Days Off: Saturday, Sunday

Shift: Day (10am - 6:30pm )

Insurance Benefits: Dental, Life, Long-term Disability, Medical (no premiums/payroll deductions for employee coverage)

Other Benefits:   Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Flexible Spending Account (FSA),   ORCA card subsidy, Paid Time Off (34 days per year), Retirement Plan

About DESC:

DESC   (Downtown Emergency Service Center) is a nonprofit organization  working  to help people with the complex needs of homelessness,  substance use  disorders, and serious mental illness achieve their  highest potential  for health and well-being through comprehensive  services, treatment, and  housing. Our vision is a community where no  person is abandoned,  ignored, or experiencing homelessness.

As  the region's leading  provider of services to multiply disabled adults  who have experienced  chronic homelessness, DESC serves almost 3,000  people each day. Our  integrated service model is designed to help  people secure and maintain  appropriate, safe and affordable housing.  DESC is recognized nationally  and regionally as an innovator in  developing solutions to homelessness.

About Mobile Rapid Response Crisis Team (MRRCT):

The Mobile Rapid Response Crisis Team (MRRCT or “Meerkat”) at DESC, is a county funded program responsible for addressing the imminent and emergent needs of community members in crisis, in the central region of King County primarily covering the entirety of Seattle. The DESC team has been providing mobile crisis response services to the community for well over a decade. 

As a nonprofit with over 45 years of experience focused on serving our community’s adults living with long histories of homelessness, behavioral health, and other disabling conditions, DESC is uniquely positioned to connect people in crisis to the important support and survival services they may need to overcome and prevent future occurrences of crisis, behavioral health distress, or other instabilities in our community.

JOB DEFINITION:

The Flex & Follow Up Crisis Outreach Supervisor is responsible for ensuring their team’s timely, effective, and coordinated response into the field as they are deployed by either their MRRCT team in the field in need of support, or Crisis Connections directly. Shift Supervisors and the Flex & Follow Up Supervisor work alongside the staff they supervise providing real-time, on the ground supervision, coaching and guidance for how to resolve crisis situations their teams are responding to in the community. Supervisors have the responsibility of implementing the systems created by the MRRCT program leadership related to proper documentation standards, implementation and adherence to DESC policies and procedures, supervision and performance management of their team, and ensuring their team members participate in all relevant training and on-going education necessary.

As part of the MRRCT each supervisor will at times be responsible for providing clinical and psychosocial assessments in the field and mental health evaluations to determine least restrictive alternatives to involuntary treatment.

