Military & Family Life Counselor- Temporary Backfill

Magellan Health•Key West, FL

8d•Onsite

About The Position

The Assignment Ready Counselor (ARC) provides short-term, surge, and on-demand coverage to meet military needs, including post-deployment events and coverage for counselors who are absent. The Temporary Backfill role covers assignments of varying duration, including one- to two-day on-demand assignments and surges or backfills ranging from one week to 30 days, with the possibility of longer assignments based on program needs. The summer ARC role covers assignments from May 15 through September 15. Candidates must reside near NAS Key West or be willing to make themselves local, and must be independently licensed to practice in Florida as a mental health counselor, therapist, or social worker. With minimal guidance and oversight, the counselor provides adult or Child and Youth Behavioral (CYB) services to military service members and their families at military installations. Services may include non-medical counseling, training and health and wellness presentations, consultation with parents and staff at child daycare centers and schools, and consultation to installation command on behavioral health issues affecting military personnel and families. CYB counselors may work in DoDEA or community schools, youth programs, summer camps, and on-demand assignments; counselors covering school positions must have experience in a school setting. Adult counselors may support MFLC services in military community and readiness centers as well as on-demand and surge assignments. Counselors work with installation and military branch Points of Contact (POCs) to ensure services are within scope and address installation needs. The counselor provides short-term, solution-focused, non-medical counseling to adults, children, and youth of service members. Services include assessment, brief counseling and consultation, action planning, referrals and linkage to resources, and follow-up as indicated. CYB counselors also support staff at child development centers, schools, youth programs, and summer camps, and provide parent training and guidance. The role includes delivering training and health and wellness presentations, participating in health fairs and other installation activities, and recording counselor activity data daily through a smartphone or web application while maintaining confidentiality and anonymity. Counselors may be assigned additional duties consistent with the intent of the role. The position requires availability Monday through Friday, with occasional weekend assignments, and the ability to accept assignments on short notice and of undefined duration. Assignments may require site-specific immunizations or vaccinations and compliance with other location requirements. This is a Service Contract Act-covered position; pay and health and welfare allowance are specified in the applicable wage determination agreement.

Requirements

Master’s degree from an accredited graduate program in a mental-health-related field or social work.
Current independent licensure as a behavioral-health clinician that meets applicable state, Commonwealth, or customer requirements; Florida licensure is required for this posting.
Ability to prove U.S. citizenship and fluency in English.
Advanced knowledge of brief therapy and solution-focused counseling methods.
Ability to accept assignments on short notice, including assignments of undefined duration and occasional weekends; able to cover full-time assignments ranging from a weekend to two weeks.
Ability to build rapport quickly with service personnel, family members, students, parents, and coworkers.
Adaptability to new working conditions, locations, and site-specific rules; ability to work effectively with minimal instruction and guidance and to follow instructions carefully.
Ability to engage and communicate quickly with military members, spouses, or children and respond to emergent situations in varied locations.
Ability to traverse short or long distances on installations and work indoors or outdoors, including on rugged or uneven terrain, stairs, grass, and steep inclines, and in outdoor weather and other military-base conditions.
Willingness to meet site-specific requirements; some assignments may require current immunizations or vaccinations and proof of receipt.
For CYB positions, ability to meet Magellan MFLC CYB experience criteria for working with children and youth and specialty criteria in child and adolescent development or psychology.
For counselors backing up a school position, experience working in a school setting.

Nice To Haves

Prior military service, military-family-member experience, or strong familiarity with military culture.

Responsibilities

Provide short-term, surge, and on-demand coverage for military counseling program needs, including post-deployment events and counselor absences.
Deliver non-medical, short-term, solution-focused counseling to adults, children, and youth of service members.
Conduct assessments, brief counseling and consultation, action planning, referrals and resource linkage, and follow-up as indicated.
Provide CYB support to staff and personnel at child development centers, DoDEA and community schools, youth programs, and summer camps; provide parent training and guidance.
Deliver training and health and wellness presentations and participate in health fairs and other base or installation activities.
Record counselor activity data daily through a smartphone or web application while protecting service-member and family-member confidentiality and anonymity.
Coordinate with installation and military branch POCs to provide services within scope and meet installation needs; develop effective working relationships with POCs and community resources.
Establish a visible, approachable, confidential program presence on installations and, for CYB counselors, in child and youth settings; follow line-of-sight protocol when working with children.
Manage duty-to-warn and restricted-reporting situations according to DoD protocol and consult with the Regional Supervisor or Regional Director.
Communicate with Regional Supervisors and participate in individual and group supervision, sharing relevant trends and issues from assigned installations and facilities.
Respond to critical incidents and special requests as directed by the POC and approved by the OSD program manager.
Participate, with minimal notice, in in-services, training, Quality Improvement committees, and other assigned contract activities.
Accept and cover assignments of varying length, including assignments requiring weekend availability and short-notice travel or work at military installations or schools.