Behavioral Health Specialist - Swing Shift (Qmha) $60,000-70,000 Annually (Exempt)

Title: Behavioral Health Specialist (QMHA)

Salary: $60,000-70,000 annually (Exempt)

Shift: Wednesday - Saturday 10:00am-9:00pm

Reports To: Behavioral Health Social Worker

Do Good Multnomah’s approach is simple, we offer all program participants our respect and we seek to honor their inherent dignity. While we are committed to providing participants a safe, warm place to stay for the night, we are equally interested in forging meaningful relationships with them. These bonds allow for our staff to serve as mediators and connectors between participants and a variety of service organizations in the Portland Metropolitan area.

THE COMPANY: The culture and care we strive to provide our participants at Do Good Multnomah is extremely important to all of us. We believe it is essential to gain an understanding of our participants and the issues that they face. In this way, we are changing the way we serve houseless individuals in the Portland Metropolitan area.

• We believe in treating all people like human beings—period. We are a highly relational organization, committed to knowing one another and knowing our participants.
• We are decidedly not neutral on matters of inclusion, diversity, equality, and anti-racism; we strive to be a place of refuge and safety for the marginalized.
• Our organization pays a living wage and offers opportunities for continued growth and development within the organization based on employee performance.

THE POSITION:

This position will communicate with clients receiving mental health services, assist in gathering information on for mental health evaluations, support and assist clients in reaching goals on their mental health treatment plan. They will orient clients to mental services, help to keep clients engaged in services, assist them in overcoming barriers to participation. instruct clients on various life skills, assist clients in accessing community resources, and implement interventions on the client’s treatment plan. Do safety assessments/checks, evaluate the safety of clients and the safety of the environments in which they live. This position will work closely with the other Mental professionals (QMHP, LCSW) and Traditional Health Workers (THW)

THE PROGRAM:

The BHRC is a designed safer place for people with behavioral health challenges, who may also experience complex trauma and houselessness. From the beginning, individuals with lived experience have influenced the program design, from architecture elements to program policy. Various stakeholders, including agencies and individual peer support specialists and peer advocates have provided input and guidance to ensure it is consumer/peer-driven, culturally responsive, trauma-informed, and accessible to all. The BHRC will prioritize meeting basic needs in the short-term, while working with partners to secure stability in the long-term.

HIPAA Requirements

This position will have access to PHI during the course of their work activities. Applying the minimum necessary standard of HIPAA, the designated record sets to which this position may have access include all sections of the medical record, patient demographic information in the practice management system, etc. This position is required to read the content of these records only to the extent needed to accomplish the assigned tasks.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Documents notes and carries out incident reporting.
• Knowledge of behavioral health and addictions services providers in the area
• Teaches social skills.
• Act as liaison and bridge to community involved agencies, primary care, and other service providers
• Facilitates educational groups and therapeutic skills groups.
• De-escalate conflict within the shelter.
• Consults treatment plan to implement appropriate care.
• Performs safe-guarding interventions.
• Ensures clients personal safety and needs.
• Provide services that are community oriented, person centered, culturally competent, and trauma informed.

SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Demonstrated ability to work independently, problem solve, and complete tasks in a timely manner.
• Sufficient manual dexterity and physical ability to perform assigned tasks.
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely both verbally and in writing.
• Knowledge and experience of how to address and support an escalated participant through proper and trauma-informed de-escalation and engagement techniques.
• Demonstrated ability to utilize HMIS, Microsoft 365, including Teams, OneNote, and other tools.
• Ability to display a non-judgmental and non-biased attitude at all levels of the organization.
• Ability to work courteously with the public, participants, co-workers, and community partners.
• A willingness to learn new skills, protocols, techniques, and management styles.
• Ability to provide strength-based leadership to direct reports.
• Ability to continuously learn, apply training instruction, and take constructive feedback.
• Ability to maintain accurate records and necessary paperwork.
• Ability and knowledge to provide advocacy for both participants and staff.
• Ability to work as a team member, assist others, establish priorities, and delegate when appropriate.
• Professional maintenance of appropriate boundaries with both staff and participants.
• Ability to use motivational interview techniques, strength-based advocacy, and trauma-informed care on all levels of the agency.
• Consistent, clear, direct, and professional communication with staff, participants, community partners, and vendors.