About Greater Lakes Mental Health

Greater Lakes Mental Health is a key component of MultiCares Behavioral Health Network, providing mental health and substance use disorder treatment for over 10,000 individuals annually across Pierce County. Providing services for adults, children, and families with Medicaid coverage, Greater Lakes offers 6 convenient mental health care locations including a 16-bed inpatient facility covering medically necessary voluntary and involuntary services to adults. Our experienced teams, veteran nurses, and robust training plans are designed to support your success and growth in facilitating recovery-oriented and trauma-informed treatment.

Position Specific Summary & Mission:

Greater Lakes Diversion Liaison program seeks to divert individuals at risk of being arrested due to mental health challenges into behavioral health services. This position provides time-based clinical case management services to match individuals with the right services at the right time.

The duties of this position include working to facilitate a care continuum with warm handoffs between different levels of care to help clients find and maintain stability. This position acts as a centralized diversion referral and resource center to identify appropriate services and support clients with addressing barriers to follow-through. The Diversion Liaison assists clients with application or reinstatement of benefits, crisis bed placement, access to mental health services, access to substance abuse services, and referral to other resources such as housing, employment, etc.

Referrals may come from internal or external sources, including the treatment team for Pierce County Felony Mental Health Court. The Diversion Liaison will attend court review dockets for therapeutic court(s) and participate in the discharge planning process for graduates when appropriate.

This position partners with Pierce County Co-Responders, Department of Corrections Special Needs Unit, Trueblood settlement programs, and other community resources to assist with connection to long-term services for the individuals they serve. All services are provided under the supervision of a mental health professional.

Essential Functions / Competencies:

Uses effective clinical skills to assure appropriate client-centered care.

• Develops understanding of each individuals strengths and goals to enable effective person-centered services through use of appropriate clinical modalities.
• Uses knowledge of mental illness and the recovery model to provide effective case management to assist clients in meeting their recovery goals.
• Provides effective education about mental health symptoms and care options.
• Provides crisis stabilization services to clients and family members as needed, demonstrating effective de-escalation skills and knowledge of least restrictive options.
• Uses knowledge of community resources to provide effective case management, advocacy, and referrals as needed.
• Seeks out clients who have lapsed in their participation in services, especially those with acute symptoms or risk issues.
• Provides services in the community (at homes, medical offices, etc.).
• Continues to develop clinical competence and knowledge required to meet changing client, community, and industry trends.
• Exhibits proper role awareness and maintain professional boundaries.
• Assures confidentiality is always maintained.

Completes effective face-to-face psychosocial assessments of adults, strongly reflecting client voice, based on the issues, concerns and goals clients express.

• Works to proactively identify and build rapport with potential clients, introducing them to available resources.
• Determines the most appropriate level of service, based on clinical needs.
• Provides on-going assessment of criminogenic risk and responsivity needs of the client.
• Consults and collaborates with other professionals/agencies to maintain continuity of care, as needed.

Completes clinical documentation in a timely, accurate manner.

• Develops individualized Risk/Need Plans with each client, including measurable goals and objectives for recovery and wellness.
• Completes required clinical paperwork within established timelines.
• Obtains participant signatures on documents as required.
• If a Crisis Plan is needed, formulates it with the client, addressing all required elements.
• When service is complete, works with clients to create effective discharge plans that confirm safety plans and connections with long-term services.
• Regularly completes contract required reporting documentation.

Completes administrative documentation in a timely and accurate manner.

• Completes and submits Time Sheets, Time-Off Requests, Mileage Reimbursement, etc. accurately and on time.
• Provides all required annual documentation to Human Resources and completes all required Relias Learning training in a timely manner.

General Functions / Competencies:

The following General Competency Expectations promote Trauma Informed Care by empowering others, helping to create an environment which is physically and psychologically safe, and by modeling and encouraging cultural sensitivity in the workplace. Trauma Informed Care principals can be addressed in any of the general competencies below.

• Customer Service - Demonstrates a positive attitude and efforts toward meeting the needs of internal and external customers.
• Communication - Uses English effectively to send and receive messages, oral and written, in a clear, positive, prompt, and appropriate manner.
• Teamwork - Demonstrates positive cooperation toward co-workers, supervisors, and organization goals.
• Dependability - Demonstrates good reliability in attendance, in meeting work deadlines, and in performing tasks.
• Adaptability - Demonstrates flexibility in responding to change and in working with diverse groups and individuals.
• Accountability Holds self accountable to accomplish desired and required outcomes; carries out necessary actions and tasks, actively and positively communicates with all individuals and groups within and external to Greater Lakes. Provides a model of leadership and responsibility to those supervised, all customers and colleagues.
• Mission focused Demonstrates behaviors & practices that help to promote organizational values.

