STATE OF CONNECTICUT EXECUTIVE BRANCH JOBS

Marital and Family Therapist (40 Hour)

LMFT | Office/On-site

Recruitment #231024-0735FP-003

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Introduction



Looking for an exciting opportunity to make a real impact?
Join us and be part of a revolutionary team that impacts our community every day!

The Southeastern Mental Health Authority (SMHA), an agency within the State of Connecticut, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS), is seeking dedicated and qualified individuals to join our teams as Marital and Family Therapists in Norwich! These professional roles will help support our agency's programs and services. Find out more information on this great opportunity below!

POSITION HIGHLIGHTS:
OUR PROGRAMS AND SERVICES:
As a State Operated Local Mental Health Authority, SMHA is responsible for administering all DMHAS contract funded behavioral health services in Southeastern Connecticut. Shown below please find the programs and services we offer.  You can find more information on these services here.

Acute Services
  • Brief Care Program - An open, 15- bed, subacute residential program. It is a voluntary program for clients who are in need of stabilization but who don’t meet the criteria for a psychiatric hospitalization. A Brief Care admission may also be used as a step-down transition following an inpatient stay. The program offers a full treatment team including an APRN, nurses, social workers, certified addiction counselor, and mental health workers.  Staff is on site 24 hours a day and hold weekly treatment team meetings to discuss progress, barriers, and discharge planning. Community support staff and family are encouraged to participate in the weekly meetings for continuity.   Clients are often linked to programs during their stay to provide continued support upon discharge
  • Mobile Outreach Team - Provides a wide range of crisis services: 24-hour crisis assessment and intervention services for people experiencing mental health and/or substance abuse challenges; hospital and crisis bed screening; referrals for temporary respite; support phone calls and visits; brief crisis counseling; and referrals to appropriate inpatient and outpatient services in the community.  The Mobile Outreach Team is able to respond in the community from 8:00am to midnight daily to assist individuals, families, and community agencies when an individual is experiencing a psychiatric and/or substance abuse crisis
  • Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) - Provides training to the police in the best practices for responding to calls involving people with mental illness. CIT training has resulted in fewer injuries to officers and the people in crisis, reduced use of force by the police, fewer involuntary commitments, and reduced officers’ time off patrol.  Along with training, SMHA social workers accompany local police from six police departments, including Norwich, New London, and Troop E State Troopers. They assist officers to de-escalate conflicts and crises involving people with mental illness and provide follow up to ensure people have access to needed services.  This program has been a success for several years in the Norwich/New London area, benefiting both the community and the individuals in crisis
Outpatient Services: Options 
  • An outpatient program for adults 18 years and older with behavioral health needs.  A multidisciplinary team provides individual and group therapy, as well as psychiatric evaluations and medication management.  Trauma informed care is at the foundation of our services, and a talented clinical staff offers a wide range of treatment options for recovery such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Dialectical and Behavior Therapy (DBT).
Assertive Community Treatment Team (ACT)
  • A multidisciplinary clinical team that delivers comprehensive services to clients who are diagnosed with severe and persistent mental illness and whose needs have not been met by more traditional service delivery approaches. Individuals served by the ACT team have often experienced frequent psychiatric hospitalization and use of hospital emergency rooms, involvement with the criminal justice system, substance abuse, and lack of engagement with traditional outpatient services. By basing treatment in the community, the team can better assist the client with challenges they face. The team provides community support services interwoven with treatment and rehabilitative services and regularly scheduled team meetings with the goal of individualizing client care.
Young Adult Services (YAS)
  • Helps young adults (ages 18 to 25) transition successfully from the Department of Children and Families to the adult mental health system and to achieve the necessary skills for adulthood. In addition, young adults who have been deemed eligible for intensive mental health services through DMHAS may also qualify. The YAS Program is multi-disciplinary in nature and consists of a prescriber, social workers, nurses, case managers, occupational therapy staff, rehabilitative/recreational therapy staff, and vocational staff. YAS provides a wide array of services including, but not limited to, individual/family/group therapy, case management, life skills development, vocational/educational supports, medication monitoring, community integration, coordination of medical/dental care, and assistance with housing. In addition, we have residential supports/programs in place through our network providers for young adults who are actively engaged in treatment and determined to be in need of this level of placement.
Forensic Services
  • Provides conditional release supervision for clients who are under the Psychiatric Security Review Board.  Staff provides case management and monitoring to acquittees with a Conditional Release Plan that is designed to meet the client’s specific needs.  This team also conducts a Jail Diversion Program designed to meet the needs of persons with a psychiatric disability who are involved in the judicial system. The Diversion and Trauma Recovery Program for Veterans operates under a Federal Grant to support local and statewide expansion of jail diversion programs in order to divert veterans with trauma-related disorders from the criminal justice system to trauma-integrated treatment and recovery services. The CT Offender Re-entry Program (CORP) serves offenders with a mental illness returning to the Norwich/New London area after extended incarceration.  Emphasis is on skill development, case management, and linkage to housing and community service.
WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU:
State of Connecticut employees participate in a competitive comprehensive benefits plan that includes:
  • A Platinum Healthcare Plan, the nation’s best for state employees and dependents, according to a report by Georgetown’s Center on Health Insurance Reform and article by Ellen Andrews, Ph.D
  • Generous paid time off, include 13 paid holidays per calendar year
  • Extensive pension plan and supplemental retirement offerings
  • Retirement healthcare offerings
  • Professional growth and development opportunities
  • State of Connecticut is an eligible Public Service Loan Forgiveness employer, meaning you may be eligible to have qualifying student loans forgiven after 10 years of service. Click here for more information.
  • A healthy work/life balance!
      You'd be able to work for a Forbes top company: 'Forbes' State of Connecticut Ranked One of the Best Employers of 2023 - State of CT Receives National Recognition for Offering Job Growth, Competitive Benefits, and Flexible Schedule.

