbal de-escalation and physical intervention program (as approved by the CNO) obtained during initial orientation period.
High school level reading and writing skills; legible handwriting.
5+ years’ experience as behavioral health worker/technician in an inpatient and/or partial psychiatric/mental health setting with a knowledge of psychiatric/chemical dependency patient care techniques, demonstrated understanding of mental illness and related behavioral management techniques.
At least two years with a Signature Hospital or a degree in relevant clinical discipline.
Experience facilitating non-therapeutic patient groups.
Demonstrated ability to train, onboard, and coach others.
Familiarity with medical and psychological terminology and human behavior principles preferred.
Basic knowledge of human growth and development helpful.
Experience with therapeutic limit-setting helpful or an understanding of level systems or other behavior management modalities helpful.
Ability to maintain professional boundaries.
Maintains confidentiality of patients at all times.
Sensitivity to and willingness to interact with persons of various social, cultural, economic and educational backgrounds.
Skills in teaching or assisting with activities of daily living helpful.
Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
Good judgment, problem solving and decision-making skills.
Ability to work in a fast-paced, expanding environment.
Ability to exercise self-control in potentially volatile situations such as being verbally or physically confronted in a threatening or aggressive manner.
Must be able to work and concentrate amidst distractions such as noise, conversation and foot traffic.
Ability to handle interruptions often and be able to move from one task to another.
Must be flexible and not easily frustrated in dealing with differences of opinions.
Ability to stoop, kneel, crouch, crawl, reach, stand, walk, push, pull, grasp, and be able to perceive the attributes of objects such as size, shape, temperature, and/or texture by touching with skin, particularly that of the fingertips.
Ability to express and exchange ideas via spoken word during activities in which they must convey detail or important spoken instructions to others accurately, sometimes quickly and loudly.
Hearing to perceive the nature of sound with no less than 40 lb loss @ Hz, 1000 Hz, and 2000 Hz with or without correction; ability to perceive detailed information through oral communication and to make fine discriminations in sound.
Perform repetitive motions with wrists, hands, and fingers.
Individual must be able to exert up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and to be able to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects.
Work requires a minimum standard of visual acuity with or without correction that will enable people in the role to complete administrative and clerical tasks and visually observe patients on the unit and in therapeutic activities.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with medical and psychological terminology and human behavior principles.
Basic knowledge of human growth and development.
Experience with therapeutic limit-setting or an understanding of level systems or other behavior management modalities.

Responsibilities

Participate in treatment planning by identifying patients' problems, needs, and strengths, suggesting modifications to the treatment plan based on patient behavior, and providing input into discharge planning.
Implement patients' treatment plans by monitoring progress, communicating patient behavior to the treatment team, maintaining communication with patients, family members, and referral sources, co-facilitating didactic, educational, and community groups, encouraging patient participation in therapeutic activities, supervising patients for safety and treatment involvement, and providing input during shift report.
Serve as Hall Monitor, responsible for the safety and security of staff and patients, observing interactions, and reporting suspicious activity or potential boundary violations to the nurse in charge.
Accompany and transport patients as assigned, orient new patients to the unit, program, and milieu, assist patients with activities of daily living as congruent with their treatment plan, maintain a safe, orderly, and therapeutic physical environment, and participate in maintaining the therapeutic milieu and enforcing the level system or other behavior management methods.
Maintain patient, program, department, and related documentation, and carry out clerical and administrative assignments to support patient care and operations.
Complete orientation and competency assessments as required, and participate in activities enhancing professional growth and development.
Uphold the Organization's ethics and customer service standards.
Perform related duties as requested.
Act as the in-charge MHW for their team for the shift and assigned unit(s).
Double-check that all MHW documentation is completed.
Assist with teaching new employee classes and ongoing education, including code green drills.
Provide input for MHW evaluations.
Provide real-time coaching to peers if improvement is needed.
Assign tasks to MHWs for their shift (e.g., cafeteria, property room, groups).
Ensure all patient belongings are accounted for upon discharge.
Assist the nurse manager with the implementation of new processes or changes to current practices.
Contribute to the report at the end of the shift.