Family Support Specialist

Background:

The (new) Urgent Crisis Center (UCC) is a walk-in, police or ambulance psychiatric crisis stabilization program designed to triage, stabilize, and assess youth who are experiencing a psychiatric crisis, and then link the youth/family to a lower level of care within the community. This is a fast-paced environment that operates 365 days a year. As part of an interdisciplinary team, the Family Support Specialist will support and guide the family as they work through their child’s mental health crisis. The Family Support Specialist should have lived experience with mental health conditions, substance abuse, or trauma in order to best serve our clients.

The Family Support Specialists will advocate, mentor, engage, empower, and support families to take the lead in their own Plan of Care and helps connect families to needed resources within their own communities. The Family Support Specialist engages with the family from the time they walk in the door and guides them through the evaluation and discharge planning at the Urgent Crisis Center

EXAMPLES OF RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Welcomes families to the Urgent Crisis Center and ensures a smooth transition through the intake process, including identification of language preference and connections with existing providers.
2. Uses the core principles of WRAP to support families in developing their crisis plan with the UCC team.
3. Assist with gathering screening and clinical data required to support the crisis intervention.
4. Follows up with families with permission to support the crisis plan and coordination with services.
5. Assist the families in obtaining needed resources, including referrals to FAVOR network of support and training.
6. Assist families to access culturally appropriate resources to support them in crises, using their proactive and reactive safety/crisis plan.
7. Assist with outreach efforts in the region to facilitate referrals through schools, community organizations, and regional collaboratives to broaden awareness of the UCC and Wellmore as a whole.
8. Maintain records on all UCC children and families. Comply with all documentation guidelines established by Wellmore.
9. Maintain confidentiality in management of records and communications regarding families – including obtaining appropriate consents to release information.
10. Support families through community meetings and settings as needed, providing advocacy and guidance.
11. Develop knowledge of existing community resources and educate families on resources that will best meet their needs.
12. Provide families with advocacy in community meetings and settings as appropriate.
13. Inform families about available Family Support Groups and other “natural supports” available to them in the community.