Kitsap Mental Health Services Careers

Description

• Comprehensive and generous health, dental and vision benefits
• Up to 19 days of PTO, 2 mental health days and 10 paid holidays your first year (pro-rated for part-time)
• Company-paid short-term disability, long-term disability and life insurance
• Student loan payment assistance and extensive training
• An incredible team approach that is dynamic and collaborative

General Summary of Duties:  The Mental Health Care Professional (MHCP) provides immediate crisis resolutions as part of a multidisciplinary team working alongside a Certified Peer Counselor (CPC) as well as Mental Health Professionals (MHP), other MHCPs, and Designated Crisis Responders (DCR).

MCOT promotes prompt and focused expert response to those in crisis in a compassionate and efficient manner, while keeping within State and Salish BHASO mandated crisis services. MCOT provides rapid mobile crisis resolutions with emphasis on the goal of stabilizing the crisis in the least restrictive appropriate manner, as well as facilitating access to behavioral health and substance use services.

The MHCP improves the operations of KMHS in support of its stated mission and provides the highest level of customer service to internal and external customers.

Supervisory Responsibilities: None

Major Responsibilities/Tasks:

General

• Provide crisis outreach services throughout Kitsap County working within a collaborative and supportive team environment with assignments requiring outreaches for community crisis interventions and assessments.
• Maintain the respect and dignity of each client, the client’s personal supports, and community professionals, emphasizing special population concerns.
• Represent the agency and the profession in a manner that is courteous, helpful, ethical, and thorough. Engage in highly skilled collaboration with individuals, community, intra- and interagency contacts.
• Display effective skills in risk assessment, management of the interview, crisis management, and decisive decision making that leads to a safe and secure crisis interventions.
• Proven capacity to manage multiple simultaneous crisis interventions and responsibilities with ability to triage priorities in a high stress environment.
• Responsible for arriving to the office on time to ensure proper pass down of crisis and follow up calls, as well as, provide pass down at end of shift to oncoming shift.

Investigation

• In collaboration with CPC and Crisis Responders conduct face to face (FTF) assessments of clients to determine their crisis and when appropriate provide warm handoff of clients to DCR’s that meet criteria for involuntary detention under criteria defined by the Involuntary Treatment Act (RCW 71.05 or 71.34) or that they meet crisis resolution by a least restrictive alternative.
• Assess and ensure the safety of clients, the community and one’s self during the assessment process, which includes coordinating and working with medical, law enforcement, state and local agency representatives, community and family members.
• Effectively and efficiently conduct crisis interventions that utilize all reasonably available and appropriate sources of information relevant to the known facts about an individual case.
• Consulting with medical, law enforcement, state and local agency representatives, community and family members.

Assessment

• Maintain and demonstrate an expert level working knowledge of WA State ITA RCW 71.05, 71.34 as it pertains to clients.
• Ability to quickly deescalate, interview, assess, and mediate in hostile and volatile environments with potentially aggressive clients while maintain calmness, situational awareness, and clinical control of the situation.
• Maintain an in-depth knowledge of, and demonstrate a high level of competency in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness, substance use/abuse disorders, behavioral disorders, and situational crises.
• Maintain and uphold clinical objectivity, in a highly emotive atmosphere, taking on the role as Crisis Technician in organizing and responding to the identified crisis.
• Maintain and effectively utilize a thorough knowledge of crisis theory, mental status field examinations and risk assessment techniques.
• Maintain an up to date, working knowledge of psychiatric medications, illicit substances and their side-effects.

Intervention

• Effective use of de-escalation techniques. Ability to mediate while maintaining calmness during volatile situations to elicit patient cooperation in and defusing hostile/volatile behavior. Work with community professionals in coordinated, safety focused, outreaches.
• Establish quick and productive rapport with clients, their families and other collaterals. Maintain clinically appropriate professional boundaries.
• Provide education and support to family members on crisis response systems and access to care.

Disposition

• Demonstrate ability to identify and create least restrictive alternatives to voluntary crisis or treatment centers and develop safe, supportive and appropriate safety plans that carry through from the intervention.
• Identify and utilize available community resources effectively.
• Maintain and demonstrate a thorough working knowledge of the services offered at KMHS and the local community in order to facilitate appropriate and relevant referrals.
• Notify KMHS outpatient providers and/or, when appropriate, parent/guardians of dependent individuals with timely and relevant information of a crisis intervention.

Documentation

• Documentation is to be legible, concise and organized with clear description of the facts of the intervention and the clinical rationale for decisions/dispositions.

Team Work

• Participate as a contributing member of the MCOT team by attending monthly clinical and administrative meetings and following the unit and agency’s policies and procedures.
• Participate as a contributing member of KMHS, identifying areas of operation that could enhance our efficiency and effectiveness within and beyond the MCOT.
• Demonstrate openness to processing one’s work in a manner that is conducive to team work, professional and personal growth through the utilization of both clinical supervision and peer support.

Other

• Disclose limited client information as necessary to the position as trained by the Records Dept. Supervisor. Disclosures must adhere to HIPAA privacy and security standards and be logged in detail according to agency policy and procedures. Complete all required training and annual refreshers.
• In addition to the above, any other responsibilities appropriate to the position and not specifically listed in the job description.

Minimum Qualifications:

EDUCATION: Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, Social Services, or a Mental Health field

EXPERIENCE: Experienced (minimum 3 years of job-related experience post-graduation)

LICENSURE: Registered AAC with Washington State (The AAC credential requires a bachelor's degree in counseling or the social sciences and 3 years of supervised experience, post-graduation)

Preferred Qualifications:

LICENSURE: Certified AAC with Washington State (The Certified AAC credential requires a bachelor's degree in counseling or the social sciences and 5 years of supervised experience post-graduation)

EXPERIENCE: Experience with adults/youth in crisis intervention, crisis triage centers, acute inpatient units and/or substance abuse treatment centers, and community outreach.

Capacity to work well with children and families.

Performance Requirements:

KNOWLEDGE:

1. Maintain a working knowledge of current trends in community mental health, including health care reform and automation of job tasks using computer technology.
2. Substance abuse disorders treatment knowledge.

SKILLS:

1. Must be able to effectively document using both handwriting and agency recognized computer word processing formats.
2. Excellent interpersonal and verbal skills.
3. Communication - Communicates clearly and concisely.
4. Computer skills - The ability to operate a personal computer, fax machine, printer, and copier proficiently.

ABILITIES:

1. Ability to deescalate potentially volatile situations with clients. 
2. Able to assist in building positive working relationships with staff of all agency departments.

Equipment Operated: Standard office equipment including computers, fax machines, copiers, printers, telephones, etc.

Work Environment: Frequent mobility and/or sitting required for extended periods.

Mental/Physical Requirements: While performing the job duties, the employee is required to walk, sit, use hands and fingers, reach with arms, talk, or listen.  Peripheral vision is also required for this position.