Mental Health Associate Professional-Bridges/FT Evenings

Centra Health•Lynchburg, VA

About The Position

The Mental Health Associate Professional supports children and adolescents ages six through seventeen in a therapeutic milieu. The role provides supervision and direct care, monitors and documents behavior, assists residents with appointments, supports treatment goals, and implements therapeutic and psycho-education programming. The position also helps maintain patient safety, staffing ratios, and communication with the treatment team and on-duty registered nurse regarding medical issues and significant incidents.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in human services, such as counseling, education, social work, psychology, or a related field.
Must be able to verbalize the knowledge and skills needed to provide age-appropriate care to children and adolescents ages six through seventeen.
Current CPI (Crisis Prevention Management) certification within 30 days of hire.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in human services, such as counseling, education, social work, psychology, or a related field.
One year of experience in residential treatment, day hospital, or acute psychiatric inpatient treatment with emotionally or behaviorally disturbed children and adolescents.
Demonstrated knowledge and skills for providing age-appropriate care to children and adolescents ages six through seventeen.

Responsibilities

Acts as preceptor to student interns and staff who are in orientation.
Assists in managing and monitoring aberrant behaviors.
Assists residents in attending individual assessment and/or treatment appointments.
Collects resident data and prepares information for staffing.
Ensures therapeutic programming is implemented.
Chairs team debriefings before, during, and after the shift.
Notifies the treatment team of major incidents, including elopements, therapeutic holds, injuries, or seclusions.
Serves as the on-duty RN’s contact regarding medical issues and consults and debriefs with the RN about precautions, elopements, time-outs, therapeutic holds, injuries, and other major incidents.
Provides milieu documentation and monitors records with supervision.
Helps ensure staff-to-resident ratios are met and adjusted according to acuity.
Participates in the development of the milieu and treatment goals or plans.
Manages patients during therapeutic milieu activities.
Observes, reports, and documents behaviors.
Provides opportunities to strengthen appropriate behavior and alter problematic behavior; manages maladaptive behavior.
Provides patient supervision and direct care.
Implements psycho-education treatment or lesson plans.
Engages patients in therapeutic relationships and supports their goals within the program.
Enhances patient motivation for change.
Creates and maintains an environment that protects patients from harm.
Participates in service recovery and uses appropriate resources during complex situations.
Handles conflict resolution appropriately, consistently, and in a timely manner.
Identifies personal contributions to unit-based cascading goals.
Uses resources, including time, people, and supplies, cost-effectively.
Performs other duties as assigned or requested; job specifications may be modified or updated at any time.