Social Worker – Street-Stabilization Team

Social Worker Street-Stabilization Team

Department : HSAO Reports To : Allegheny County Department of Human Services Program Manager Location : Department of Human Services / Community-Based FLSA Status : Exempt / Full-Time

Position Summary :

At the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS) our mission is to improve the welfare of the Countys most vulnerable residents. We operate influence and fund essential services worth over $1 billion. More than 200000 residents each year depend on these services which include treatment for mental health and substance use disorders housing and homelessness prevention and child and older adult protective services. Over the past 20 years we have built a national reputation for using data and analytics to deliver more effective and efficient public services. Above all we are convinced that there remain significant opportunities to improve the lives of our clients and for DHS to extend its leadership role in inspiring governments to make similar investments.

The Social Worker (Street Stabilization Team) will join the Justice Collaborations unit at DHSa team dedicated to advancing public health and community-centered approaches to safety. Justice Collaborations leads efforts to reduce incarceration improve crisis response prevent violence and strengthen reentry supports. As a critical member of the new Street Stabilization Team (SST) which was designed collaboratively with government hospital and community partners over the past year this position will work to improve outcomes for some of the most complex and vulnerable residents in Allegheny County.

Street Stabilization Team Background :

There is a subset of Allegheny County residents with a complex set of care needs inclusive of some or all the following : severe and persistent mental illness including severe substance use disorders lack of housing extreme poverty chronic medical conditions and physical or cognitive disability. While this group of residents has frequent interaction with law enforcement and other first responders high utilization of crisis services including homeless street outreach mental health crisis providers emergency department visits involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations and jail their chronic needs remain unaddressed and crises persist.

In response to this gap Allegheny County Department of Human Services is piloting the Street Stabilization Team (SST). SST is a multidisciplinary street-based outreach team led by a psychiatrist and focused on engaging and serving a cohort of 2030 unhoused participants who have not successfully engaged in traditional treatment supports due to the severity of their behavioral and other health needs. The Social Worker is a core member of the Street Stabilization Team.

The Social Worker will use a harm reduction approach to working with SST participants. They will provide persistent community-based outreach engagement assessment care coordination crisis intervention and advocacy services. They will collaborate closely with the SSTs dedicated street psychiatrist (contracted through UPMCs Western Psychiatric Hospital) and street nurse (contracted through Allegheny Health Networks Center for Inclusion Health) on the multi-disciplinary team as well as with other providers to ensure intensive holistic person-centered care in non-traditional settings. The Social Worker is an employee of HSAO working for and reporting to the SST Program Manager at Allegheny County DHS.

Key Responsibilities :

• Comprehensive Record Review : Participate in comprehensive record reviews for all participants assigned to the Street Treatment Team.
• Engagement and Outreach : Conduct field-based outreach to members of the cohort. Expect to spend a significant portion of time outdoors and in the community. This includes going to encampments shelters hospitals jails and public spaces. They will use harm reduction and trauma informed approaches to build rapport with individuals ambivalent or resistant to services.
• Case Management :

Provide intensive person-centered case management services including assessments service planning advocacy and care coordination.

Conduct biopsychosocial assessments and guide treatment goals and interventions

Contribute to collaboratively developed participant assessments and treatment plans as part of a multidisciplinary multi provider team directed by the Department of Human Service program manager and clinically led by Western Psychiatric Hospital Street Psychiatrist.

Social Workers will enter quantitative and qualitative data about SST referrals and participants in established data management systems. They will maintain timely records of interactions and activities for the purpose of tracking and measuring process and outcome metrics and developing a sustainable structure for SST to bill to Health Choices following a pilot period.

Required Qualifications :

Experience / Education :

Skills :

Preferred Qualities :

Required Experience :

Manager

Key Skills

Motivational Interviewing,Acute Care,Crisis Intervention,Behavioral Health,Intake Experience,Hospice Care,Case Management,Home Care,Child Welfare,Experience with Children,Social Work,Addiction Counseling

Employment Type : Full-Time

Experience : years

Vacancy : 1