PSYCHIATRIC SOCIAL WORKER II (Community Programs)

Position/Program Information

TYPE OF RECRUITMENT

Open Competitive Job Opportunity - EMERGENCY

EXAM NUMBER

Y9035S-EA

FILING START DATE

Applications will be accepted starting on Wednesday, November 15, 2023 at 8:00 AM (PT)

This examination will remain open until the needs of the service are met and is subject to closure without prior notice.

The LA County Board of Supervisors recently declared a local state of emergency for homelessness, and the County is working to revise and expand our response to help all who are affected. We are looking for qualified and passionate individuals to help us in the mission of addressing issues like housing, mental health, and substance use. If you are looking for a new career that will directly benefit the population of LA County, this may be the opportunity for you.

Department of Health Services (Community Programs) is seeking qualified candidates to fill emergency Psychiatric Social Worker II (Community Programs) vacancies related to the homelessness crisis.

Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%.

Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment to Psychiatric Social Worker II ( Community Programs) .

ABOUT LOS ANGELES COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES:

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS) is the second largest municipal health system in the nation. Through its integrated system of 25 health centers and four acute care hospitals and expanded network of community partner clinics - DHS annually provides direct care for 600,000 unique patients, employs over 23,000 staff, and has an annual budget of over $6.9 billion.

Through academic affiliations with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Southern California (USC), and the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Sciences (CDU), DHS hospitals are training sites for physicians completing their Graduate Medical Education in nearly every medical specialty and subspecialty. In addition to its direct clinical services, DHS also runs the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Agency and the County's 911 emergency response system, as well as Housing for Health and the Office of Diversion and Re-entry, each with a critical role in connecting vulnerable populations, including those released from correctional and institutional settings to supportive housing.

For additional information regarding DHS please visit www.dhs.lacounty.gov

ABOUT COMMUNITY PROGRAMS:

Community Programs at the Department of Health Services (DHS) supports a range of programs that provide healthcare services and resources to the most vulnerable patients across Los Angeles County. The Community Programs Unit includes Housing for Health, Office of Diversion and Reentry, My Health LA and other community programs.

MISSION:
To advance the health of our patients and our communities by providing extraordinary care.

DEFINITION:
Performs a wide variety of professional social work services in connection with the treatment of clients in need of mental health services.

Essential Job Functions

• Conduct comprehensive assessments in the jail, community, or court settings for homeless and justice involved individuals including psychosocial and service needs through interviews and evaluations, review of medical and mental health records, and consult with housing team members, intensive case management service (ICMS) and acute/subacute mental health bed providers.
• Provide oversight of outreach and engagement of community-based providers and acute/subacute mental health services, including monitoring service plans and progress with assigned clients, identifying, and troubleshooting service issues, and providing consultation to in-reach case managers.
• Coordinate with other County departments including Correctional Health Services, Public Defender, Alternate Public Defender, District Attorney, and Superior Court staff to assess appropriate referrals of homeless and justice involved individuals.
• Collaborate and offer mental health training to community-based housing and acute/subacute mental health bed providers who will work with the homeless and justice involved populations with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.
• Interview individuals and/or their families to obtain a family, social work, medical, and mental health treatment history.
• Make an assessment of the patient's functioning in his/her environmental setting.
• Establishes a treatment plan designed to resolve or cope with the mental or emotional problem. The treatment plan may include individual, group, family or conjoint therapy, and/or referral to another treatment source such as a psychologist, vocational or rehabilitation counselor, psychiatrist for medication or another agency.
• Provide psychotherapy to individuals, groups, families, and significant others.
• Determine the duration of the therapy, the priorities of the problems to be dealt with, the therapy methods, and the need for changes in the treatment goals at successive intervals during treatment process.
• Interview persons seeking psychiatric assistance on an emergency basis and utilize crisis intervention techniques to prevent hospitalization and to aid the person in dealing with the emotional crisis.
• Assist clients, families, and significant others in understanding the mental health problem and their reactions to the problems, accepting the need for treatment, working toward the solution of the problem and stresses interfering with treatment or social functioning, modifying unrealistic attitudes and strengthening patients and families and significant others toward gaining their acceptance of and participation in treatment recommendations.

