Behavioral Health Crisis Assessor | North | PRN

Responsible for

• Evaluate patients in need of behavioral health assessments in the Emergency Department (ED), Inpatient and community providers based concerns identified by healthcare professionals.
• Coordinate with hospital and community providers to ensure adequate communication and facilitation of patient-centered care and service delivery for optimal transitions and progression in care.
• Coordinate and collaborate with care with patient, caregiver, physician, and other members of the health care management team.

What You Will Do

• Interview referred clients to gather information about their backgrounds, needs and/or progress.
• Evaluate patients in crisis situations to determine appropriate course of intervention and facilitate external referral when necessary.
• Employ empirically-supported, focused interventions to treat commonly occurring mental health conditions and psychosocial components of chronic medical illness and to assist patients in successfully achieving their health goals.
• Participate in clinic team environment to support patient care.
• Promote and provide behavioral health education; standards of care for mental illness and substance abuse and management of psychosocial aspects of chronic medical conditions.
• Monitor the clinic's behavioral health program, gather data to measure outcomes and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Demonstrate values and standards of the social work/human service field professions licensed professional code of ethics.
• Coordinate care for patients who are not being admitted to hospital and ensure that they receive appropriate follow-up care and referrals.
• Identify specific individual and systemic barriers to discharge and develop a plan for addressing each barrier to affect a safe discharge in the timeliest manner possible.
• Facilitate involvement of agencies providing care to the patient and family/support networks, in working collaboratively for discharge of the patient to the community.
• Ensure that proper treatment and referral protocols are followed with respect to child abuse, elder abuse, domestic violence, consultation with specialty clinics, and referrals.
• Perform benefit eligibility at time of admission/assessment.
• Adhere to all health system protocols and policies regarding suicide, homicide, and other patient safety risk factors.
• Maintain reliable systems to document, track, and monitor assessment cases.
• Monitor the department program, identifying problems and opportunities for improvement related to patient services and making recommendations.
• Facilitate Behavioral Health Department group programming based on cognitive behavioral and psychoeducational interventions.
• Perform potential emergency/inpatient data mining to enhance patient flow, ensuring faster, more efficient care and optimal patient experience.
• Perform daily Behavioral Health EPIC room and board charge reconciliation.
• Other duties as assigned.

Education Qualifications

• Master's Degree Psychology
• Master's Degree Social Work

Experience Qualifications

• 3-5 years Behavioral health
• 1-3 years Acute care environment
• 2 years inpatient/acute care setting experience.
• Crisis assessment and evidence-based interventions in hospital or other primary healthcare setting.
• Crisis stabilization: substance use clinical experience.
• Treatment: therapy and counseling: knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnostics, treatment, and rehabilitation of mental health and substance use disorders.

Skills And Abilities

• Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis and treatment.
• Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services.
• Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, and government regulations.
• Proficient in basic word processing skills (Word), internet navigation, and electronic medical record.
• Demonstrates effective communication skills both verbal and written with all levels of Associates, management, physicians, patients/families, and representatives of community agencies.
• Ability to establish constructive relationships with clients and deal with conflict-laden or complex social situations.
• Ability to identify principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
• Ability to work without close supervision and to exercise independent judgment and critical thinking skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including ability to work collaboratively and cooperatively within an integrated interdisciplinary team.
• Screen and assess patients for common mental health and substance disorders.
• Ability to use effective interviewing skills and de-escalation technique interventions.
• Demonstrate knowledge of family systems and human development across the life span.
• Demonstrate excellent facilitation skills.
• Demonstrate cultural competency and knowledge of interventions with special populations.
• Demonstrate competency in providing cognitive and behavioral interventions within an emergency department, inpatient setting, or outpatient setting.
• Ability to perform data mining to improve patient outcomes.

Licenses and Certifications

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker Tennessee - Tennessee Board of Social Workers
• Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist Tennessee - Tennessee Board for Professional Counselors and Marital and Family Therapists
• Licensed Professional Counselor Tennessee - Tennessee Board for Professional Counselors and Marital and Family Therapists
• Psychologist Tennessee - Tennessee Board of Examiners of Psychology

Supervision Provided by this Position

No lead or supervisory responsibilities assigned to this position. May delegate to administrative support staff, if applicable.

Physical Demands

• The physical activities of this position may include climbing, pushing, standing, hearing, walking, reaching, grasping, kneeling, stooping, and repetitive motion.
• Must have good balance and coordination.
• The physical requirements of this position are: light work - exerting up to 25 lbs. of force occasionally and/or up to 10 lbs. of force frequently.
• The Associate is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity, such as preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; or extensive reading.
• The conditions to which the Associate will be subject in this position: The Associate is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions; job functions are typically performed under conditions such as those found in general office or administrative work.
• Exposure to patient body fluids as well as exposure to hazardous or poisonous materials.
• Must react quickly to emergency situations.