Behavioral Health Support Specialist

Behavioral Health Support Specialist  

Full Time | Hourly 

Birch Grove Health Center 

We’re committed to compassionate care for all. Our patients. Our employees. You.  

At La Clinica, we love our patients and enthusiastically treat them with the same care, respect, and dignity that we would our friends, family, and neighbors because that's who they are. If this appeals to you, La Clinica might be the right place to build your career. We’re looking for the right team members to treat our patients with this level of care.  

We extend our commitment to compassionate care to our employees as well. We invest in our employees' lives through competitive pay, comprehensive benefits packages, easy access to wellness, and personal and professional development.   

We are seeking a Behavioral Health Support Specialist (BHSS) for our Birch Grove Health Center where we provide primary care services to people with significant mental health and substance use needs that often require care coordination and support to be successful in staying engaged in healthcare. As a BHSS, your primary responsibility is to assist patients in achieving their goals and improving their overall well-being. You will work closely with patients to provide support and guidance for goal setting and help them access community resources that will help remove barriers that prevent them from reaching their goals.  

As part of the primary care team, BHSS team members work closely with the primary care provider, nurse, medical assistant, Behavioral Health Clinician, and other team members targeting behavioral health needs to include the mental health and substance use challenges of our patient population. At Birch Grove, our care team works closely with embedded partners from other mental health and substance use treatment organizations and this role is responsible for close care coordination and collaboration with these and other community partners foster patient wellness and satisfaction in a warm, therapeutic, and respectful manner.  

We are dedicated to the primary care behavioral health (PCBH) integration model and support early learner Behavioral Health Support Specialists by offering:  

• Support towards obtaining a QMHA certification
• Monthly training/clinical support
• Offerings to shadow both internal and external continuum of care service providers

Responsibilities include the following:  

• Supports patient and team in identifying and advocating for referral to behavioral health-specific services (internal or external.)Provides ongoing follow-up support in-person or by telephone to support patient-identified goals. Identifies when patients may need more intensive case management support and refers patients to community partners whenindicated(i.e.MH intensive case management support). 
• Screens and provides intervention for a variety of health screenings (i.e. PHQ, SBIRT, GAD, etc.)
• Provides coaching to patients with a variety of health conditions with a targeted focus on patients who have behavioral health needs. 
• Refers patients with behavioral health needs to BHCs for assessment and intervention and follows care plans providing supportive interventions as identified by BHC team members.
• Screens and provides intervention to a person at risk for suicide, or domestic violence, creates safety plans, consults, and collaborates with BHCs and PCPs on interventions and referrals to appropriate services. 

• Assists PCPs and BHCs in delivery of group visits. Responsible for collaborating on group facilitation and curriculum development for group visits. 
• Utilizes motivational interviewing to assess patient readiness to change.
• Utilizes a trauma-informed care practice of engagement with patients; for example, asking a patient, “What’s happened to you?” rather than, “What’s wrong with you?”
• Ensures clear concise documentation in EPIC within scope of practice and in alignment with organizational policies.
• Participates in care team huddles, discipline-specific team meetings, and monthly case consultation meetings.

Education and/or Experience:
Required:  

• Minimum: High School Diploma
• Excellent interpersonal communication and problem-solving skills
• Skills to intervene and promote reconciliation, compromise, and positive outcomes in difficult interactions.
• Registers or is working towards a Qualified Mental Health Associate (QMHA) certification within 3 years of employment and maintains certification while employed.

Preferred:  

• Two to three years of experience in the social services field
• Certification in health coaching, maternal and child health, alcohol and drug counseling, and/or other healthcare-related certification.
• Experience working with health-related issues, ,significant psychosocial needs, substance abuse, and history of trauma 
• Bachelor’s degree in health education, health promotion, psychology, or social work.
• Basic knowledge of adult learning models
• Skilled at using electronic health records as applicable to area of work (EPIC, Wisdom)
• Able to de-escalate difficult situations 

Benefits Include the Potential for the Following:   

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance 

• Voluntary Accident, Short Term Disability, and Critical Illness Insurance 
• 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan with Available Company Match 
• Organization Paid Standard Life Insurance 
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) and Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Wellness programs such as cooking, Zumba, Yoga, and meditation 
• Personal and professional development workshops 

Equity Statement:   

At La Clinica, we commit to engage everyone in a welcoming, respectful, and loving way and to maintain the dignity and value of all people above everything else. These standards align with our organization’s vision of absolute excellence, open-hearted community, and well-being for all.   

For more information, please visit our website at: https://laclinicahealth.org/patients/approach/   

Applications will be reviewed by the appropriate department for interview; those selected must be able to provide proof of legal right to work in this country. Criminal history background check and pre-employment drug screen will be performed prior to any job offers. La Clinica is a drug free work environment. Equal Opportunity Employer. La Clinica complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act. If you consider yourself disabled and desire assistance in the application process, please contact the Human Resources Department.