Care Advocate (49805)

Position Summary:

The Care Advocate plays a frontline, community embedded role supporting individuals and families in achieving healthy, addiction free lives. This position serves as a trusted liaison between the Family Treatment Court, community resources, treatment providers, and the families receiving services. The Advocate uses deep knowledge of the local community and its resources to ensure high quality service delivery for at risk populations engaged with Family Treatment Court. 

Essential Job Functions:

• Attend weekly court proceedings and meetings. 
• Participate as a member of the Family Treatment Court team.
• Work directly with individuals and families referred by the Family Treatment Court.
• Establish trusting relationships with participants and their families while providing navigation and linkage to needed community resources.
• Provide referrals for services to community agencies as appropriate.
• Provide ongoing follow-up, basic motivational interviewing and support for goal setting with participants and family members.
• Coach program participants to remain in the program and achieve success, while providing wrap-around support services when barriers are encountered.
• Monitor and review participant progress.
• Build and sustain relationships with stakeholders and community partners.
• Maintain strong communication with partner agencies through regular meetings.
• Utilize connections and ensure fidelity to the Pathways Hub Model.
• Facilitate community education on substance use, addiction, and mental health.
• Collaborate with the Project Evaluator to maintain project data and materials.
• Complete required paperwork in an accurate and timely manner.
• Support preparation and submission of required reports to SAMHSA and local partners.
• Perform other job related tasks as assigned to support program goals and participant success.

Essential Qualifications:

Certifications/Licensures:

• Certified Community Health Worker required. 

• Valid driver’s license and the ability to obtain and maintain WestCare’s vehicle insurance is required.

Education:

• Associate’s degree in social services, nursing or related field.
• Certified as Community Health Worker by way of the Ohio Board of Nursing.
• High School Diploma or equivalent is required.

Experience and Competencies: 

• Experience working with disadvantaged individuals required;
• Prior experience using office equipment, including phones, scanners, printers, and fax machines, and web cameras is required;
• Ability to define problems, collect data, and draw valid conclusions required;
• Excellent communication skills are required;
• Ability to exercise good judgment and discretion required;
• Ability to work well in a team environment required;
• Adherence to the highest standard of ethical conduct, especially to standards governing confidentiality required;
• Professional appearance and demeanor required;
• Must be  sensitive to populations served;
• Intake and assessment experience is highly preferred;

Working Conditions:

• Work is primarily performed in an indoor or office setting;
• Some outdoor activities and travel between multiple locations may be required;
• Regular and prompt attendance is required throughout employment.

Essential Physical and Mental Demands of the Job

The employee must be able to perform the following essential duties and activities with or without accommodation:

            Physical Demands: 

• Requires mobility and physical activity: Having an adequate range of body motion and mobility to work in an office, residential, or outdoor environment including standing and walking (even and uneven surfaces), sitting for extended periods of time, bending, twisting, reaching, balancing, occasional lifting and carrying of up to 50 pounds.  Use of computer and telephone systems is required which includes coordination of eye and hand, and fine manipulation by the hands (typing, writing, and working with files).

• Requires the ability to defend oneself and clients in physically abusive situations through the use of approved physical deescalation techniques.
• Requires talking: Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word.  Talking is required to impart oral information to employees, clients, patients, and the public, and in those activities in which the employee is required to convey detailed or important spoken instructions to others accurately, loudly, or quickly. 
• Requires hearing: Hearing is required to receive and communicate detailed information through oral communication. 
• Requires seeing: Clarity of vision at 20 inches or less and at distance. This factor is required to complete paperwork for many of the employee’s essential job functions and to observe client behavior and activities in and out of the facility. 

• The normal work routine involves no exposure to human blood, body fluids or tissues.  However, exposure or potential exposure may be required as a condition of employment. Appropriate personal protective equipment will be readily available to every employee.

Mental Demands: 

• Requires the ability to collect and analyze complex numerical and written data and verbal information to reach logical conclusions.  
• Requires the ability to work and cooperate with clients, coworkers, managers, the public and employees at all levels in order to exchange ideas, information, instructions and opinions.  
• Requires the ability to work under stress and in emotionally charged settings. 
• Requires the ability to defend oneself and clients in mentally/verbally abusive situations through the use of approved mental/verbal deescalation techniques.

Salary : $20