Awake Overnight Residential Counselor

SCHEDULE: 40 hours, Mon-Fri, 11:00 p.m. - 7:30 a.m.

Pays $21.43 per hour

LOCATION: 34 New Chardon Street, Boston, MA (parking on site)

This position has a $2000.00 retention bonus, payable in equal installments at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months.

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Summary of the Position:

The Awake Overnight Residential Counselor is responsible for the overall safety of the tenants in the program at the 34 New Chardon Street residence under the Behavioral Health Division of Pine Street Inn, a program that provides permanent housing to formerly homeless women using a Housing First/Stabilization model. The program serves women from diverse backgrounds, circumstances, and age groups. The mission is to provide trauma-informed, gender sensitive and gender specific support services that meet the special needs so they can heal and have time to heal, prepare to reintegrate into the community, and break the cycle of homelessness. The Awake Overnight Residential Counselor will assist tenants in performing Activities of Daily Living (ADL) skills in the early morning hours, create, and maintain a respectful atmosphere that empowers very chronic, mentally ill tenants to reach their highest level of functioning.

REQUIREMENTS:

Education/Training:

• Some basic prior human services trainings
• High School diploma or GED

Preferred:

• Advanced training in human services work
• Previous experience working with a Housing First/Stabilization Model

Knowledge/Experience:

• Experience working with dually diagnosed individuals
• Effective writing and verbal skills
• Experience assisting people with ADL skills
• Some knowledge/understanding of mental innless conditions and dual diagnosis individuals
• Familiarity with the concepts of rehabilitation and consumer empowerment
• Experience maintaining a safe environment for clients in a program setting
• Minimum of one (1) year prior work experience working with individuals suffering from complex disabilities in a shelter, community residence, or in an inpatient setting

Preferred:

• Previous experience working with a Housing First/Stabilization model
• Previous experience working with the homeless population
• Previous experience working with dual diagnosis and/or untreated mental illness

Physical Abilities/SKILLS:

• Ability to respond to individuals in crisis
• Ability to assist certain individuals with ADL skills
• Ability to climb multiple sets of stairs quickly and frequently

Mental Abilities/SKILLS:

• Ability to work with a harm reduction approach to substance abuse
• Willingness to use continuing education as a tool to gain ideas for improving client outcomes
• Ability to tolerate stress and display patience
• Ability to prioritize multiple tasks
• Ability to resolve conflicts diplomatically with supportiveness and nurturance
• Ability to set limits when needed, and observance of appropriate boundaries
• Ability to be open minded about exploring creative new ways to help clients maintain housing stability
• Ability to work with tenants with untreated psychiatric conditions
• Ability to work as part of a team

Essential Functions Include But Are Not Limited To:

• Maintain necessary records in a timely fashion
• Set a tone of respect and support for all tenants of the program
• Assist tenants in finding ways to have a restful night’s sleep
• Involve tenants in milieu to enhance connectedness with life satisfactions and responsibilities
• Participate in keeping the outside of the building secure
• Meet with the Program Manager regularly for supervision
• Assist tenants in cooking, laundry, and other activities of daily living as needed or requested
• Ensure that program is clean and safe at all times including but not limited to floors being clean and tidy, kitchens, hallways, bathrooms etc.
• Communicate any observed issues or problems via the log and verbal reports
• Be responsible for the overall safety and security of tenants in the program
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Program Manager
• Guide the chronically mentally ill tenants in an intentional progression towards increased autonomy, improved life skills, and enhanced quality of life
• Confer and collaborate regularly with other program staff
• Due to emergency or unforeseen program needs, staff may be temporarily or permanently reassigned to another Behavioral Health Division programs at any given time.
• Complete inventory list at least monthly
• Work with tenants to reinforce good ADL skills, including personal hygiene, and leisure time activities
• Stock shared kitchen during shift
• Encourage tenants to be responsible neighbors
• Maintain positive relationships with other employees around the Inn and other departments such as Food Services, Men’s Inn, Outreach, and Housekeeping
• Attend team meetings for staff to give input and perspective
• Touch base regularly with each tenant to see how each seems to be doing
• Conduct inspections of individual tenants rooms to ensure that they are safe and free of clutter.