Program Specialist

This Program Specialist position is assigned to the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS), Office of Developmental Support (ODS). The Provider Support Specialist functions as liaison for the ODS network of Provider agencies, including those contracted with the PA DHS Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) and with the Allegheny County DHS ODS. 

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

1. Administrative Entity (AE) primary point of contact and Liaison for ODS Provider Agencies, as assigned by Supervisor. 

2. Facilitates AE communications with assigned Providers and collaborates with AE colleagues on provider-specific interactions, as appropriate. 

3. Develops knowledge of Provider Agency operations and develops professional relationships with Provider Agency administrative and management personnel. 

4. Oversight of Provider Agency performance, quality of service provision, and Health and Welfare Assurances, as defined by the AE Operating Agreement.  

5. Administrative Entity Lead for ODS Provider Agencies in the following areas: 

1. Provider Recruitment and Enrollment 

2. Training and Technical Assistance 

3. Quality Management 

4. Qualifications 

5. Monitoring/ Quality Assessment & Improvement (QA&I) 

6. Incident Management 

7. Risk Management (Provider Risk Screening) 

8. Adult Protective Services Reports of Need 

9. PA Code (Rules and Regulations) 

10. Impact of service provision related to PA DHS Licensing actions 

11. Customer response (Director’s Action Line, ODP Customer Service) 

12. ODP and ODS Policies & Procedures 

6. AE Certified Investigations – Obtains PA DHS certification within the first year of employment. Utilizes certification to complete investigations as assigned by Supervisor and according to PA DHS standards. Some investigations may occur during weekend, holiday, and non-traditional hours. 

7. AE Incident Management - Participates in a rotating schedule/assignment to complete daily incident management functions during weekend, holiday, and non-traditional hours. 

SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE 

1. Ability to work in a team-oriented atmosphere. 

2. Ability to be attentive to detail.   

3. Strong demonstrated organizational skills.  

4. Strong problem-solving skills 

5. Excellent written and verbal communication across all levels  

6. Working knowledge of Microsoft Office products including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Working knowledge of internet research methods. 

7. Ability to track data/information points, analyze and develop reports of findings. 

8. Ability to work at a high level of independence with minimal supervision. 

9. Ability to interact with individuals on all organizational levels 

10. Ability to work with people from a variety of diverse agencies, backgrounds, resources, and communities. 

11. Knowledge of principles and practices of Intellectual Disability/Autism programs. 

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS 

1. Possess Act 33 and 34 Clearances. 

2. Have a valid Pennsylvania motor vehicle license, access to a personal vehicle, and have maximum auto insurance on an employee driven vehicle. 

3. Computer skills as defined above. 

4. Ability to work independently. 

5. Ability to participate in a rotation for On Call/Daily Incident Management functions during weekend, holiday and non-traditional hours.  

6. Full-time position requiring 40.00 hours per week. 

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE 

Bachelor’s degree preferably in a social or behavioral science field, plus a minimum of one year of experience working in administration of intellectual disability/autism services or a minimum of three years of experience in the field of human services, at an administrative level.