HOUSING CLINICIAN HOARDING SPECIALIST

Housing Clinician Hoarding Specialist

Department: Housing Stabilization -- BH

Office: 1100 Washington Street - SSH

Location: Dorchester, MA

Position Type: Direct Care

Hours/Shift: Morning - First Shift

Employee Type:: Regular Full-time

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SCHEDULE: 40 hours, Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., or comparable. Some flexibility required.

Pays $70,000 -$75,000 annually DOE

LOCATION: 100 Washington St. Dorchester, MA

JOB DESCRIPTION:

SUMMARY OF THE POSITION:

The Housing Clinician-Hoarding Specialist will be available to tenants and staff (especially case managers) of the Scattered Site and Congregate Departments at Pine Street Inn (PSI) to provide support, clinical services and consultation, appropriate resources addressing the complexities of care for tenants with histories of trauma, mental illness and/or addictive disorders. The Hoarding Specialist will utilize Harm Reduction as a model of engagement, intervention and evaluation and use the Housing First model promoting long-term stability in housing and the end of homelessness in Boston. The Hoarding Specialist works closely with the PSI Scattered Site and Congregate Case management team and other providers such as BHCHP providers. The individual will be self-motivated, with solid communications skills, capable of supporting tenants to meet their highest level of self-sufficiency in housing. The Specialist is an integral member of the Housing Stabilization Team (HST) and will therefore need to maintain close communication team, collaborate and coordinate with the team regarding high-risk individuals and programs that are high risk/acute/high need.

Please note - All credentials and licensures will be reviewed annually as part of the PSI credentialing process. Additionally an annual CORI review will be conducted for the Housing Clinicians. Acceptable results of annual credentialing and CORI reviews will be required of the Housing Clinicians.

REQUIREMENTS:

EDUCATION/TRAINING:

REQUIRED:

+ Master-s degree or higher in a related field (i.e. social work, clinical psychology, education, nursing)

+ Advanced training in hoarding or Current Hoarding Certification, or ability to obtain advanced training

+ In Hoarding and/or obtain Hoarding Certification within six months of hire

KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE:

REQUIRED:

+ Minimum of three (3) years direct care experience providing services, including assessment and individual and/or group therapy, to adults living in the community with mental illness and/or addictive disorders

+ Clinical skills and competence to offer education around substance use, trauma, co-occurring disorders, mental illness diagnoses, and emotional and mental health generally

+ Strong computer skills, including but not limited to use of management information systems or database programs

+ Knowledge of and strong commitment to Harm Reduction philosophy, principles and practices.

PREFERRED:

+ Experience working with chronically homeless, medically vulnerable individuals, with tri-morbidities (mental illness, substance abuse, medically compromised)

+ Experience with hoarding interventions of model-building, creating hierarchies (non-acquisition and letting go), thought record, and behavioral experiment.

+ Experience coaching, mentoring, empowering and otherwise supporting non-clinical direct-care staff

+ Familiarity with Housing First as a model of permanent, supported, affordable housing

+ Expertise in Motivational Interviewing and case management responsibilities

+ Expertise in Trauma-Informed Care, including the impact on direct-care staff (i.e. secondary traumatic stress, vicarious traumatization)

+ Bilingual Spanish/ English

PHYSICAL ABILITIES/SKILLS:

REQUIRED:

+ Ability to travel to all PSI Housing residences regularly in all weather conditions

+ Ability to access public transportation

+ Ability to climb many flights of stairs

+ Ability to lift heavy objects

+ Ability to work at a computer for prolonged periods of time

MENTAL ABILITIES/SKILLS:

REQUIRED:

+ Strong awareness of and commitment to self-care strategies, practices and support

+ Strong, professional organizational and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to engage very vulnerable and disenfranchised individuals and the people who care for them

+ Positive and supportive attitude, including the ability to see, elicit, acknowledge and appreciate the strengths, intentions, skills, wisdom, values, commitments and resilience of direct-care staff

+ Ability to provide coaching, mentoring, and accompaniment in addition to clinical supervision and psycho-education

+ Empathy, creativity and compassion in holding the complexities of the many and competing needs, demands and expectations that direct-care staff face in their work

+ Excellent self-care and personal modeling of active self-care practice

+ Ability to model teamwork, dialogue, empowerment, healthy boundaries, time management and other supportive skills

+ Ability to work collaboratively as a member of cross-functional teams

+ Ability to function under pressure in a fast paced human service environment

+ Ability to develop, implement and evaluate training curriculum for direct supports staff

+ Previous open door experience of creatively working with and problem solving effective ways to meet a diversity of needs of an at risk, and sometimes non-compliant population who choose not to engage in services

+ Highly developed professional ethics to maintain appropriate boundaries

+ Ability to work independently and as a part of a team

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO:

+ Meet with PSI Scattered Site and Congregate case managers to discuss her/his experiences of the work; consult on a regular basis about clinically sensitive and/or challenging situations around clutter with particular tenants.

+ Conduct regular group clinical meetings where case managers bring clinically challenging situations with particular tenants with clutter issues for which they need consultation.

