Behavioral Health Therapist (LMFT/LCSW) - Brighter Beginnings

Title: Behavioral Health Therapist/LCSW/LMFT, PhD or PsyD
Reports To: Director of Primary Care & Quality
Status: Full-time, Exempt
Location: Richmond, CA
Pay: $80,000 - $90,000/Year. Plus $5,000 sign-on bonus for bilingual Spanish/English fluency and licensed.

Our Mission and Vision
The Brighter Beginnings mission is to "support healthy births and successful development of children by partnering with parents and helping to build strong communities". Our mission gains its strength from our core belief that "Every family matters, and every child deserves a happy, healthy future".

Our History
Brighter Beginnings is a 501c3 nonprofit organization and has been responding to the needs of families in resource-poor neighborhoods since 1984 when our work began in response to the alarming differences in mortality and illness rates among African American babies compared to other children.

Brighter Beginnings has grown into a respected and well-connected organization with locations in Oakland, Richmond, Bay Point, and Antioch. We have a multi-cultural, bi-lingual staff of passionate and committed family service professionals; in fact, many of our staff came to this work because of the challenges they faced in their own families.

Position Summary
The FQHC (Federally Qualified Health Center) Therapist provides screening, consultation, behavioral intervention, referrals and counseling and therapy to patients within an integrated medical and behavioral health setting. Makes clinical recommendations and refers to appropriate levels of care in a team based setting. Must be a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Marriage Family Therapist (LMFT), Psychologist, or PsyD in the State of California and have two years of experience providing direct counseling services.

This position requires a strong team player and self-starter. The BH Therapist will provide mental health and substance abuse assessment and treatment of patients at our clinic. The BH Therapist is an employee that meets all other clinical and administrative requirements for the position. The BH Therapist promotes patients self-management and empowers patients/families to achieve maximum levels of wellness and independence.

The BH Therapist will actively engage in care team huddles, clinical meetings, and quality improvement activities. The BH Therapist will seek opportunities to learn from others, be open to adapting best practices into their work and effectively communicate the areas which they feel uncomfortable or need to improve upon to their supervisors. The BH Therapist will contribute to the orientation and development of new personnel, as well as mentor peers and promote collaborative teamwork. The BH Therapist is committed to the constant pursuit of organizational excellence and improving the health status of the community.

Qualifications
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Associate Social Worker (ASW), Licensed  Marriage Family Therapist (LMFT), Associate Marriage Family Therapist (AMFT ) Psychologist or PsyD with two years of related experience and/or training. Bi-lingual in Spanish is highly desired.

• Two years of experience in a mental health/medical/social service setting providing assessment counseling/therapy and crisis intervention services
• Minimum expectations:
  • Demonstrated ability to keep accurate and complete charts, client records, required data forms and processes. Charts need to be closed and ready to bill within 24 hours within the Provider shift hours.
  • Demonstrated ability to perform additional duties such as facilitating client support groups, individual or group counseling, health education, child development activities and/or training.
  • Demonstrated ability to represent the agency in a professional manner with collaborative groups.
  • Demonstrated ability to use cultural humility in working with diverse/low income and immigrant communities.
  • Multi-tasking, ability to manage multiple clients' needs simultaneousl
  • Experience with Medi-Cal charting and coding is strongly preferred but not required
  • Experience with Electronic Health Records is strongly preferred but not require
  • Well versed in mandated reporting laws, child development, family systems, integrated behavioral health systems, stages of change, and co-occurring mental health and substance use/abuse conditions

• Provide assessment, evaluation and mental health treatment
• Provide individual and group therapy to promote overall wellness, in accordance with the treatment plan, within the 30 minute treatment model and up to 12 visits.
• Consult with medical providers on psychosocial issues patients bring to their medical appointments.
• Triage both urgent and routine referrals from medical providers
• Collaborate with staff and providers to schedule patients for intake
• Engage in care team huddles in primary care departments
• Formulate client-centered treatment plans for assigned clients
• Undertake case management, advocacy, medication monitoring, emergency services, insurance companies, education referrals and consultation with other agencies as appropriate
• Collaborate with primary care, prescribing physician, emergency services, life skills educations and consult other agencies regarding each client

