Support Employment Specialist

Sea Mar Community Health Centers•Vancouver, WA

13d•Onsite

About The Position

Sea Mar Community Health Centers, a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) founded in 1978, is a community-based organization committed to providing quality, comprehensive health, human, housing, educational and cultural services to diverse communities, specializing in service to Latinos in Washington State. Sea Mar proudly serves all persons without regard to race, ethnicity, immigration status, gender, or sexual orientation, and regardless of ability to pay for services. Sea Mar's network of services includes more than 90 medical, dental, and behavioral health clinics and a wide variety of nutritional, social, and educational services. We are recruiting for the following position: Sea Mar is a mandatory COVID-19 and flu vaccine organization. Works autonomously and collectively as an empowered staff member of Sea Mar’s Behavioral Health program. Participates in the development and ongoing delivery of services. This position works exclusively with the First Episode Psychosis (FEP) team and its enrolled consumers. FEP is an evidence based practice in the treatment of consumers through a multidisciplinary team providing early intervention for first episode psychosis. The FEP team seeks to deliver high fidelity clinical, rehabilitative and support services to generate the best possible outcomes for enrolled consumers. This position is responsible for his/her own caseload, for providing the team with consultations regarding vocational services, and for the delivery of Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Model evidence based Supported Employment and Education (SEE) services for FEP clients.

Requirements

A strong background in both community mental health and vocational services, prefer experience with supported employment services. Familiarity with IPS Model SEE and/or ACT services is a plus.
A strong commitment to right of each mental health care consumer to have access to helpful, competent, and individually tailored support and services.
A strong commitment to working collaboratively, assertively and interdependently with co-workers.
Promotes and respects the worth and dignity of the consumer. Promotes and reinforces the consumer’s best possible functioning within the community.
Must possess the skills and competence necessary to establish and maintain supportive, collaborative, and therapeutically effective relationships with consumers.
Demonstrated ability to effectively plan and organize work to satisfactory completion.
Excellent written and oral communication skills.
Computer proficiency (Word, Excel).
Must complete an annual clinical competency test an employment specialist.
Requires Bachelor’s or Master's degree in Counseling, Social Work, Psychology or related field.
Valid Washington State Department of Health License/credential or ability to obtain a minimum of an Agency Affiliated Counselor credential within 60 days from hire date.
Must have access to a car, a valid driver’s license, and proof of auto insurance.
Must authorize Sea Mar to obtain current driving record from the Department of Motor Vehicles (and annually thereafter) to determine employees’ driving eligibility. Driving record must meet Sea Mar’s insurance carrier’s minimum standards related to driving for the purpose of determining eligibility.
The employee must provide Sea Mar proof of auto insurance (upon hire and at renewal time). Employee must submit a copy of the endorsements page of their insurance policy to Human Resources. Employee must carry minimum liability coverage required by the state where they reside.
This position may require employees to transport clients and employee will be required to carry additional liability coverage. HR will provide employee with the additional liability coverage limits that are required.
Must pass a TB test at time of hire and annually.
This position must obtain Basic Life Support (BLS) CPR within 90 days of hire date and is required to maintain current BLS CPR throughout employment.
Must be able to obtain Clark County Jail clearance

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with IPS Model SEE and/or ACT services is a plus.

Responsibilities

Provide IPS Model SEE services to help clients find and maintain employment or school enrollment in community-based and integrated settings of their choosing.
Conduct consistent engagement of enrolled consumers on the many economic, social, medical and recovery benefits of employment and/or education.
Assess consumer employment and/or academic interests, abilities, preferences, barriers, likes, dislikes and strengths through a vocational and/or educational assessment as per the IPS Model of SEE. Continued assessment as consumers are placed in community-based jobs or school. Fully attend to the risks and benefits of disclosure as part of the assessment as these will impact the delivery of services. Attend to the need for benefits planning to evaluate the impact of working and wages on consumer public benefits.
Assess the effect(s) of the client's mental illness on employment, with Identification of specific behaviors that interfere with the client's work performance and development of interventions to reduce, manage or eliminate those behaviors in collaboration with other members of the FEP team.
Develop a consumer driven, consensual and specific employment or education goal.
Conduct community-based development based on consumer’s specific job or education goal
Develop and maintain relationships with employers and area schools to facilitate consumers’ specific job or education goal through repeat visits and continuing cultivation of the relationship.
Work closely with consumers in areas such as interviewing skills, resume development, completion of applications, attending to gaps in employment or school history, background checks, financial resources needed to enroll in school, and so forth.
Utilize the relationships with area employers and school to get consumers considered for employment or enrollment and affirmative decisions in hiring or enrollment. Assist and support consumer, based on his/her preferences, with all human resources and/or admissions requirements to get started in work or school
Provide job coaching and supportive counseling to assist consumers to identify and cope with the symptoms of mental illness and/or other issues that may interfere with their work or school performance. Arrange for other supports as/if needed. Titrate and adjust job coaching and supportive counseling as needed.
Respond to work or school related conduct or performance issues in a timely manner.
Attend to the need for work or school related support needs, such as assistance with grooming and personal hygiene, securing of appropriate clothing, wake-up calls, and transportation in conjunction with other FEP team members. Attend to the need for regular reporting of income to all income maintenance and health insurance providers.
Provide clinical and other interventions to assist consumer in meeting treatment and level of care needs. Clinical interventions may include individual, family, and group modalities, and may include counseling, case management, medication management, vocational rehabilitation, system coordination, consumer advocacy, and crisis management.
Ensure that treatment planning and interventions are client centered, culturally competent and age appropriate. Considers all aspects of the consumer’s, their families, and their community’s psychosocial, economic and cultural needs. Provides mental health care with respect for consumer confidentiality, safety and self-determination.
Utilize community and natural supports to supplement services, with the intent to better integrate the consumer into their community, and to eventually graduate the client from services when possible and clinically indicated.
Work collaboratively with co-workers and with personnel from other agencies with whom we interact.
Complete all required documentation in an accurate, complete, and timely manner per agency policies and procedures. Takes the initiative to seek supervisory or collegial assistance with follow-through or methodology if problems with documentation quality or timeliness persist.
Actively contributes to program development by participating in agency meetings, serving on working committees, and undertaking agreed upon independent projects for the improvement of the agency and enhancement of services.
Maintain the safety, security, and confidentiality of consumers and their families.
Ensures own professional development. Maintains licensure and/or certification requirements. Contributes to the overall professional development of the agency. Contributes to the functioning of the agency as a training institution.
Other duties as assigned.