Mobile Overnight Counselor - Pine Street Inn

SCHEDULE: 40 hours, Tues - Sat, 5:00 pm - 1:30am

Pays $22.41 per hour DOE

LOCATION: Region 5 (Brookline, Fenway, Jamaica Plain, Dorchester)

JOB DESCRIPTION:

SUMMARY OF THE POSITION:

The Mobile Overnight Counselor will be assigned on a nightly basis to the Supportive Housing locations with the greatest level of need for overnight staff due to health or behavioral challenges within the house. Mobile Overnight Counselors are also a part of the on-call emergency response team, and as such will frequently be called to leave their assigned building to respond to a request for help elsewhere. The Mobile Overnight Counselor will provide an awake nighttime presence, doing regular rounds throughout the building, being available to tenants as necessary, assisting with regular daily tenant wellness checks, observing and upholding the rights of tenants, overseeing occupancy agreement and house rule compliance, setting limits when appropriate, and providing crisis intervention as necessary. Mobile Overnight Counselors will contribute to the physical upkeep of the building by noting any housekeeping or maintenance issues that arise during their shift, resolving these problems themselves as possible and forwarding concerns on to appropriate staff. The Mobile Overnight Counselor will assist with organizing and maintaining required resources and tools at each building. Occasional daytime availability will be required for trainings, court proceedings, meetings and other obligations. This person will be an important member of a team, which has as its goal assisting our tenants to achieve the very highest possible quality of life.

REQUIREMENTS:

QUALIFICATIONS:

EDUCATION/TRAINING:

REQUIRED:

• High School diploma or GED
• Valid MA driver’s license and access to a personal vehicle
• Computer literacy: Outlook, Word and Excel

PREFERRED:

• Bachelor’s degree
• Bilingual English/Spanish

KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE:

REQUIRED:

• Excellent written communication skills
• 6+ months Experience working with people who have been homeless and/or 6+ Experience working with people with substance use disorder and/or mental health challenges

PREFERRED:

• Knowledge of Crisis-Intervention Techniques, CPR/FA Certification
• Experience providing detailed documentation
• Experience working with people who have been homeless

PHYSICAL ABILITIES/SKILLS:

REQUIRED:

• Ability to lift heavy objects (50lbs)
• Ability to climb several flights of stairs repeatedly over a single shift
• Ability to respond quickly to emergencies
• Ability to walk up to one mile as necessary to access any property in any weather
• Ability to access and travel between all PSH General Lodging Locations

MENTAL ABILITIES/SKILLS:

REQUIRED:

• Excellent interpersonal skills

• Ability to work with a diverse population
• A desire to work with formerly homeless and indigent individuals
• Self-motivated
• Ability to remain alert and responsive during overnight hours
• Ability to respond in crisis, to set limits and to mediate disputes
• Well organized; follow through on scheduled tasks
• Ability to assess and respond to situations involving health and security related risks and crises.
• Ability to communicate information both verbally and via e-mail in a clear and concise manner
• Ability to work independently and to handle authority appropriately, positively deal with stress and juggle multiple priorities simultaneously

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO:

• Review all related email correspondence, and tenant files to stay up to date with the needs of individual tenants and particular house since last assigned there
• When required, travel between sites to respond to urgent situations in other locations
• Communicate regularly with supervisor and other staff of the residence, perform wellness checks and report observations via E-mail system. Provide clear, concise documentation of encounters with tenants. Observe all policies and procedures related to the health and safety of the tenants
• Be available to represent PSI and the Supportive Housing Department in the Housing and Criminal Court system in conjunction with Supervisory staff.
• Be available during the day as necessary to attend required trainings, meetings, legal proceedings.
• Communicate regularly with supervisor and other staff of the residence. Perform wellness checks and report observations via e-mail system. Provide clear, concise documentation of encounters with tenants.
• Assess and respond appropriately to emergency situations. Use emergency phone tree, and complete incident reports as necessary.
• Due to emergency or unforeseen program needs, staff may be temporarily or permanently reassigned to another PSI Housing program at any given time.
• Assist tenants as required for bed bug remediation as outline by PSI Bed Bug Policy
• Assist with emergency housekeeping as needed, including the cleaning of bodily fluids.
• Report maintenance emergencies as well as routine maintenance needs through the appropriate channels
• Oversee compliance with occupancy agreements and house rules. Monitor tenants and their guests who are awake and active in the house. Make regular rounds through the building; ensure all entrances are secure. Act to ensure a safe and comfortable living environment
• Provide awake and alert overnight coverage, performing rounds, and monitoring all common areas of the building
• Promote social integration and cooperative problem solving
• Uphold the rights of all tenants. Be continually aware of these rights and act in accordance with these rights. Interact with tenants in ways which establish a climate of respect for human dignity
• Be available to tenants, many of whom have chronic substance abuse and/or mental or physical health issues - using creativity and perseverance when necessary to engage the most difficult to reach
• Work with tenants on activities of daily living (ADL’s) and other means of enhancing quality of life and ability to live independently
• Maintain a positive and professional relationship with the neighbors, community members, involved family members, colleagues and funding sources
• Observe main entrance, ensure that all who enter are allowed to enter and follow required sign-in protocol
• Participate in all mandatory trainings and other trainings relevant to job description and those that will enhance ability to assist tenants in maintaining and enhancing their quality of life
• Complete other duties and projects as assigned by Supervisor

Internal candidates applying for this position should submit promotion/transfer applications to the Human Resources Department within 10 days of posting.

Pine Street Inn is an equal opportunity/ affirmative action employer