Child Specialist

SUMMARY

The Child Specialist provides targeted case management and mental health services within their scope of practice to clients and works with therapists as part of a therapeutic team.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supports and promotes the mission of the Agency: Foothill Family empowers children and families to achieve success in relationships, school, and work through community-based services that advance growth and development.
• Provides mental health services for clients in Department of Mental Health (DMH) funded or other program as funded that reinforce and practice skills the client has learned in therapy with the goal of decreasing symptoms, meeting treatment goals, and improving functioning.
• Works collaboratively with therapists, psychiatrists, school personnel and parents/guardians to ensure treatment progress.
• Provides service in client homes, schools, in their community and in Agency offices.
• Reinforces positive parenting skills to increase the parents’ ability to manage the behaviors of their special needs child.
• Provides case management services to link clients to resources needed to support achievement of their treatment goals. This includes linkage to collaborating agencies as well as any advocacy needed to ensure needs are appropriately met.
• Facilitates immediate response to a client exhibiting acute psychiatric symptoms when needed and works in collaboration with the treating therapist and/or supervisor to ensure client safety and crisis management.
• Facilitates child and parent groups within the scope of education and training. This may include psychoeducational groups and evidence-based practices that the staff has received training and been certified in.
• Assesses client's financial status and collects outcome measures. Compiles data as directed.
• Transports clients as appropriate and necessary to ensure that service needs are met.
• Maintains case records of own case activity and completes in a timely and comprehensive manner according to program and agency mandates.
• Complies with client service provision, documentation requirements and rules and regulations as specified by the Agency and funding sources.
• Represents the Agency at community meetings, provides in-service training to other agencies and Foothill employees, and consults with other agencies and schools, and represent the Agency at marketing events.
• Displays sensitivity to the service population’s cultural and socioeconomics characteristics.

POSITION REQUIREMENTS

• BA/BS in a Social Science required..
• Ability to be an excellent representative of the Agency to the community.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Detailed oriented.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to work cooperatively as a team member.
• Knowledge and sensitivity to cultural differences.
• Knowledge of childhood development and community resources.
• Valid CA Driver’s License and maintains insurability on the Agency’s auto liability policy (including a minimum of 2 years driving experience after receiving license) and maintains the California state required personal auto insurance liability limits.
• Bilingual Spanish/English skills required.

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.