Requirements

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:

A valid and active license as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker issued by the California Department of Consumer Affairs, Board of Behavioral Sciences*.

All required licenses and certifications must be active and unrestricted or your application will not be accepted.

LICENSE:

A valid California Class C Driver License or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.

PHYSICAL CLASS II - Light:
This class includes administrative and clerical positions requiring light physical effort that may include occasional light lifting to a 10 pound limit and some bending, stooping, or squatting. Considerable ambulation may be involved. .

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT INFORMATION:
*Applicants must indicate their license number in the supplemental questions, attach a legible copy of the required license or certificate to your application at the time of filing or email the required document to the exam analyst at hhocking@dhs.lacounty.gov within seven (7) calendar days from the date of filing your application online. When emailing documents, please include the exam number, exam title, and your name as it appears on your application. The original license or certificate must be presented during the selection process and prior to appointment.

Additional Information

OUR ASSESSMENT PROCESS:

Before the end of your initial work period, the appointing department will evaluate your performance. Those who achieve a passing score on this evaluation will be considered for permanent appointment.

ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION:

Please note that ALL information included in the application materials is subject to VERIFICATION at any point during the examination and hiring process, including after an appointment has been made. FALSIFICATION of any information may result in DISQUALIFICATION.

VACANCY INFORMATION:

The resulting eligible register for this examination will be used to fill vacancies throughout the Department of Health Services (Community Programs).

AVAILABLE SHIFT:
Appointees may be required to work any shift, including evenings, nights, weekends and holidays.

APPLICATION & FILING INFORMATION:

Applications must be filed online only.

Many important notifications will be sent electronically to the email address provided on the application, so it is important that you provide a valid email address. Please add the following email addresses to the list of approved senders to prevent email notifications from being filtered as spam/junk/clutter mail.

• hhocking@dhs.lacounty.gov
• noreply@governmentjobs.com
• info@governmentjobs.com

You have the ability to opt out of emails from LA County. If you unsubscribe, you will not receive any email notification for any examination for which you apply with Los Angeles County. Regardless of whether you choose to unsubscribe, you can always check for notifications by logging into governmentjobs.com and viewing your profile inbox, which saves a copy of all emailed notices.

Plan to submit your online application in a timely manner as you may be required to verify your email address. This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on www.governmentjobs.com/careers/lacounty, you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER:
Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes. Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number.

COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT PUBLIC LIBRARIES:
For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.

NO SHARING USER ID AND PASSWORD:
All applicants must file their applications online using their own user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.

FAIR CHANCE INITIATIVE:
The County of Los Angeles is a Fair Chance employer. Except for a very limited number of positions, you will not be asked to provide information about a conviction history unless you receive a contingent offer of employment. The County will make an individualized assessment of whether your conviction history has a direct or adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job, and consider potential mitigating factors, including, but not limited to, evidence and extent of rehabilitation, recency of the offense(s), and age at the time of the offense(s). If asked to provide information about a conviction history, any convictions or court records which are exempted by a valid court order do not have to be disclosed.

ANTI-RACISM, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION (ARDI):
The County of Los Angeles recognizes and affirms that all people are created equal and are entitled to all rights afforded by the Constitution of the United States. The Department of Human Resources is committed to promoting Anti-racism, Diversity, and Inclusion efforts to address the inequalities and disparities amongst race. We support the ARDI Strategic Plan and its goals by improving equality, diversity, and inclusion in recruitment, selection, and employment practices.

ADA COORDINATOR PHONE: (323) 914-6365

CALIFORNIA RELAY SERVICES PHONE: (800) 735-2922

DEPARTMENT CONTACT:

Hilary Hocking
(213) 288-7000
hhocking@dhs.lacounty.gov

For detailed information, please click here

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