•  Prepare case presentations when indicated to the multi-disciplinary team
• Provide feedback to medical providers on patients referred
• Participate in Behavioral Health Department clinical and staff meetings and in other meetings as assigned
• Participate in scheduled supervision sessions with clinical and administrative supervisors

• Maintain professional licensure
• Comply with all medical record keeping requirements for assigned caseloa
• Comply with productivity objectives
• Prepare timely submission of all Electronic Health Record (E.H.R.) records required by the health center (i.e. visit notes, billing paperwork and prior authorizations as examples)
• Schedule work hours and days in accordance with operational needs
• Respond and contribute to data collection and other information gathering activities necessary for programs' evaluation, funding and development

Certificates, Licenses, Registrations
Must have completed coursework and have current license in California.

• Language Skills
  • Ability to read, analyze, and interpret common scientific and technical journals  and legal documents. Ability to respond to common inquiries or complaints from clients, regulatory agencies, or members of the community. Ability to write speeches and articles for publication that conform to prescribed style and format. Ability to effectively present information to top management, public groups, and/or boards of directors
• Reasoning Ability
  • Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Ability to interpret an extensive variety of technical instructions in mathematical or diagram form and deal with several abstract and concrete variables.
• Mathematical Skills
  • Ability to work with mathematical concepts such as probability and statistical inference. Ability to apply concepts such as fractions, percentages, ratios, and proportions to practical situations. 
• Physical Demands
  • The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job​
  • ​​​​​​Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions 

Supervisory Responsibilities
This position may supervise behavioral health interns and volunteers.

Special ADA Requirements
Brighter Beginnings is in full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and does not discriminate with regard to applicants or employees with disabilities, and will make reasonable accommodations when necessary. 

• Work is normally performed in a typical interior/clinic work environment, with typical office noise and other disruptions. 
• Limited physical effort is required. 
• Both standing and sitting are required, with most of the job time spent sitting. Approximately three-quarters of the time is spent using a computer keyboard. 
• Various types of clinic equipment/supplies are used to accomplish the job requirements and include, but are not limited to, pens, pencils, calculators, computer keyboards, telephones, printers, etc.
• Required to drive to other work sites for meetings, conferences, etc.

Benefits
We are proud to offer competitive wages and benefits to our employees. Please feel free to inquire during the interview process. As a summary, we offer:

• $5,000 sign-on bonus for licensed and bilingual (Spanish/English) clinicians.
  Payment schedule: $1,000 after 1 month of employment, $2,000 after 6 months and routine performance evaluation, and $2,000 after first year of employment.
• 100% employer-paid health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance!
• Competitive wages and a friendly environment
• Two weeks of vacation (increase after 1 year of employment)
• 13 paid holidays
• Sick leave accrual
• Optional employee-paid dependent health coverage
• 403b retirement account with matching
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Employee Assistant Program (EAP)
• HRSA Loan Repayment Program site, eligible up to $50,000

Brighter Beginnings is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to diversity and inclusion. At Brighter Beginnings, employment decisions are made regardless of sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race, ethnic origin, color, creed, religion, national origin, citizenship, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, genetic information or ancestry, protected Veteran or military status, or other characteristics protected by law.

If you require alternative methods of application or screening, you must approach the employer directly.

All applicants that are offered a conditional offer of employment will need to complete a background check. For positions with client/patient contact, you must have a TB clearance and a physical assessment by a physician of your ability to complete job duties. Additional requirements are an immunization records (including MMR, Hep B, Varicella, TDAP, Covid-19). All positions require applicants to have a valid California driver’s license, be listed under car insurance as a driver, and a clean driving record (as defined by our insurance carrier).

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