Job Type

Description

Days Off: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday

Shift: Day (7:00am - 5:30pm)

Insurance Benefits: Medical (no premiums/payroll deductions for employee coverage), Dental, Life, Long-term Disability

Other Benefits: Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Flexible Spending Account (FSA), ORCA card subsidy, Paid Time Off (34 days per year), Retirement Plan

About DESC:

DESC (Downtown Emergency Service Center) is a nonprofit organization working to help people with the complex needs of homelessness, substance use disorders, and serious mental illness achieve their highest potential for health and well-being through comprehensive services, treatment, and housing. Our vision is a community where no person is abandoned, ignored, or experiencing homelessness.

As the region's leading provider of services to multiply disabled adults who have experienced chronic homelessness, DESC serves almost 2,000 people each day. Our integrated service model is designed to help people secure and maintain appropriate, safe and affordable housing. DESC is recognized nationally and regionally as an innovator in developing solutions to homelessness.

About Mobile Rapid Response Crisis Team (MRRCT):

The Mobile Rapid Response Crisis Team (MRRCT or "Meerkat") at DESC, is a county funded program responsible for addressing the imminent and emergent needs of community members in crisis, in the central region of King County primarily covering the entirety of Seattle. The DESC team has been providing mobile crisis response services to the community for well over a decade.

As a nonprofit with over 45 years of experience focused on serving our community's adults living with long histories of homelessness, behavioral health, and other disabling conditions, DESC is uniquely positioned to connect people in crisis to the important support and survival services they may need to overcome and prevent future occurrences of crisis, behavioral health distress, or other instabilities in our community. 

JOB DEFINITION:

Each Crisis Outreach Shift Supervisor is responsible for ensuring their team's timely, effective, and coordinated response into the field as they are dispatched and deployed by Crisis Connections. Shift Supervisors work alongside the staff they supervise providing real-time, on the ground supervision, coaching and guidance for how to resolve crisis situations their teams are responding to in the community. Crisis Outreach Shift Supervisors have the responsibility of implementing the systems created by the MRRCT program leadership related to proper documentation standards, implementation and adherence to DESC policies and procedures, supervision and performance management of their team, and ensuring their team members participate in all relevant training and on-going education necessary.  

As part of the MRRCT each shift supervisor will at times be responsible for providing clinical and psychosocial assessments in the field and mental health evaluations to determine least restrictive alternatives to involuntary treatment. 

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Understand the expectations of MRRCT as described in King County's Provider Manual.
• Oversee maintenance and upkeep of employee files and records for compliance to program requirements.
• Co-lead the day-to-day operations of their assigned shift.
• Dispatch to outreaches as needed alongside team.
• Co-host and participate in all required team meetings.
• Provide 1:1 supervision with supervisees 2x/ month at minimum.
• Coordinate day -to-day schedule, making changes and adjustment due to staff call outs and call volume.
• Maintain staffing model through managing weekly and monthly scheduling in coordination with staff requests for PTO.
• Monitor for good working conditions all vehicles in MRRCT fleet, in collaboration with their Project Manager. Ensure vehicle and driver safety policies and procedures are followed by all team members. Report and respond to issues promptly.
• Maintain strong knowledge of all DESC policies and procedures. Assure compliance with same.
• Provide routine administrative and clinical supervision of team including combination of Certified Peer Crisis Outreach Specialist, Crisis Outreach Specialist, and Mental Health Professional Crisis Outreach Specialists, including performance evaluations on a regular and scheduled basis and maintain supporting documentation in confidential supervision and personnel files.
• Maintain strong knowledge of the collective bargaining agreement between management and union represented staff. Assure compliance with same.
• Provide clinical consultation as needed for the evaluation of the psychiatric, substance use, and housing needs of clients, and advocating for clients to access the most effective disposition available in the community.
• Teach and promote core DESC values, crisis intervention and de-escalation skills, and causes and effects of homelessness essential to ensure the safety of clients and staff.
• Help staff build competent crisis outreach skills and standard of practice related to clinical documentation and service coordination.
• Help staff build conflict resolution skills and understand how to give and receive feedback.
• Actively participate in hiring functions to ensure full staffing across all shifts and position types.

Requirements

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Eligible for a Licensed AAC credential or any other superseding credential that meets RCW 71.05.020 requirements to act as a Mental Health Professional whose scope of practice includes independently conducting mental health assessments and making mental health diagnoses.
• One or more years' experience in community based behavioral health services.
• Experience working with adults experiencing homelessness, mental illness and/or substance use disorders.
• Ability to drive an agency or personal vehicle to conduct agency related business. A current Washington State driver's license and insurable driving record are required.
• Required to complete DESC Crisis Response and Prevention training, and an 8-hour Crisis Intervention Training (CIT).
• Be able to pass a Washington State Criminal background check.
• Familiar with Recovery Principles, Crisis Intervention and Stabilization, Integrated Treatment of Co-occurring Disorders, Intensive Case Management, Illness Management, and relevant Evidenced based/Emerging best practices.
• Knowledge of Harm Reduction strategies.
• Strong working knowledge of DSM V.
• Be able to assess situations quickly and respond appropriately and calmly to any type of mental health and/or chemical dependency crisis to ensure the physical and psychological safety of clients.
• Be willing to seek to understand each client's unique circumstances and personal preferences and goals and incorporate them into the crisis response to help the client regain a sense of control.
• Possess strong communication and writing skills.
• Ability to work flexible hours as required by program and staffing needs including evenings, weekends, or holidays. This includes sharing on-call duties and covering shifts as necessary.
• Able and willing to provide community outreach anywhere in King County from which a referral may originate, at times with no first responders present.
• Familiar with King County crisis response system and methods of access.
• Ability to communicate with and supervise staff from diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to work effectively with clients displaying a wide range of unpleasant and/or bizarre behaviors.
• Subscribe to the philosophy of cooperation and continuity across programs and of consideration and respect for clients.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Licensed Social Worker (LICSW), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, or Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in the State of Washington. 
• Licensed Substance Use Disorder Professional (SUDP) in the state of Washington.
• Qualified to provide Department of Health Approved Supervision to LICSW, LMFT, LMHC and/or CDP candidates.
• Crisis Outreach and/or Crisis Intervention experience.
• Bilingual in Spanish/English.
• Bi-cultural background/experience and/or qualify as an Ethnic Minority, DD, or Geriatric Mental Health Specialist (per WAC 388-865-0150 definition). 
• Strong applicants are able to demonstrate the ability to be positive in their empathetic responses to all persons; understand the value of meaningful and deep client engagement; have the potential to acquire the necessary knowledge, attitudes and skills of an effective crisis worker; and value a non-judgmental response to sensitive issues. Candidates should be able to accept feedback and work in a highly collaborative and potentially stressful environment.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee will be required sit for long periods of time, communicate with other persons by talking and hearing, required to lift and carry items weighing up to 25 pounds and to operate computer hardware systems. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:

DESC is committed to diversity in the workplace, and promotes equal employment opportunities for all staff members and applicants. The Agency will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, creed, color, sex, gender, sexual orientation, age, national origin, caste, marital status, or the presence of any sensory, mental or physical disability in any employment practice, unless based on a bona fide occupational qualification. Minorities and veterans are encouraged to apply.

Salary Description