Board Certified Behavioral Analyst

Location: CHA Somerville Campus 

Work Days: Mon.-Fri., 8 hour shifts  

Category: Professional and Management  

Department: Psych SH 5 East Neuro Provider  

Job Type: Full time  

Work Shift: Primarily days, with 2 evenings per week

Hours/Week: 40.00 

Union: No 

Union Name: Non Union

Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) is a vibrant, innovative health system dedicated to providing essential services to all members of the community. With almost 140,000 patients in Cambridge, Somerville, and Boston’s Metro North region, CHA is a local provider of choice for primary care, specialty care, emergency services, hospital care, maternity care and behavioral health.

CHA recently opened a new inpatient center for youth with acute behavioral health needs. Located in Somerville, the beautiful new facility offers care for children and adolescents with neuro-developmental disorders. The new Center for Inpatient Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at Somerville will provide a transformative continuum of patient and family-centered care for diverse youth with mental health needs.

Position Description: 

The Inpatient Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) will be primarily assigned to the Neurodevelopmental Disorders Unit (NDU), which is a specialized inpatient psychiatry unit for children and adolescents with intellectual/developmental disabilities (e.g., autism) who need inpatient level of care related to a psychiatric or behavioral crisis. 

The BCBA will be responsible for conducting behavior-analytic assessments and developing both behavioral interventions and progress monitoring systems for the NDU patients. The BCBA will work under the direction of the NDU unit psychologist and will be a member of a larger multidisciplinary team comprised of other disciplines such as psychiatry, nursing, psychology, social work, and rehabilitation services (e.g., speech and language, occupational therapy).

Responsibilities: 

• Develops and implements behavior-analytic assessment and intervention for a clinical caseload as assigned by the NDU unit psychologist.

• Implements behavior-analytic assessments including, but not limited to, caregiver interviews, preference assessments, descriptive assessments, skill-based assessments and functional analysis to guide treatment planning. When necessary, compiles information into a functional behavioral assessment report.

• Utilizes behavior-analytic assessment results to design and implement function-based interventions and other behavior-analytic interventions (e.g., functional communication training, token systems, environmental enrichment) to increase adaptive, replacement skills and reduce challenging behavior. Work with parents, caregivers, and teachers etc. to promote generalization and maintenance of treatment outcomes following discharge.

• Provides education and behavioral caregiver training/coaching to parents and other caregivers.

• Develops and maintains patients’ behavioral intervention plans. Evaluates and adjusts behavioral interventions to meet treatment goals.

• Develops and maintains behavioral data collection systems to monitor patients’ response to treatment. Utilizes data to make data-based decisions regarding changes to behavioral intervention plans. When indicated, graphs and reviews behavioral data with the larger multidisciplinary team.

• Participates in multidisciplinary team meetings, clinical meetings (e.g., systems meeting), and staff meetings when necessary. Makes recommendations regarding patients’ overall treatment.

• Provides clinical guidance, in collaboration with nursing and training to Mental Health Counselors on assisting with behavior-analytic assessment and the implementation of behavioral intervention plans. In conjunction with the NDU Unit Psychologist, ensures the implementation of patient behavioral plans to fidelity.

• Provides group therapy using principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to target development of social, communication, and other adaptive skills.

• Assists in crisis intervention including implementing crisis intervention techniques as necessary. 

• Supports multidisciplinary crisis intervention training/education.

• Provide care two evenings per week (e.g., 11a-7:30p)

• Attends daily safety huddle and team rounds, on days when not working evenings, with responsibility for maintaining an awareness of unit related treatment and safety needs

• Attends nursing/MHC report when possible to help answer questions related to behavioral monitoring/interventions on the unit.

Qualifications: 

• Master’s degree in ABA, Education, Psychology or related field; BCBA certification; completion of BACB-approved 8-hour supervisory training preferred.

• Licensed as LABA with a minimum of 1 year of post-licensure experience

• Three (3) years of experience with children/adolescents who have developmental disabilities and other related disorders, including psychiatric and mental health diagnoses. 

• Experience providing care to children and adolescents who present with severe challenging behavior (e.g., aggression, self-injurious behavior).

• Applied experience with preference assessments, functional behavior assessments/analyses and other forms of data analysis.

• Well versed and experienced in crisis prevention and intervention techniques

• Physical and mental capacity to work in stressful situations and de-escalate individuals who have limited cognition and complex needs including significant communication impairments.

• Readiness for multidisciplinary consultation, collaboration, creativity, agility, and adaptive communication skills in a fast-paced, high-acuity environment.

• Commitment to patient-centered, formulation-driven care with a trauma-informed and culturally-responsive framework, including effective communication skills with patients, families, and providers.

 
In keeping with federal, state and local laws, Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) policy forbids employees and associates to discriminate against anyone based on race, religion, color, gender, age, marital status, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability or any other characteristic protected by law. We are committed to establishing and maintaining a workplace free of discrimination. We are fully committed to equal employment opportunity. We will not tolerate unlawful discrimination in the recruitment, hiring, termination, promotion, salary treatment or any other condition of employment or career development. Furthermore, we will not tolerate the use of discriminatory slurs, or other remarks, jokes or conduct, that in the judgment of CHA, encourage or permit an offensive or hostile work environment.
 

Cambridge Health Alliance brings Care to the People - including your neighbors, friends and family. Our local hospitals and care centers serve our vibrant, diverse communities, and play an integral role in improving health. As passionate advocates for the underserved, we actively partner with our communities to take on challenging public health issues, and conduct important research to help reduce barriers to care. We believe that everyone deserves access to high quality, convenient health care. This is why our employees believe in where they work and why many build long, rewarding careers at CHA.

Healthcare is changing rapidly. CHA has a strategic plan that charts a proactive course for our future. It is built on a vision of equity and excellence for everyone, every time. It also recognizes that our workforce is our most valuable asset and prioritizes competitive salaries, benefits and professional development opportunities for employees. The strategic plan is changing the way we provide care and improving the health and experience of our patients; we are looking for smart, committed, compassionate people who want to be part of making our vision of better health and equity a reality.

At CHA, you can believe in where you work and go home every day knowing you made a difference. Join our team and help us bring Care to the People.