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Provide individual supervision and consultation and regular performance evaluations to direct reports.
• Understand the expectations of MRRCT as described in King County’s Provider Manual.
• Oversee maintenance and upkeep of employee files and records for compliance to program requirements.
• Coordinate with other programs internally and externally to assure continuity of client care and successful transition of clients to long-term care providers as appropriate.
• Co-lead the day-to-day operations to ensure consistent and timely dispatched response in the community.
• Dispatch to outreaches as needed alongside team.
• Co-host and participate in all required team meetings.
• Provide 1:1 supervision with supervisees 2x/ month at minimum.
• Coordinate day –to-day schedule, making changes and adjustment due to staff call outs and call volume.
• Maintain staffing model through managing weekly and monthly scheduling in coordination with staff requests for PTO.
• Monitor for good working conditions all vehicles in MRRCT fleet, in collaboration with their Project Manager. Ensure vehicle and driver safety policies and procedures are followed by all team members. Report and respond to issues promptly.
•  Maintain strong knowledge of all DESC policies and procedures. Assure compliance with same.
• Provide routine administrative and clinical supervision of team including combination of Certified Peer Crisis Outreach Specialist, Crisis Outreach Specialist, and Mental Health Professional Crisis Outreach Specialists, including performance evaluations on a regular and scheduled basis and maintain supporting documentation in confidential supervision and personnel files.
•  Maintain strong knowledge of the collective bargaining agreement between management and union represented staff. Assure compliance with same.
• Provide clinical consultation as needed for the evaluation of the psychiatric, substance use, and housing needs of clients, and advocating for clients to access the most effective disposition available in the community.  
• Teach and promote core DESC values, crisis intervention and de-escalation skills, and causes and effects of homelessness essential to ensure the safety of clients and staff.
• Help staff build competent crisis outreach skills and standard of practice related to clinical documentation and service coordination.
• Help staff build conflict resolution skills and understand how to give and receive feedback.
• Actively participate in hiring functions to ensure full staffing across all shifts and position types.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Eligible for a Licensed AAC credential or any other superseding credential that meets RCW 71.05.020 requirements to act as a Mental Health Professional whose scope of practice includes independently conducting mental health assessments and making mental health diagnoses. 
• Master's degree in social work, psychology or other relevant behavioral science or Bachelor of Nursing degree with specialty in mental health.
• One or more years' experience in community based behavioral health services. 
• Experience working with adults experiencing homelessness, mental illness and/or substance use disorders. 
• Ability to drive an agency or personal vehicle to conduct agency related business. A current Washington State driver's license and insurable driving record are required.
• Be able to pass a Washington State Criminal background check. 
• Demonstrated crisis management ability. 
• Demonstrated leadership qualities. 
• Experience and skills in working with individuals with mental illness who are difficult to engage and may resist services.
• Familiar with Recovery Principles, Crisis Intervention and Stabilization, Integrated Treatment of Co-occurring Disorders, Intensive Case Management, Illness Management, Trauma-Informed Treatment, and relevant Evidenced based/Emerging best practices. 
• Knowledge of Harm Reduction strategies.
• Strong working knowledge of DSM V.
• Be able to assess situations quickly and respond appropriately to any type of mental health and/or substance dependency crisis to ensure the physical and psychological safety of clients.
• Be willing to seek to understand each client's unique circumstances and personal preferences and goals and incorporate them into the crisis response to help the client regain a sense of control.
• Assist clients in accessing internal resources to reinforce the client's ability to resolve crisis on their own 
• Assist clients in identifying unmet needs that may be causing them to have recurrent crisis.
• Have a strong understanding of recovery and resilience, the value of client partnerships and client choice, and the balance between protection from harm and personal dignity.
• Possess strong communication and writing skills.
• Able and willing to provide community outreach anywhere in King County from which a referral may originate or where staff are located. 
• Familiar with King County crisis response system, other relevant community resources, and methods of access.
• Ability to communicate and work effectively with staff from various backgrounds.
• Ability to work effectively with clients displaying a wide range of unpleasant and/or bizarre behavior.
• Subscribe to the philosophy of cooperation and continuity across programs and of consideration and respect for program participants.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Licensed Social Worker (LICSW), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), or Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in State of Washington.
• 1 year of supervisory experience. 
• Bilingual in Spanish/English (fluent).
• Bi-cultural background/experience and/or qualify as an Ethnic Minority, DD, or Geriatric Mental Health Specialist (per WAC 388-865-0150 definition).
• Two years of experience providing crisis intervention services within the mental health and/or substance use disorder field.
• Meet criteria as a Substance Use Disorder Professional.
• Experience providing supervision and/or program management within the mental health and/or substance use disorder field.

Strong applicants are able to demonstrate the ability to be positive in their empathetic responses to all persons; understand the value of meaningful and deep client engagement; have the potential to acquire the necessary knowledge, attitudes and skills of an effective crisis worker; and value a non-judgmental response to sensitive issues. Candidates should be able to accept feedback and work in a highly collaborative and potentially stressful environment.

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. While performing the duties of this job, the employee will be required sit for long periods of time, communicate with other persons by talking and hearing, required to lift and carry items weighing up to 25 pounds and to operate computer hardware systems. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. 

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:

DESC  is committed  to diversity in the workplace, and promotes equal  employment  opportunities for all staff members and applicants. The  Agency will not  discriminate against any employee or applicant for  employment on the  basis of race, creed, color, sex, gender, sexual  orientation, age,  national origin, caste, marital status, or the  presence of any sensory,  mental or physical disability in any employment  practice, unless based  on a bona fide occupational qualification.  Minorities and veterans are  encouraged to apply.