      WHAT YOU'LL BE DOING:
      • Providing clinical services to adults with moderate to severe mental health and substance use disorders as a member of a multi-disciplinary treatment team
      • Developing comprehensive psychosocial assessments through interviews with assigned adult clients, their families and community providers
      • Providing individual and group treatment, develops crisis response plans and provides case management as needed
      • Developing recovery-oriented treatment plans that include measurable treatment goals and objectives, monitors and evaluates the effectiveness of treatment plans
      • Consulting and collaborating with other behavioral health and community service providers to improve and coordinate delivery of services to clients
      • Documenting treatment in clinical records, and will complete clinical reports in compliance with agency, billing and accrediting bodies
      MORE ABOUT THE AGENCY AND FACILITIES:

      The State of Connecticut, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS), is a health care agency whose mission is to promote the overall health and wellness of persons with behavioral health needs through an integrated network of holistic, comprehensive, effective, and efficient services and supports that foster dignity, respect, and self-sufficiency in those we serve.

      Southeastern Mental Health Authority (SMHA) is a community mental health agency operated by the State of Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS). Its primary goal is to provide high-quality behavioral health services to those in our community with mental health and substance use disorders who are 18 years or older and reside in New London County and its surrounding towns. Services, which include case management, outpatient behavioral health, crisis intervention, respite care, and forensic services, are recovery-oriented and offered in a trauma-informed and culturally sensitive manner.  We support individuals to identify and achieve their own goals in recovery, fostering independence, dignity, and ability.

      Selection Plan

      FOR ASSISTANCE IN APPLYING:
      Please visit our 'Applicant Tips on How to Apply' page.

