MH Therapist

The Therapist provides assessment and clinical intervention with youth, adults, and their families. The Therapist provides leadership in the development and implementation of the service and individual treatment plans. The Therapist attends treatment plan meetings, makes treatment recommendations, and educates the team about individual consumer concerns, intervention strategies and best practices. The Therapist provides therapy to youth and adults who are emotionally challenged, and/or developmentally disadvantaged who require mental health services, including individual, group, and family therapies. The Therapist will have a general working knowledge of strengths-based philosophy, recovery-oriented strategies, and a demonstration of empowerment focused intervention. The Therapist is supervised by the Program Supervisor.

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. The employee will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and/or duties requested by his/her supervisor.

Essential Job Functions:

• primary responsibility for the clinical assessment and treatment of individuals who have serious mental illnesses
• designs, implements, and follows Individual Treatment Plans, Behavior Management Plans, and Independent Living Plans
• attends treatment team meetings, educates team members about the unique characteristics of each consumer/family served, teaches about mental health issues, best practices, intervention strategies and desired outcomes
• observes, reports, and records data related to the consumer’s physical, emotional, and behavioral states, interventions, and outcomes of interventions
• advocates for consumers
• positive team leadership, assists with problem solving concerns of other staff
• provides training for other staff and community providers
• conducts individual, group and family therapy
• is responsible for on call coverage of mental health emergencies, accurately assesses risk of self/other harm, initiates and follows up with safety plans, makes referrals for increased support or hospitalization
• attends and participates in mandatory training, in-services, staff meetings, and other agency functions as assigned
• meets agency determined ratios of direct service to indirect service

Attendance Requirements:

Work schedules for employees vary throughout the agency. Supervisors will advise employees of their individual work schedules. Staffing needs, operational demands, and service specific protocol may necessitate variations in starting and ending times, as well as variations in the total hours and location(s) that may be scheduled each day and week. Supervisors have the ability, responsibility, and authority to adjust employee work schedules based upon a variety of issues pertaining to the delivery of services. The scheduling of staff meetings, training courses, and other meetings may necessitate variations in employee work schedules. Permanent changes in an employee’s work schedule will be provided to the employee in writing with an explanation describing why the change was made. Scheduling is the responsibility of the employer and will be based on the needs of the consumers served by this agency.

Minimum Qualifications:

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• thorough clinical understanding of youth, adults, and families who have mental illness, are emotionally challenged and who may have learning differences
• values consumer driven services, recovery-oriented programs and participatory management
• ability to assess youth, adults, and families from a strengths perspective model, using developed theoretical perspective, including system theory and psychosocial models
• strong leadership qualities, ability to motivate and teach team members from a strength-based perspective
• ability to develop and follow a treatment plan with consumers that is outcome based, recovery focused, and consumer/family driven
• ability to work with diverse cultures, individual and family differences
• strong oral and written communication skills
• positive teamwork skills with other staff, consumers, and other resources in the community
• ability to effectively advocate for consumers and to participate in the treatment team process
• computer skills sufficient to enter the required information concerning treatment and related statistical data
• able to utilize own vehicle for work purposes, including transport of consumers when necessary
• current, valid Montana State Driver’s License and comprehensive insurance
• clear CPS and Criminal Background Checks

Education/Experience:

• Master’s degree in social work or Psychology, and provide documentation of meeting the educational requirements to be licensed in the State of Montana
• two or more years of direct service to youth and/or adults who are mentally ill, emotionally challenged, developmentally disadvantaged, and who require mental health services
• Licensed or pursuing licensure as LCSW or LCPC in the State of Montana

Equal Employment Opportunity:

It is the policy of Recovery Centers of Montana not to discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, creed, marital status, political belief, age, sex, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, or status as a Vietnam Era Veteran or as a disabled veteran with respect to recruitment, hiring, training, promotion, and other terms and conditions of employment. Reasonable accommodation, which do not cause undue hardship to the agency, will be afforded to qualified applicants and employees with a disclosed disability.