Behavioral Health Specialist

Job Summary

OARS (Older Adult Recovery Supports) which will offer enriched mental health engagement, treatment and recovery services for low/moderate income older adults age 55+ with mental illness, including serious mental illness (SMI) or Co-occurring Conditions. Within this population, we will further prioritize residents of Hispanic/ Latinx background (many of whom are monolingual in Spanish). The geographic catchment area is comprised of three Brooklyn, NY neighborhoods that have been most severely impacted by COVID-19, including Community District (CD) 3 (Bedford-Stuyvesant), CD5 (East New York/Starrett City/Cypress Hills), and CD16 (Ocean Hill/ Brownsville). These three CDs are home to a combined 420,000 residents, with a majority from communities of color: 61% are Black, 27% are Latinx; 29% are foreign-born, and 13% have limited English Proficiency. Approximately 25% of residents are age 55+, and 14% are age 65+, according to US Census data.[i] The NYC Department for the Aging reports that poverty among the 65+ age group ranged from 22% in Cypress Hill to 42% in Starrett City, with an average of 29% across CDs and above the rates for Brooklyn (18%) and NYC (16%) (2019).

These neighborhoods are among the most at-risk, high-need areas in NYC in terms of social determinants of health (SDOH) and disproportionately poor health outcomes – East New York and Bedford-Stuyvesant are Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) as designated by Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).38 Detrimental conditions were reflected in the devastation caused by COVID-19, as these neighborhoods had case and death rates significantly above the NYC averages: Between them, these neighborhoods recorded 10,588 cases per 100,000 residents (NYC: 9,149) and a death rate of 530/100,000 (NYC: 328); East New York, in particular, was hit hard, with a death rate of 945/100,000, the highest rate of COVID-19 deaths in the city. As elsewhere, older New Yorkers were most at risk, with poverty and/or being of Latinx or African-American background compounding the likelihood of becoming infected, hospitalized, or succumbing to COVID-19.

The Behavioral Health Specialist is responsible for providing outreach, engagement, and supportive counseling services as part of a team-based critical time intervention model designed to increase engagement in recovery, connection to services and supports, and decreased ED/hospital utilization

Essential Job Functions

• Provide supportive counseling, rehabilitation, and care coordination services in the community (homes, shelters, street) to individuals who are disengaged from treatment or who have recent ED/hospital utilization to increase engagement in recovery and connection to services and supports.
• Assist individuals in developing life goals and engaging in recovery planning to identify services and supports, and increase wellness self-management skills
• Documents activities and services, and other related reports in an organized, timely, and accurate manner as per policy and procedure.
• Works as part of a multi-disciplinary team; attends and participates in teams meetings to provide input/feedback around psychosocial and medical conditions to review client status, update plans and goals, review outcomes to further program goals.
• Collaborate with treatment providers and participate in routine case conferences to discuss progress
• Provide support and psychoeducation to family members, friends and other collateral individuals.
• Provide all services in a culturally relevant and competent manner.
• Provide referrals and engagement support for service linkages, e.g., medical services, entitlements, transportation, food assistance, housing, vocational training and placement, participation in psychosocial clubhouses and self-help groups, etc.
• Provides telephonic and face-to-face outreach, engagement, rehabilitation and supportive counseling in the field
• Provides crisis intervention and follow-up.
• May be assigned other tasks and duties reasonably related to the job responsibilities.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: LMSW/LMHC/CASAC
• Experience: One year of experience providing services to individuals diagnosed with behavioral health disorders
• Spanish-speaking preferred, not required.

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Good written and verbal communication skills; computer proficiency required.
• Sensitivity to issues involved in working in a diverse organization is essential
• Ability to work independently and also collaboratively with other team members
• Ability to interact appropriately and respectfully with clients, staff and community members