      To Apply:
      • In order to be considered for this job opening, you must meet the Minimum Qualifications as listed on the job opening. The minimum experience and training requirements must be met by the close date on the job opening, unless otherwise specified.
      • In order to receive educational credits toward qualification for this job posting, the institution must be accredited. If the institution of higher learning is located outside of the U.S., you are responsible for providing documentation from a recognized USA accrediting service which specializes in determining foreign education equivalencies to the recruiter listed on this job posting.
      • You must specify your qualifications on your application. You will be unable to make revisions once you submit your application for this posting to the JobAps system.
      • In order to comply with Public Act 21-69, the State of Connecticut is no longer asking for resumes during the initial application process.
      • All application materials must be received by the recruiting agency by the time specified on the job opening for the position for which you are applying. Late applications may not be submitted and will not be considered. Exceptions are rare and limited to documented events that incapacitate a candidate during the entire duration of the job posting time period. It is the candidate’s obligation and responsibility to request an exception and provide a legally recognized justification to accommodate such exception. Requests should be made to DAS.SHRM@ct.gov.
      • This position will be filled in accordance with contractual language, reemployment, SEBAC, transfer, promotion and merit employment rules.
      Important Next Step Information for After You Apply:
      • Although applicants will receive correspondence via email, as a backup they are also encouraged to sign on to their Personal Status Board on a daily basis to monitor their status, view all emailed notices and complete tasks required in the recruitment process.
      • This posting may require completion of additional referral questions (RQs). You can access these RQs via an email that will be sent to you after the posting's closing date or by visiting your JobAps Personal Status Board (Certification Questionnaires section). Your responses to these RQs must be submitted by the question's expiration date. Please regularly check your email and JobAps Personal Status Board for notifications. Please check your SPAM and/or Junk folders on a daily basis in the event an email provider places auto-notification emails in a user's spam.
      • Note: At any point during the recruitment process, applicants may be required to submit additional documentation which support their qualification(s) for this position. These documents may include: a cover letter, resume, transcripts, diplomas, performance reviews, attendance records, supervisory references, licensure, etc., at the discretion of the hiring agency.
      • The immediate vacancy is listed above, however, applications to this recruitment may be used for future vacancies in this job class.
      • Interviews will be limited to candidates whose experience and training most closely meet the requirements of the position.
      • Candidates who are offered and accept a position with the State of Connecticut are bound by the State Code of Ethics for Public Officials and State Employees which is available at www.ct.gov/ethics.
      Connect With Us:
      • Due to the large volume of applications received, we are unable to provide confirmation of receipt or status during the recruitment process.
      • Updates will be available through your JobAps portal account. If you have any questions pertaining to this recruitment please contact Jensine Tran at Jensine.Tran@ct.gov.

      PURPOSE OF JOB CLASS (NATURE OF WORK)

      In a state agency behavioral health program as part of a multi-disciplinary team at one or more locations this class is accountable for independently providing clinical marital and family therapist services.

      EXAMPLES OF DUTIES

      As a member of a multi-disciplinary clinical team or within a network of community based behavioral health services develops psychosocial assessments through clinical interviews with assigned clients and families which include consideration of developmental, social and/or cultural, substance abuse, psychological, environmental and medical issues; develops treatment plans including measurable treatment objectives; provides clinical treatment services such as: triage, crisis intervention, individual, group and/or family therapy, screening and planning; advocates and develops networks of social and clinical services to assist clients in meeting identified needs; monitors and evaluates effectiveness of treatment plans, documents treatment in clinical records; completes reports in accordance with agency and accrediting bodies; consults and collaborates with other behavioral health providers to improve delivery of services to clients; maintains marital and family therapist treatment and standards as required; provides court testimony as required; may participate in research projects; performs related duties as required.

      KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND ABILITY

      Knowledge of marital and family therapist methodology, casework, group work and community mobilization; knowledge of family and interpersonal relationship dynamics; knowledge of values, sanctions, purposes and ethics of professional marital and family therapist work; knowledge of social, cultural, economic, medical, psychological and legal issues which influence attitudes and behaviors of clients and families; knowledge of mental illnesses and approaches to treatment; considerable interpersonal skills; considerable oral and written communication skills; ability to devise and implement a treatment plan with measurable goals that address client needs; ability to independently apply current psychiatric treatment modalities to address client needs.

      MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - GENERAL EXPERIENCE

      Licensure as a marital and family therapist in the State of Connecticut.

      SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

      1. Incumbents in this class must possess and retain a license to practice marital and family therapist work pursuant to Sec. 20-195 (a-f) of the Connecticut General Statutes.
      2. Incumbents in this class may be required to have knowledge of sign language and communication ability with the deaf and hearing impaired in certain designated positions.
      3. Incumbents in this class may be required to have ability in Spanish oral and written communication in certain designated positions.
      4. Incumbents in this class may be required to travel.

      WORKING CONDITIONS

      Incumbents in this class may be exposed to some risk of injury from assaultive and/or abusive clients.

      Conclusion

      AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

      The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.



      Click on the link below to apply:



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