Advanced Clinical Social Worker

The State of Connecticut, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) is currently seeking a qualified and experienced individual for the position of Advanced Clinical Social Worker who is fluent in Spanish.

• FACILITY: Southwest Connecticut Mental Health System (SWCMHS)
• UNIT: Mobile Crisis Unit
• LOCATION: This position is considered Regional covering all of Fairfield County and will be rotating between Bridgeport and Stamford, CT
• SCHEDULE: Full-time (40 hours), 1st Shift, Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm
• POSITION NUMBER: 91282

• Visit our new State Employee Benefits Overview page
• The opportunity to work for a Forbes top company: 'Forbes' State of Connecticut Ranked One of the Best Employers of 2023 - State of CT Receives National Recognition for Offering Job Growth, Competitive Benefits, and Flexible Schedule.
• Professional growth and development opportunities.
• A healthy work/life balance to all employees.

• Engage in a rewarding career;
• Showcase your talents in a meaningful role;
• Provide support to a division that is passionate about the work we do.

The Role:

As a member of the Mobile Crisis Team, the Advanced Clinical Social Worker (ACSW) will independently provide highly skilled direct clinical social work evaluations and treatment to adult individuals in crisis with complex behavioral and social problems through comprehensive clinical assessments.

• Collaborate, consult, and coordinate with law enforcement.
• Provide clinical and/or administrative supervision to employees and regularly function as the team leader.
• Conduct crisis assessments and interventions, including risk management.
• Perform intakes for referral to treatment and other community behavioral health services.
• Follow up to ensure individuals follow through with referred services.
• Maintain documentation on everyone served.
• Enhance communication across the local behavioral health system of care, including forensics, law enforcement, and criminal justice systems.
• Promote linkages and resource utilization with the above entities.
• Provide emergency certification to transport clients for assessment and intervention at emergency rooms.
• Educate local providers and law enforcement agencies on the dynamics of behavioral health problems, homelessness, and the high-risk, high-needs clients served, as well as the behavioral health network/system.
• Provide direct clinical care in a wide variety of community settings, including face-to-face assessments in the community and criminal justice settings.

DMHAS is a health care agency whose mission is to promote the overall health and wellness of persons with behavioral health needs through an integrated network of holistic, comprehensive, effective, and efficient services and supports that foster dignity, respect, and self-sufficiency in those we serve.

The vision of the Southwest Connecticut Mental Health System is to provide high quality, compassionate and culturally competent mental health and substance abuse services to adults with behavioral health disorders who are indigent.

Please note:

A comprehensive medical examination, including a drug screening, will be required of all applicants upon a conditional offer of employment.

All state employees must adhere to Connecticut’s Policy for a Drug Free Workplace.

• In order to be considered for this job opening, you must meet the Minimum Qualifications as listed on the job opening. The minimum experience and training requirements must be met by the close date on the job opening, unless otherwise specified.
• You must specify your qualifications on your application. You will be unable to make revisions once you submit your application for this posting to the JobAps system.
• In order to comply with Public Act 21-69, the State of Connecticut is no longer asking for resumes during the initial application process.
• All application materials must be received by the recruiting agency by the time specified on the job opening for the position for which you are applying. Late applications may not be submitted and will not be considered. Exceptions are rare and limited to documented events that incapacitate a candidate during the entire duration of the job posting time period. It is the candidate’s obligation and responsibility to request an exception and provide a legally recognized justification to accommodate such exception. Requests should be made to DAS.SHRM@ct.gov.
• This position will be filled in accordance with contractual language, reemployment, SEBAC, transfer, promotion and merit employment rules.
• The only way to apply to this posting is via the ‘Apply’ or ‘Apply Online’ buttons on the official State of Connecticut Online Employment Center job posting.

In a state agency behavioral health program as part of a multi-disciplinary team at one or more locations this class is accountable for skilled clinical social work treatment and leadership services involving complex case assignments.

• Independently provides highly skilled direct clinical social work treatment and/or substance abuse services to clients with complex psychological and social problems through comprehensive clinical assessments and provision of individual, family and group treatment;
• Provides individual field work instruction and/or clinical supervision which includes instruction in use of comprehensive psychosocial assessments and current diagnostic categories, taking into consideration cultural, social, economic, medical, environmental and legal issues;
• Develops comprehensive service plans including measurable treatment objectives;
• Initiates consultation and collaboration with other mental health providers to improve delivery of current services and/or identify unmet needs within current service system;
• Provides clinical supervision to Licensed Master Social Workers;
• Assists in resolution of administrative, personnel and clinical issues in program and/or agency;
• Develops data for statistical and planning systems and/or research and publication;
• Prepares administrative reports and suggests operational policies and procedures;
• Oversees development and/or implementation of individual client treatment and/or service plans;
• May be assigned administrative oversight of research projects;
• May provide clinical and/or administrative leadership to program components such as crisis intervention teams, inpatient treatment teams, case management teams, psychoeducational program services, psychosocial rehabilitation and forensic services;
• May provide forensic evaluations and expert testimony to courts;
• May represent program or agency during licensing and certification inspections conducted by regulatory bodies;
• May represent program or agency in liaison relationships with other community agencies and resources;
• May provide in-service educational presentations concerning available health, mental health and human services resources and means to access them;
• May chair facility or community based committees that develop policies and plans to serve psychiatrically disabled individuals;
• May present information on mental illness and mental health services to community groups;
• Performs related duties as required.

• Considerable knowledge of
  • and ability to instruct others about theories of human behavior, current diagnostic categories of mental illness, family dynamics, substance abuse and human sexuality;
  • of social, cultural, economic, political, religious, medical, psychological and legal issues which influence behavior of clients, families, service programs and society at large;
• Knowledge of
  • statutes, regulations and standards relating to mental health services;
  • state law governing licensed clinical social worker practice standards;
• Considerable
  • oral and written communication skills;
  • administrative skills;
• Considerable ability to independently apply in practice current psychiatric treatment modalities including but not limited to behavioral, cognitive, object-relations, crisis intervention and psychosocial rehabilitation approaches;
• Ability to
  • integrate theory and case material in assessing and devising comprehensive treatment and/or service plans for difficult and/or complex case assignments;
  • lead task groups including but not limited to treatment teams and agency committees.

• One (1) year of experience as a licensed clinical social worker.

• Fluent in Spanish.
• Experience assessing for and completing risk management assessments within a Mobile Crisis environment or other acute community settings.
• Experience providing consultation and education to providers, families and law enforcement officers.
• Experience writing an Emergency Certificate in the community.
• Experience engaging in consultation with community providers such as non-profits, hospitals, elderly protective services etc.
• Experience working collaboratively with first responders such as police and EMS.

• Incumbents in this class must possess and retain a license to practice clinical social work pursuant to Sec. 20-195 (m) through (r) of the Connecticut General Statutes.
• Incumbents in this class must possess and maintain eligibility for participation in federal health care programs as defined in 42 U.S. § 1320a-7b(f).
• Incumbents in this class may be required to have knowledge of sign language and communication ability with the deaf and hearing impaired in designated positions.
• Incumbents in this class may be required to have ability in Spanish oral and written communication in designated positions.
• Incumbents in this class may be required to be a certified Substance Abuse/HIV Supervisor.
• Incumbents in this class may be required to travel.