High Intensity Therapist

About the role

The High Intensity Therapist provides specialized behavioral health services to individuals experiencing acute mental health symptoms, elevated suicide risk, repeated psychiatric hospitalizations, or significant functional impairment. The role delivers intensive, evidence-based therapeutic interventions designed to promote stabilization, reduce crisis episodes, improve functioning, and support long-term recovery. Working collaboratively with clients, families, medical providers, and multidisciplinary treatment teams, this position develops comprehensive treatment plans, conducts ongoing risk assessments, coordinates care, and ensures timely access to appropriate services. The role requires advanced clinical skills in crisis intervention, suicide prevention, and trauma-informed care.

Special Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Ability to evaluate situations and adopt an effective course of action, to delegate responsibilities, and organize and present facts effectively
• Ability to diagnose, intervene, and effectively discharge persons in need of mental health services
• Knowledge of and ability to apply Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in practice
• Ability to establish working relationships with clinical, administrative, and support staff to develop professionalism and coordination within the team
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with fellow employees, clients, and the public
• Ability to communicate clearly to interact with staff, clients, administration, and the community both in person and on the telephone
• Ability to maintain strictest confidentiality guidelines for interactions regarding client information
• Ability to work well under pressure, meeting deadlines with efficiency and consistency while maintaining a balance between good physical and mental health and the job requirements
• Must provide own transportation

Responsibilities

• Provide an array or select clinical behavioral health care services to adults, children, and families, as needed and assigned, to clients at Counseling and Recovery Services of Oklahoma
• Participate in the planning and promotion of community mental health service programs
• Meet established productivity expectations, when applicable
• Direct psychotherapy, assessments, or treatment plans, involving a minimum of 10 hours per week of individual, group, or family therapy
• Maintain current clinical case records and other required documentation in a manner to meet established requirements
• Attend staff meetings as well as clinical meetings when scheduled, a minimum of one day per month
• Provide ongoing treatment to clients
• Complete appropriate documentation and develop treatment plans
• Participate in clinical staffing
• Participate in Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement activities as required
• Responsible for OMHIS/ECHO reporting of any clients directly assigned to his/her care
• Confer with medical staff on problems related to clients in his/her care
• Keep all paperwork up-to-date and turn in any required paperwork/reports in a timely fashion
• Support and promote a service environment for individuals in need of behavioral health and/or co-occurring services that is recovery focused, welcoming, and attentive to the needs of individuals who may have experienced trauma in their lives
• Perform a basic screening to determine whether co-occurring disorders might exist and be able to refer the consumer for a formal diagnostic assessment for co-occurring disorders
• Engage the client in such a way as to enhance and facilitate future interaction
• De-escalate consumers who are agitated, anxious, angry, or in other vulnerable emotional states
• Manage a crisis involving a consumer, including a threat of suicide or harm to others
• Refer a consumer to the appropriate mental health or substance abuse treatment facility when needed and follow up to ensure the client receives needed care
• Have knowledge of psychotropic medications and their actions
• Use integrated models of assessment, intervention, and recovery for persons having both substance-related and mental disorders
• Collaboratively develop and implement an integrated treatment plan based on thorough assessment that addresses both/all disorders and establishes sequenced goals based on urgent needs, considering the stage of recovery and level of engagement
• Use the current edition of criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (American Psychiatric Association, 2000) to assess substance-related disorders and other mental health disorders
• Provide and/or participate in ongoing in-service training, as needed
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Program Director, Clinical Director, and/or Executive

Requirements

• Possession of a master’s degree in clinical counseling, social work, or other mental health related field from an accredited graduate school
• Must possess a current, unrestricted license to practice (LPC, LMFT, or LCSW) or be actively registered as a candidate for licensure under approved clinical supervisor
• Knowledge of suicide risk assessments, safety planning, crisis intervention, and trauma-informed care principles

Physical Requirements

• Ability to move from location to location, bending, stooping, lifting 25 pounds, communicating clearly, preparing written communications, presenting information to other employees, processing complex information within established procedures/programs, and entering data into various programs
• Ability to climb stairs and access non-handicapped equipped residences/facilities