Wellness Specialist

Department: BCIS Union

Salary: $40,000-$42,500

Location: 615 North Broad Street, Elizabeth, NJ (Serving Union County)

Schedules available: Monday-Friday 9:00am-5:00pm (one evening shift required 12pm-8pm)

Essential Job Functions

Create and Maintain:

• A wellness and recovery-oriented environment by using person-first language, respectful documentation, and person-centered planning. All services provided will promote wellness and recovery outcomes, helping to stabilize individuals so they may remain in the community, and divert from having to go to the Emergency Room.
• A culture of compliance with internal and external policies, regulations, laws and high ethical standards, inclusive of Psychiatric Rehabilitation principles and evidence based best practices.

Responsibilities:

• Engage individuals into BCIS services using motivational and strengths based approaches.
• Performs in the role as gatekeeper for individuals who do not meet the criteria for admission into the CIS program. Assists referral source callers and individuals who call or walk-in to link with needed community services in order to divert these referred individuals from defaulting to emergency services.
• Coordinates and maintains referral and community service and resource lists.
• Assists with linkage for enrollees whenever needed due to volume.
• In coordination with the clinicians and other team members, provides case management activities as identified in the Treatment Plan including referral and linkage to necessary community service providers for aftercare services.
• Assertive in locating needed resources and in accessing entitlements, including financial entitlements.
• Provides frequent monitoring of the mental health status of persons receiving services as well as related variables, including significant others, the home and the community in which the person served lives, and shares this information with multi-disciplinary team members.
• Conduct collaborative and concurrent documentation
• Assist enrollees to develop a Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) or a Psychiatric Advanced Directive (PAD).
• Provides mental health education, illness management, and medication education on-site to persons served and significant others.
• Provides crisis intervention services and crisis de-escalation in the “living room” (from the Living Room Model utilized in EISS programs) for individuals in crisis.
• Wellness services including group and individual education on illness management, problem solving, stress reduction, coping, wellness strategies and other wellness tools.
• With permission of person served, provide psychoeducation and support to family members and significant others.
• Technical assistance and education to members of the team in the area of recovery and wellness and community resources. Works with the team to develop strategies for teaching wellness strategies including: IM/R, Wellness Recovery Action Plans, instilling hope, promoting choice and empowerment, spirituality, and other natural supports in conjunction with the team.
• Consults with other service providers and community resource providers regarding the assessment, treatment and rehabilitation needs of the people receiving services.

Performance of Mental Health and Medical Linkage:

• Maintains relationships with mental health and medical referral sources and ensures that a current list of these resources is readily available to the team.
• Assertively locates and engages community medical and mental health providers.
• Works with the APN’s, and Licensed Clinicians on fulfilling the case management needs identified in the Treatment Plan of individuals relative to medical and mental health interventions and referrals.

Requirements

Education:

• BA/BS/BSW in a social service discipline

Experience:

• At least one year post degree work experience providing case management services for people with mental health and co-occurring disorders within the community setting. CPRP preferred, discharged veterans given preference; new graduates will be considered

Driver’s License, Vehicle:

• Valid driver’s license required
• No more than one moving violation within the past 12 months
• Vehicle required

EXCELLENT BENEFITS:

• Benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, 403b, basic life and AD&D, flexible spending accounts, EAP
• Eligible for medical benefits after 30 days of employment 
• Flexible work schedules, clinical training series, leadership development program
• 10 paid holidays (an 11^th after 2 years of employment), generous vacation and sick time

Bridgeway Behavioral Health Services was founded on a strong desire to fight disparity and injustice alongside people living with behavioral health conditions. We are dedicated to providing a multicultural workplace where everyone feels a sense of purpose and belonging. We provide equal opportunity for employees and applicants in all aspects of the employment relationship, without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender, marital status, military or veteran status, disability, age, religion, or any other classification protected by law.