Supervising Psychiatrist, Correctional Health Services

NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public health care system in the nation. We are a network of 11 hospitals, trauma centers, neighborhood health centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, and correctional health services. We are a home care agency and a health plan, MetroPlus. Our health system provides essential services to 1.4 million New Yorkers every year in more than 70 locations across the city's five boroughs. Our diverse workforce of more than 42,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers.

NYC Health + Hospitals/Correctional Health Services is one of the nation’s leading correctional health care systems in quality of and innovations to care, and access from pre-arraignment through compassionate release. In-jail services include medical, nursing, mental health, substance use treatment, social work, dental and vision care, discharge planning, and reentry support. CHS leverages the resources of the nation’s largest municipal health care system to help discharged patients successfully return to their communities and is a pivotal partner in New York City’s criminal justice reform efforts.

About the Role

The New York City jail system is the second largest in the nation. A significant number of individuals in the NYC jail system receive care on the mental health service, which strives to provide safe, holistic, and evidence-based therapeutic interventions for a diverse range of mental health issues—from serious mental illness to the natural struggles that accompany incarceration.

The service provides some of the most comprehensive and unique treatment modalities in the country, including specialty housing units for individuals with serious mental illness, a 24-hour on-call psychiatric service, robust creative arts programming, clinics in each facility, substance use treatment, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), integrated re-entry services (including alternatives to incarceration), and relationships with multiple training institutions throughout the city. CHS is also engaged in efforts to better identify people with neurodevelopmental/neurocognitive disorders and utilize psychological testing to connect them to community services.

The Supervising Psychiatrist serves as a psychiatric leader of a facility, clinical area, or program, working in close collaboration with the Mental Health Unit Chief, Clinical Supervisors, and Senior Psychiatrist (if applicable) to ensure safe, holistic, and evidence-based psychiatric care for incarcerated patients with varying mental health needs. A team-based approach incorporating all relevant mental health, medical, and security disciplines is critical. A major component of this role is training, recruiting, and retaining high-quality staff, as well as providing strong leadership and mentorship.

Responsibilities

• Ensure the highest possible quality of mental health care both in the facility and in collaboration with other jail facilities, including active participation in quality improvement, staff and patient safety initiatives, treatment supervision, and personnel mentorship and management.
• Design, implement, review, and monitor facility-specific clinical procedures, policies, and operating manuals in coordination with the Mental Health Unit Chief.
• Provide direct clinical individual and group supervision of psychiatric prescribing staff, including psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, and psychiatric physician assistants, incorporating both in vivo reviews of clinical skills and chart review.
• Collaborate closely with other disciplines within mental health, medical, nursing, and operations departments, as well as the Department of Correction, through regularly scheduled meetings.
• Ensure timely completion of medication renewals.
• Educate clinical staff about new developments in best practices for psychiatric care, with specific attention to challenges in a jail setting (e.g., influence of legal cases, dual loyalty, medication diversion).
• Ensure compliance with all regulatory standards.
• Oversee the orientation of new staff to the facility or program in collaboration with the Mental Health Unit Chief.
• Conduct regular, multidisciplinary case conferences.
• Report to the CHS Morbidity and Mortality review committee as needed.
• Manage clinical schedules, vacation requests, CME activities, and other staffing and education-related activities in collaboration with the Mental Health Unit Chief.
• Participate in policy revision and creation, as well as practice guideline development related to psychiatric care, including input into the psychiatric medication formulary.
• Lead at least monthly interdisciplinary mental health staff meetings in coordination with the Mental Health Unit Chief, Clinical Supervisor, and Senior Psychiatrist (if applicable).
• Manage clinical personnel, including setting quality standards, establishing recruitment and retention strategies, and addressing workforce complaints.
• Devote at least 75% of time to direct clinical care, which may include direct supervision of psychiatric trainees. For smaller facilities or programs, more direct patient care may be expected.
• Serve on-call responsibilities for two weeks at a time, one to two times per year, for off-hours issues requiring high-level clinical intervention.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Medical Director of Mental Health, the Chief of Service, or respective Senior Psychiatrist.

Requirements

• Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in Healthcare Administration, Health Care Planning, Business Administration, Public Administration, or a related discipline; and seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in health and medical service administration, public administration, personnel and labor relations, finance, or related administrative or managerial functions with an emphasis on planning, liaison, and inter-organizational relationships; or
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in the disciplines listed above; and eight (8) years of progressively responsible experience in the areas listed above; or
• Satisfactory equivalent combination of education, training, and/or experience. All candidates must have a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in the disciplines listed above.

Preferred Qualifications

• Excellent diagnostic and treatment skills, with particular attention to psychopharmacology, safe medication administration in varied settings, medical complications of mental illness, and therapeutic resistance.
• Strong interpersonal communication skills and ability to work collaboratively with other disciplines, including Department of Correction staff.
• Demonstrated leadership skills, including the ability to identify staff needs and provide mentorship and education.
• Buprenorphine waiver training highly encouraged but not required.