Secondary Functions:

• Develops and maintains effective working relationships with law enforcement, community corrections staff, and other therapeutic court staff, participating in meetings as needed, representing the Multicare Behavioral Health Network and the Diversion Liaison program positively.
• Attends all Program and Agency mandated trainings and meetings.
• Attends and participates in all required meetings, committee work and performs other administrative tasks as required by the Program Manager.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Job Scope: The work involves activity of both a routine and non-routine nature, of low to moderate complexity, with general guidelines and limited direct supervision. Work is guided by formal policies and procedures. This position works fairly autonomously, often out in the community. While this position has limited direct budgetary accountability, errors in work can have significant impact on customer service, clinical outcomes, and liability implications.

Supervisory Responsibility: None

Communication / Customer Contacts: This position involves a high frequency of communication, in various forms, verbal and written, with clients, other staff, and community partners. Must communicate on a regular and timely basis with supervisors, other staff, consumers, their families and community supports, and with professionals outside the agency. Must also abide by all confidentiality laws and pertinent codes of conduct. Use the computer system to send and receive email, to write reports, to schedule and complete clinical transactions. Utilizes voice mail and email on a regular basis, and responds to those contacts in a timely manner.

Knowledge and Skills:

• A knowledge and understanding of mental disorders with basic familiarity with the DSM-V to determine appropriate referrals.
• A basic awareness of substance abuse/dependence issues
• Ability to implement a continuum of care for clients based on need and level of functioning
• Ability to develop and implement treatment strategies tailored to individual client needs
• Knowledge of community resources with the ability to develop links for clients

• A sensitive perception of the needs of individuals with disabilities
• Well-developed skills in managing time, priorities, and paperwork; excellent written and oral communication skills
• Understanding of the importance of clear, professional boundaries, and maintenance of such
• The ability to collaborate effectively with external partners
• Demonstration of good, common sense
• Cultural competency

Job Conditions: Must have a WA State Drivers License, a personal automobile, auto insurance, and possess a good driving record. Ability to work both in and out of the office and go into clients residences, which may require climbing stairs and walking on uneven terrain. Must be able to speak and hear at normal conversational levels.

FTE: 1.0, Shift: Day, Schedule: M-F

Position Summary

Responsibilities

• You will provide person-centered counseling, advocacy and case management for patients

• You will develop treatment plans which clearly identify the patients voice, treatment strategies, and specific outcome measures

• You will meet agency documentation standards

• You will meet authorization requirements of contracts

• You will strategically tailor effective clinical/case management services to meet diverse patient needs

Requirements

• Bachelors degree in a behavioral health related field required; An equivalent number of four (4) years of directly applicable experience performing mental health counseling may be accepted in lieu of the degree

• Must be eligible and apply for a Washington State Agency Affiliated Counselor within 30 days and obtain within 90 days of placement in job, unless a higher credential is held
• Current Washington state drivers license

• Previous experience providing mental health counseling services preferred

• Proof of a safe driving record (which meets established MultiCare Standards) obtained by a motor vehicle report from the appropriate state

Pay and Benefit Expectations

Associated benefit information can be viewed here.

Position Type: Full time - Regular
Primary Shift: Day
Work Schedule: Day

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About MultiCare Health System

MultiCare is a not-for-profit health care organization with more than 20,000 team members, including employees, providers and volunteers. MultiCare has been caring for our community for well over a century, since the founding of Tacoma’s first hospital and today is the largest community-based, locally governed system of health in the state of Washington, serving communities across Washington and Northern Idaho. MultiCare’s comprehensive system of health includes numerous primary care, urgent care and specialty services — including Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital & Health Network; MultiCare Indigo Urgent Care; Pulse Heart Institute; MultiCare Medical Associates, affiliated physicians; MultiCare Rockwood Clinic, the largest multispecialty clinic in the Inland Northwest region; and MultiCare Connected Care, our Accountable Care Organization. Eleven hospitals complete the organization: Allenmore Hospital, Auburn Medical Center, Capital Medical Center, Covington Medical Center, Deaconess Hospital, Good Samaritan Hospital, Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital — the Puget Sound region’s only children’s hospital and state-designated Level II Pediatric Trauma Center for Western Washingt...on — Navos Behavioral Health Hospital, Valley Hospital, Tacoma General Hospital — which is home to the South Puget Sound region’s only Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit — and Wellfound Behavioral Health Hospital. Our core values of Respect, Integrity, Stewardship, Excellence, Collaboration and Kindness, serve as our guiding principles and impact every aspect of our organization, including how we provide patient care and what we expect from each other. MultiCare is also proud of our commitment to workforce diversity and culturally competent care. This commitment is led by our CEO and supported through employee education and community outreach.

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