Crisis Outreach Shift Supervisor - Certified Peer at DESC – Seattle, Washington

Days Off: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday

Shift: Swing (3pm to 1:30am)

Shift Differential: $0.50 per hour

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:

Recognized nationally as an innovator and leader in developing solutions to homelessness, DESC is a social services organization, supportive housing operator, and licensed behavioral health treatment provider focused on meeting the needs of people experiencing long-term homelessness and living with complex behavioral health and other medical conditions. Approximately 3,000 people are actively receiving services from DESC at any given point in time. Our vision is a community where all people are shown compassion, treated with dignity, and everyone has a safe, stable, and affordable place to call home.

DESC operates five shelter/emergency housing programs,19 permanent supportive housing facilities with over 1,750 units, several hundred additional scattered site apartments, and a range of behavioral health services including outpatient mental health and substance use disorder treatment, residential crisis stabilization, street outreach, mobile crisis response, and treatment for opioid use disorder.

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Each Crisis Outreach Shift Supervisor is responsible for ensuring their team’s timely, effective, and coordinated response into the field as they are dispatched and deployed by Crisis Connections. Shift Supervisors 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. Crisis Outreach Shift 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 Shift 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, in collaboration with Mental Health Professionals on staff.

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• 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.
• Co-lead the day-to-day operations of their assigned shift.
• 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:

• Current Certified Peer Support Specialist (CPSS) credential through the Washington State Department of Health or ability to gain certification within 60 days of hire.
• Proof of successful completion of the Washington State Health Care Authority's Certified Peer Support Specialist Training prior to hire.
• Completion of “Crisis Awareness and Communication in Peer Support (CACPS)” training or ability to complete within 90 days of hire.
• Ability to gain certification as an approved peer support specialist supervisor through the Washington State Department of Health:
• Obtain 1,000 hours of experience as a peer support specialist,
• Obtain 500 hours of joint peer supervision experience with an approved supervisor,
• Complete the Washington State Health Care Authority Peer Supervisor Training.
• One or more years' experience in community based behavioral health services or like industry serving a diverse client/participant population.
• Two or more years’ experience leveraging personal peer story as a peer specialist.
• 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.
• Demonstrated crisis management ability.
• Be able to pass a Washington State Criminal background check.
• Familiar with Recovery Principles, Crisis Intervention and Stabilization, Integrated Treatment of Co-occurring Disorders, Intensive Case Management, Illness Management, and relevant Evidenced based/Emerging best practices.
• Knowledge of Harm Reduction strategies.
• 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.
• Possess strong communication and writing skills.
• Ability to work flexible hours as required by program and staffing needs including evenings, weekends, or holidays. This includes sharing on-call duties and covering shifts as necessary.
• Able and willing to provide community outreach anywhere in King County from which a referral may originate, at times with no first responders present.
• Ability to communicate with and supervise staff from diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to work effectively with clients displaying a wide range of unpleasant and/or bizarre behaviors.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• At least one year’s experience providing supervision to peers prior to July 1, 2025, and completion of peer specialist supervisor training provided by the health care authority.
• Case management and supervisory experience.
• Bilingual Spanish/English.
• Crisis Outreach and/or Crisis Intervention experience.

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.

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