Wellpath Looking for Licensed Mental Health Professional at New Orleans, LA Full Time

Overview

Under the direction of the Health Services Administrator (HSA), Program Manager (PM), or higher licensed health professional, the Licensed Mental Health Professional will be responsible for providing screening, diagnostic evaluations, and therapeutic interventions such as brief therapy using evidence-based practices to inmates in accordance with all applicable licensure standards as well as state and federal rules and regulations.

Qualifications

Education:

• Master’s degree in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology or Other Related Mental Health discipline

Experience:

• One (1) or more years of experience in a Mental Health treatment program, preferably in a Correctional or Hospital setting

Licenses/Certifications:

• Unrestricted, current license in the State of practice – e.g. LCSW, LMFT, LPC, LMHC, Psychologist – Must maintain all licensures, certifications, continuing educational requirements, etc.

Responsibilities

• Triages and conducts intake evaluations and/or assessments for patients admitted to outpatient housing unit and/or referred by Security, Healthcare staff, and other Community sources and makes appropriate recommendations to the healthcare unit and security staff regarding the direction or required level of care
• Refer all inmates eligible for involuntary treatment to the appropriate health care provider for evaluation (e.g. local psychiatric prescriber, County Mental Health, and/or Emergency Room)
• Recommend special housing or special watch and/or observation to security staff based on clinical findings
• Identify and conduct other essential treatment services such as, psychoeducational groups, substance abuse counseling, pre-release planning, and other transitional groups when appropriate
• Recommend and develop treatment plans to address the full scope of services that are clinically indicated for patients including but not limited to group and individual therapy, when appropriate for inmates on his/her caseload and ensure regular updates are completed in accordance with local policy
• When applicable, initiates involuntary hospitalization for patients who need to be transferred to an outside Mental Health facility and generate appropriate paperwork relevant to the hospitalization
• Assess for suicide risk and provide suicide prevention interventions and management techniques for high-risk inmates
• Conduct daily rounds and evaluations to assess the treatment needs of inmates that request or desire mental health services within the jail setting especially for those in segregation/ separation units
• Address sick call requests and evaluate patients by obtaining biopsychosocial history, including current medication and consulting with other health care providers to consider continuing psychotropic medications. Also discuss ways to obtain mental health services while incarcerated.
• Refer to prescribing providers when clinically indicated and coordinate closely with the Prescriber to ensure that patients requiring evaluation or re-evaluation for medication are seen in a timely manner with pertinent information to the patient’s clinical condition available.
• Encourage medication adherence and identify when patients are non-adherent to the prescribed regimen.
• Provide consultation to security and healthcare staff regarding inmates’ behaviors, safety concerns or other mental health concerns
• Provide linkage and/or discharge planning services when necessary or when appropriate
• Respond to and provide mental health crisis intervention in psychiatric emergencies as needed for the entire facility
• Oversee the clinical needs of patients on his/her caseload
• When applicable, participate in the treatment programming and planning discussion of challenging cases and follow-up to monitor compliance and outcomes.
• Attends regular treatment team multidisciplinary meetings, classification meetings, or other required administrative meetings
• Participates in CQI and QA studies and group sessions
• Monitors the clinical condition and treatment needs of Special Needs population (e.g. developmentally disabled, juveniles in adult facilities, Seriously Mentally Ill, etc.) in accordance with local policy and state and federal regulations
• Works effectively with all staff including security, healthcare, ancillary, and administrative staff
• Provide on-call services as needed
• Provide staff training on relevant mental health topics such as signs and symptoms of mental illness, management of mentally ill inmates, crisis intervention, suicide prevention, and related topics
• Document all findings in the patient’s health record providing written summaries of history, diagnosis and treatment course, and other documentation requirements as outlined by company and Facility policy
• Provide services in compliance with Facility and company Safety and Mental Health Policies and Procedures
• Participate in Peer Review activities and staff training
• May assist in the job shadow portion of the interview process of potential staff
• May assist in orientation and training of new employees
• Responsible for the performance evaluations and successful training of direct reports

Wellpath is an EOE/Minorities/Females/Vet/Disability Employer