Position: Mental Health Clinician
Program: Young Adult Safe Options Support (SOS) – North Team
Function: Community Outreach on the streets and places where unhoused young adults frequent; coordinating participants needs before and after move from street to home, enhancing their daily living skills, accompaniment to appointments, and advocating on their behalf when faced with discrimination or healthcare inequities.
Reports To: Team Leader, Young Adult SOS - North
Location: Upper Manhattan & Bronx
Schedule: Mondays-Fridays (7:00am-3:00pm or 9:00am-5:00pm)
Job Overview:
The Licensed Mental Health Professional will play a pivotal role on one of Governor’s newly launched innovative Safe Options Support (SOS) teams, that will provide comprehensive care to street homeless or subway dwelling individuals.
The multi-disciplinary SOS team will consist of a Team leader, Licensed Clinicians, Case Managers, and Youth Peer Advocate Specialist. The team will support program participants in the community through the application of the highly acclaimed, Critical Time Intervention, evidence-based, model of care.
The Mental Health Clinician’s role will involve community outreach on the streets and subways, coordinating participants needs before and after their move from street to home, enhancing their daily living skills, providing supportive counselling, and advocating on their behalf when faced with discrimination or healthcare inequities. Member choice, harm reduction, non-coercion, flexibility and person-centered core elements are essential to this team.
The SOS teams will continue to follow participants for several months after housing placement to ensure their stability, independence and wellbeing in their new community. The role will require field-based work, periodic on call coverage, and a willingness to work flexible hours.
Job Responsibilities:
- Persistent and assertive outreach and engagement using strength-based approaches beginning either at known “hang-outs” or “Hot spots” within the transit system or during an inpatient hospital admission or emergency department visit;
- Sustained outreach and engagement attempt for all individuals who are referred, even if they initially decline services
- Develop meaningful and lasting partnerships with key community stakeholders and providers including, Youth Adult Peer Programs, Safe Horizon, LGBTQIA+ community programs, local hospitals NYPD, Shelter operators and housing providers
- Partnering and collaborating with current street outreach teams, local police precincts, local hospitals, the MTA, the Department of Homeless Services and family members/caregivers to identify those in most need of outreach and care;
- Continuously assess the health and social needs of participants through SOS’s conversational and observational assessments and formalized risk assessments tools for those identified as being at high risk;
- Work in collaborations with the centralized SOR Hub to identify available housing and to support participants through the process. Tasks may include completing HRA 2010e, applying for housing, prepping for interviews, follow up with housing providers, and assistance with moving in (day of move) with obtaining housing supplies and learning the neighborhood;
- Participate in hospital discharge planning meetings to identify the best community resources for returning patients;
- Provide short term therapeutic counseling and support to participants pre and post housing;
- Collects and reports data, as required and work with team leader, data analyst and other SOS teams to use data to inform future care delivery;
- Once housed work with participants and their housing providers to resolve clinical issues that are impacting on the participant’s ability manage, and retain supportive housing;
- Foster relationship with community provides to ensure that recipients are connected with appropriate services as they transition back into the community;
- Appointment navigation including accompaniment to appointments, travel training, reengagement in community care, and addressing barriers to care;
- Facilitating crisis interventions, referrals and hospitalizations as appropriate
- Review documentation and conduct comprehensive psychosocial assessments to determine the medical, psychiatric, housing and other social needs in the community;
- Obtain historical and collateral information from multiple sources to support participants behavioral and physical health needs;
- Monitor, evaluate and record participant progress with respect to care plan goals;
- Attend and participate in team meetings and supervisory sessions;
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
PI271609951
