WIC Nutrition Assistant Certifier 1

Sea Mar Community Health Centers•Bellingham, WA

3d•$22•Hybrid

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. Sea Mar is a mandatory COVID-19 and flu vaccine organization. The Nutrition Assistant Certifier I is responsible for WIC participant enrollment, termination, orientation, benefit delivery and maintaining client files. He or she also performs preliminary participant risk assessment and some basic nutrition education, identifies and makes nutrition and other health or community service referrals. She/he also assists with the Nutrition Program clerical support including, but not limited to; completing participant reports, maintaining records and monthly statistics.

Requirements

Abilities and aptitudes for developing effective community and personnel relationships are important.
Also important is the ability to work comfortably and effectively with individuals and groups from diverse cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Able to deal patiently and empathetically with multicultural clientele, even under stressful conditions.
Able to work cooperatively as a member of the health care team.
Works efficiently with self-direction.
Possess writing skills sufficient to be understood by a dietitian, receptionist, WIC coordinator, and the WIC participant.
Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.
Ability to understand a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.
High School or GED diploma.
Completion of the Minimum Paraprofessional Competencies (a set of standards defined by Washington State WIC Program) within guidelines set in WIC/Nutrition Policies and Procedures.
Must have and maintain a TB test 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.
Pre-hire and annual employee health screening required
Annual influenza vaccine required. Only exception is for employees with a medical or religious exemption approved by Administration. Employees with an approved medical or religious exemption must wear a mask at all time during the flu season.

Nice To Haves

One year previous experience as WIC Clerk and/or in WIC program desired.
Interest and experience in basic nutrition and childhood development desirable.
Bilingual, bicultural - English/Spanish preferred.

Responsibilities

Maintains complete up-to-date WIC charts (documenting counseling session as specified by program guidelines in legible form), and statistical program records including but not limited to; documentation flow sheet, WIC diet records, certification sheets, weight/height grids, child evaluation sheets, infant birth outcomes, and appointment scheduling.
Establishes and maintains professional working relationships with WIC team members and other Sea Mar staff. Serves as liaison between Nutrition/WIC and other clinic and community services and makes referrals as appropriate.
Assists with the clerical and statistical program work as needed.
Attends selected clinic, MSS, Preventative Health Services division and WIC meetings and participates in continuing education.
Assists with breastfeeding promotion and community nutrition education, including travel as needed.
Works efficiently with self-direction.
Demonstrates knowledge and skills necessary to provide care appropriate to the age of the patients served.
Demonstrates knowledge of the principles of growth and development over the life span.
Able to identify and categorize each patient’s age-specific grouping needs, such as those for infant, adolescent, or geriatric patients.
Interviews clients from diverse populations, reviews and documents client history, anthropometric and laboratory data, and reviews current eating habits.
Uses standard assessment tools and follows department policies and practices to perform screening procedures such as weighing and measuring, taking hematocrits hemoglobin, plotting growth grids, and reviewing dietary evaluations.
Compares information collected to program criteria to accurately determine WIC eligibility and nutrition risk factors.
Refers clients to appropriate health or community service resources. Identifies when high-risk clients need immediate attention of Dietitian and makes appropriate referrals and facilitates the appointment.
Provides individual and group nutrition education according to program guidelines, utilizing client appropriate methods and materials.
Provides program orientation, nutrition requirements and assists in scheduling client appointment, considering all programmatic and client needs.
Determine appropriate food package, explains nutrient content of WIC foods, identifies contracted food vendor, issues manual or computerized food benefits, and documents benefit issued.
Maintains patient rights and confidentiality; documents vendor and participant complaints and infractions.