Intensive Services Foster Care (ISFC) Therapist

Aviva Family and Children's Services Mission Statement

Creating safe, supportive spaces so children, youth and families can heal, build resilience, and experience belonging.

Job Summary

Under the supervision of the Intensive Community Based Services (ICBS) Clinical Supervisor, the ISFC Therapist is responsible for a caseload of children and their families. Therapist provides individual and family therapy. The ISFC Therapist is part of a multidisciplinary team that works intensively with the child/youth and family members to address critical mental health and/or behavioral problems and tries to stabilize the home environment and reduce functional impairment. The ISFC Therapist provides field-based services, collaborates with community agencies and other service providers, and is available 24/7 for crisis response. Additionally, the ISFC Therapist completes all necessary documentation in accordance with Aviva, DMH, DCFS, and COA standards. They are responsible for completing all paperwork in accordance with County and agency regulations.

Essential Functions

o Provide appropriate field based (home, school, community, etc.) therapeutic services and interventions based on specific needs of the client and family.

o Complete all required documentation, reports and outcome measures in accordance with program guidelines and within timeline requirements.

o Ability to build protective capacity with families; and Core Practice Indicators

(Engagement, teaming, assessment and understanding, long term view, planning, cultural competence, transitions, crisis management).

o Provide accurate and on-time DMH billing while also meeting agency productivity requirement

o On-call 24 hours per day, 7 days a week to provide crisis support, by phone and/or in-person if indicated

o LPS designation by Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health may be required for this position and would include all associated responsibilities including but not limited to assessment, writing holds when necessary, coordinating services for hospitalization and transportation.

o Provide Trauma Informed Care and educate parents/caregivers

o Continue to provide services and treatment for clients even if change in residence relocates client to another service area

o Responsible for initial enrollments within contract indicated timeframes

o Actively participate/collaborate in team meetings and case conferences for optimal mental health prognosis of clients

o Works collaboratively and cooperatively within a multidisciplinary team

o Attend regularly scheduled staff meetings, in-service trainings and other meetings as appropriate.

o Administers outcome measures for child and families

o In collaboration with team members, create and maintain Plan of Care and Crisis Safety Plan for families

o Maintain client information in a confidential manner.

o Communicate crisis situations, e.g. psychiatric hospitalizations, Suspected Child Abuse, etc. to supervisor as soon as possible.

o Provide comprehensive treatment services which may include interfacing with community psychiatric hospitals, Department of Family and Children Services (DCFS), Department of Mental Health (DMH), school officials, probation department, court system, law enforcement and others as appropriate.

o Keep detailed, accurate and complete documentation

o Consistently meet agency service time expectation

o Consult and serve as a liaison with community agencies, school personnel, parents and other mental health programs and services to evaluate community health needs and services

o Educate others on needs of specific client or segment client’s mental health population

o Advocate for clients

o Participate in development of treatment plans

o Sensitive and responsive to the cultural differences among the agency's client population

o Works to promote and support justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion at all levels in the organization.

o Works to promote a trauma-informed work environment.

o Actively participate in quality improvement projects

The ISFC Therapist will take on special projects or additional duties as assigned by the Clinical Supervisor, Clinical Director of ICBS, and/or AVP of ICBS.