Social Worker- Bilingual- Community Health

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER/ FULL TIME / 40 HOURS/ JAMAICA PLAIN BOSTON MA

• Ask about Sign On Bonus (for eligible, non-MGB employee)

• Excellent benefits include: Generous Paid Time Off, matched 403B, Pension/Cash Balance Account, Continuing Education reimbursement, Medical/ Dental, Public Transit Subsidy and much more!

• Convenient location in Jamaica Plain

• Bilingual Spanish

GENERAL SUMMARY/ OVERVIEW STATEMENT:

• Under the supervision of the Executive Director and Practice Manager and in collaboration with the Family Service team, the social worker is responsible for providing psychosocial assessment, diagnosis, evaluation, crisis intervention, and treatment for a diverse caseload of patients and families, addressing a broad range of psychiatric conditions.

• Collaborates with other health center providers, offers consultation regarding medical and psychiatric co-morbidities.

• Serves as consultant to health center staff and community members.

About Brookside Community Health Center:

Brookside is a licensed Community Health Center of Brigham and Women's Hospital and provides multi-disciplinary, comprehensive care with services in a range of medical areas including Adult, Family and Pediatric Primary Care, OB/GYN, Family Planning, Dental/Oral Surgery, Nutrition/WIC, Behavioral Health and Specialty Medicine (Cardiology, Pulmonology and Nephrology). Brookside also has phlebotomy, financial counseling, and community resource specialists onsite. Each year, more than 12,000 patients from Jamaica Plain, the city of Boston and surrounding areas use these services, producing more than 69,000 visits to Brookside each year. Most of Brookside's patient population are Spanish-speaking and socioeconomically under-resourced. The health center's services, guided by equity, are provided by a bilingual English/Spanish medical and professional staff. Brookside is a teaching site for Harvard Medical School, Mass General Institute of Health Professionals School of Nursing, Harvard Dental School, Boston University Dental School, as well as other Boston area health care professional programs

PRINCIPAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Screens and interviews patients and families and completes psychosocial assessment and psycho diagnostic evaluation. Conducts in-depth risk assessment, including risk to self or others, substance use concerns, domestic violence, and other risk factors. Completes clinical documentation, including a specific treatment plan, as appropriate.

• Maintains an active caseload and engages patients in developing a collaborative treatment plan and contract. Provides treatment using individual, couples, and family treatment modalities as clinically appropriate as well as therapeutic groups and Integrated Behavioral Health. Provides crisis intervention services when necessary.

• Assists patients and family in mobilizing personal, health center, and community resources. Provides advocacy and referral for services while working in close collaboration with the appropriate department staff. Collaborates, communicates, and consults with a wide range of social, governmental, and legal agencies to ensure continuity and coordination of care.

• Develops behavioral change, educational, and support groups for patients to address high-risk behaviors and behavioral health concerns and to assist patients in the development of strategies for health improvement.

• Participates in Integrated Behavioral Health hours to support walk-in and immediate brief interventions for patients being seen in the Medical Department or who would prefer to access behavioral health services through walk-in, rather than by appointment.

• Provides consultation and staff support to other Family Services and health center staff. Participates in regular all-staff, departmental (both administrative and clinical), and educational meetings. Attends meetings convened by other departments and as appropriate represents the behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment perspectives and recommended interventions.

• Assists with Family Services Training Program by providing individual supervision, teaching at intern seminar, and consultation to trainees.

• Fulfills administrative and documentation responsibilities, including documenting in the electronic medical record, patient tracking information, managed care authorizations, and relevant reports. Meets

• Performs all other duties as assigned and/or required.

Qualifications - External

QUALIFICATIONS:

Education: Master of Social Work Degree from an accredited program required.

Licensure: Current Massachusetts Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) required or new MSW graduate and eligible for licensure by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. As a condition of continued employment, it is a requirement to receive LCSW licensure within 4 months of hire. Failure to pass the LCSW exam will result in termination of employment.

Language: Native or near-native fluency in Spanish required.

For employment as Clinical Social Worker, LCSW, at the BWH Department of Social Work:

• Employment as a Clinical Social Worker, LCSW, is contingent upon passing the LICSW exam. The Clinical Social Worker is required to take the exam within two months of eligibility and will be allowed up to two attempts within a six-month period to successfully attain LICSW.

• Failure to pass the LICSW exam (after two attempts in a six-month period) will result in termination of employment.

Individuals who fail to attain LICSW may apply for other vacant positions and will be considered for rehire according to the job requirements.

SKILLS/ ABILITIES/ COMPETENCIES REQUIRED:

• Demonstrated flexibility, autonomy, and capacity for necessary decision-making.

• Extensive knowledge of current social work theory and practice. Ability to conceptualize, interpret and discriminately apply theory to practice.

• Good clinical skills in assessment, crisis intervention, and evidence-based behavioral health treatment.

• Ability to make appropriate decisions under pressure, to exercise good judgment, and to take initiative and to meet established productivity standards.

• Sensitivity to a variety of cultures, beliefs, sexual orientation, and lifestyle.

• Evidence of excellent patient interaction and staff collaboration skills.

• Ability to communicate well, both orally and in writing. Good planning and organizational skills.

• Highly developed interpersonal skills to interact effectively with multidisciplinary team members, both at the health center and with the larger community resources, and to interact with patients and their families.