Assistant Commissioner Of Behavioral Health Services

APPLICANTS MUST BE PERMANENT IN THE ADMINISTATIVE DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL SERVICE CIVIL SERVICE TITLE OR BE PERMANENT IN A COMPARABLE TITLE ELIGIBLE FOR 6.1.9 TITLE CHANGE OR MUST BE PERMANENT IN THE SUPERVISOR SOCIAL SERVICE CIVIL SERVICE TITLE OR HAVE PASSED THE RECENT CIVIL SERVICE EXAM AND BE IMMEDIATELY REACHABLE.

The Department of Homeless Services (DHS) is comprised of 2,000 employees and with an annual operating budget of over $1 billion is one of the largest organizations of its kind committed to preventing and addressing homelessness in New York City. Collaborating with other public agencies and not-for-profit partners, DHS works to prevent homelessness before it occurs, reduce street homelessness, and assist New Yorkers to transition from shelter into appropriate permanent housing. DHS is responsible for management of over 200 facilities, which mainly are individual and family shelters used as overnight residences for over 38,000 adults and children. DHS's portfolio covers approximately 4M square feet.

The goals of the Health Services Office at the Department of Social Services (DSS) are to improve the health and well-being of New Yorkers experiencing homelessness, reduce morbidity and mortality; thereby increasing their chances of succeeding in permanent housing and independent living, improving access to care and health outcomes for low-income and vulnerable populations. The Office brings public health and evidence-based interventions to DSS in the areas of health, mental health, substance use, and nutrition and our staff works with other divisions at DSS and with shelter and clinical providers regarding the linkage to health services, coordination with hospitals and other health care providers, implementing interventions, conducting programmatic research and evaluations, and providing medical consultations.

Under the executive direction of the Department of Social Services (DSS) Chief Medical Officer, with maximum latitude for independent initiative and judgement, the Assistant Commissioner of Behavioral Health Services is responsible for planning, establishing, and directing a new combined unit dedicated to developing and implementing client service models and interventions and evaluating those, for improving health outcomes for homeless populations as part of a new initiative mandated by City Council (Local Law 35) and overseeing other mandated services including overdose prevention and institutional referrals. Specifically, the Assistant Commissioner of Behavioral Health Services will oversee the LL35 Program, Families with Children Telehealth Program, and Substance Use and Hospital Discharge Programs units. These units consist of the agency's Opioid Overdose Prevention Program (OOPP), Harm Reduction Strategic Plan, grants, and collaborations with federal, state and city agencies supporting substance use services in shelter, and the Institutional Referral Program. This position will establish, implement, and oversee a new Child Mental Health Program that will provide mental health services in Families with Children (FWC) shelters, including the Child Mental Health Telehealth Program and the implementation of Local Law 35.

The Department of Homeless Services is recruiting one (1) Administrative Director of Social Services M-IV to function as a Assistant Commissioner of Behavioral Health Services who will:

• Oversee the implementation of the Harm Reduction Strategic Plan and related Program in all DHS shelters, including the State-certified Opioid Overdose Prevention Program, totaling a budget of over $2 million, including the development of a tailored approach for Families with Children shelters to build shelter capacity to provide overdose and drug/alcohol prevention services. The program implementation entails developing a work plan, work tools, an advisory group and training program. If this program is not implemented, more overdoses will occur among DHS clients. Program evaluation will be conducted by establishing process and outcome indicators, develop data collection tools and methods, direct data analysis and implement related program improvements.

• Oversee the institutional referral process that describes and governs referrals from health care facilities, jail, and prison to shelter to ensure medical appropriateness, oversees and trains the staff who review the referrals and communicates decisions to healthcare facilities; develops and oversees the enhanced discharge planning plans and provides guidance for appropriate discharge; ensures that the discharge planning is in accordance with NYS regulations by reviewing discharge plans. Enhances the institutional referral data management systems.

• Develop and implements a new program to deliver mental health services in Families with Children (FWC) shelters, including intervention design, implementation, supervision of over twenty-five (25) new staff, monitoring and reporting, to meet the goals of the Child Telehealth Program and of Local law 35, and improves health outcomes. Designs and oversees formative research to select evidence-based Child Mental Health interventions and assess feasibility, acceptability and expected impact in FWC shelter setting, using sound methodology to select final interventions.

• Oversee the development of related policies and procedures, clinical practice support tools and training materials and technical assistance tools to support Families with Children (FWC) shelters to deliver evidence-based behavioral services onsite and via telehealth.

• Establish and/or participates in collaboration and workgroups with external agencies, including but not limited to other city agencies {for eg. Administration for Children's Services (ACS); Human Resources Administration (HRA) Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), Health and Hospitals(H&H); State Office of Persons with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD, community health, mental health, and managed care organizations around behavioral health services at DHS}.

• Represent the agency and participates in various City and State planning groups and behavioral health agencies focused housing task forces.

• Write grant applications to expand funding for programs and interventions related to the work in the Medical Office.

• Participate in leading policy development and negotiations by keeping abreast of policy developments, reviewing related literature, attending relevant meetings, collaborating with the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and authoring policy proposals.

Work Location: 33 Beaver Street, New York, NY

Hours/Schedule: Monday

• Friday 9am to 5pm

Minimum Qualifications

1.A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university and four years of progressively responsible experience, in a large governmental agency, business firm, civic or community organization operating in the area of social services, including one year at the administrative or managerial level; or

2.Education and/or experience equivalent to "1" above. Graduate education or a license may substitute for up to a maximum of three years of experience in the area of social services, but not for the one year of experience at the administrative or managerial level as described in "1" above, as follows:

(A) A master's degree from an accredited college or university in accounting, business, child welfare, counseling, economics, education, finance, human resources, labor relations, management, management science, nursing, operations research, organizational behavior, personnel or public administration, political science, psychology, sociology, social work, statistics, and/or urban studies may substitute for two years of experience; and/or

(B) Graduate education beyond the baccalaureate degree may be substituted at the rate of 30 semester credits from an accredited college or university in the area(s) listed in "2(A)" above for each year of experience up to a maximum of three years; or

(C) A valid New York State Registration as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) or Licensed Master of Social Work (LMSW) may substitute for three years of experience.

However, all candidates must have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and one year of experience at the administrative or management level as described in "1" above.

Preferred Skills

• Experience developing and implementing health programs in City agencies in collaboration with multiple community organization partners.

• Advanced knowledge of the NYC behavioral health care system, with a focus on services for people who have experienced homelessness.

• Experience executing and managing City inter-agency agreements and programs and budgets.

• Experience producing health training programs, curriculum and educational material for providers and the public.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, training software, communications software and using data to develop evaluations and public reports.

• Experience managing staff with a diverse array of roles, responsibilities skills and backgrounds -including those who conduct home visits.

• Excellent problem solving and critical thinking skills.

• Excellent interpersonal, writing, and oral communication skills.

55a Program

This position is also open to qualified persons with a disability who are eligible for the 55-a Program. Please indicate at the top of your resume and cover letter that you would like to be considered for the position through the 55-a Program.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education's website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

Residency Requirement

New York City Residency is not required for this position

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.