+ Identify clinical challenges present in each case manager-s work, and offer clinical insight, ideas and advice to support and empower case managers in working with clinically vulnerable tenants.

+ Coordinate with the HST to support tenants experiencing mental health crises to facilitate access to emergency psychiatric services; facilitate the connection of appropriate HST staff to draft and communicate safety and risk planning and assessments, and risk response plans, as well as hospitalization discharge planning.

+ Meet with the Associate Directors of Scattered Site Housing and Congregate Housing on regular basis to ensure alignment with Housing Department initiatives, scheduling, and general clinical and service needs.

+ Engage in active, compassionate listening with PSI Scattered Site and Congregate tenants and case managers, acknowledging and validating their struggles and eliciting their values, strengths, skills and wisdom for engaging the complexities of their work (as well as the realities of their limitations).

+ Provide consultation and assistance in psychiatric and substance abuse related emergencies when HST crisis team is unavailable.

+ Interact with PSI Scattered Site and Congregate Tenants as necessary, both as a role model for staff and, as necessary, when an immediate clinical intervention is required.

+ Coach and mentor staff through the process of advocating for tenants within medical and mental health settings. As needed, serve as liaison with outside agencies and others with regard to a resident-s treatment needs and follow up.

+ Assess tenants with clutter issues for appropriate treatment planning and interventions. Share these plans with case managers to assist with implementation.

+ Provide education and resource identification including, but not limited, to trauma, mental health, addiction, Harm Reduction, Motivational Interviewing, and Trauma-Informed Care to case management staff, individually (as needed).

+ Employ evidence-based best practices/interventions with those who struggle with hoarding behaviors and Ability to provide guidance and training to staff who assist participants who hoard to further develop their skill and understanding of hoarding.

+ Collaborate with Care Coordination Entities and other providers to ensure access to appropriate medical, clinical, self-help, and peer modalities during times of crisis, care transitions, other life transitions and changes in health status.

+ Conduct trainings on Hoarding assessment and interventions with the case managers and relevant PSI staff. Assist PSI Scattered Site and Congregate Leadership teams in development and implementation of a training curriculum.

+ Attend all mandatory trainings and other trainings that will enhance ability to assist residents in maintaining and enhancing their quality of life.

+ Uphold the rights of all residents. Be continually aware of these rights and act in accordance with these rights. Interact with residents in ways, which establish a climate of respect for human dignity.

+ Work cooperatively with representatives of all PSI departments, including but not limited to Operations, Advancement and External Affairs, Finance and Human Resources.

+ Represent PSI in a professional manner in all contacts with neighbors and representatives of other agencies.

+ Partner with program supervisors to coordinate communication, team-building, ongoing education and training for PSI congregate staff community.

+ As part of the PSI Scattered Site and Congregate Leadership Teams, contribute to planning on enhancements to congregate housing programs. Strategize about congregate residences where there are a combination of interrelated issues regarding residents and their behaviors which impact the safety and well-being of staff and residents.

+ Provide continual quality assurance around clinical documentation including the documentation of all Clinician tenant visits and interactions in Carelogic (Electronic Health Record) and the Clarity HMIS system to ensure compliance for both contract and insurance billing

+ Perform additional duties as required.

+ Coordinate with the Crisis Response Coordinator and Crisis Response Team to support tenants experiencing mental health crises to facilitate access to emergency psychiatric services; facilitate the connection of appropriate CR staff to draft and communicate safety and risk planning and assessments, as well as hospitalization discharge planning,

+ Consult with program staff regarding mental health and substance abuse assessment and referral for treatment through home visiting, case conferencing and individual staff consultations and assess need for hospitalization. Act as the lead for all sectioning activities

+ Mentor staff through the process of advocating for program participants within medical and mental health settings

+ Provide leadership in crisis interventions and perform risk management assessments of program participants to determine safety risk of staff and participant

+ Work in collaboration with other clinical personnel across the organization

+ As needed, serve as liaison with hospitals, administrators, social workers, and family members and other program participant supports with regard to program participants- mental health and addiction treatment needs and follow-up

+ Represent PSI and the Supportive Housing Department in the Housing Court system in conjunction with the Case Management Supervisors.

+ Assist tenant as required for bed bug remediation as outline by PSI Bed Bug Policy.

+ Collaborate with PSI-s partner, Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program-s visiting nurse and psychiatrist to serve tenants with severe and persistent mental illness and chronic substance abuse issues. Lead joint case conferences between the partnering organizations.

+ Responsible for facilitating the coordination of services between PSI Housing and specialized programs such as such as PACE, SCO, and GAFC

+ Maintain quality communication with other programs at PSI

+ Represent the mission of Pine Street Inn both within the community and with people and agencies outside Pine Street Inn

+ Due to emergency or unforeseen program needs, staff may be temporarily or permanently reassigned to another PSI Housing program at any given time.

+ Other duties as required by programmatic need.

INTERNAL CANDIDATES INTERESTED IN APPLYING FOR THIS POSITION, PLEASE SUBMIT A PROMOTION/TRANSFER APPLICATION TO THE HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT WITHIN 10 DAYS OF POSTING.

Pine Street Inn is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.

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