Crisis Responder

Title: Crisis Responder - 590

Position Type: Full Time

Program: Crisis 590

Who we are:

C4 was founded in 1972 to help people released from psychiatric hospitals into the Uptown and

Edgewater communities stabilize in the community. Since that time, C4’s service area has expanded to rekindle hope for individuals and families on Chicago’s north and west sides, remaining committed to community-level, system-focused interventions; C4 always seeks to avoid restrictive levels of care and maximize families’ agency to lead their recovery, allowing them to heal in their homes and community.

C4 is the leader in building hope and breaking down barriers – from the personal to the systemic - for Chicago’s systematically disadvantaged communities through the delivery of effective, empirically supported, and trauma-informed mental health services. C4 seeks to equip 7,000 individuals annually to help them move from trauma to living, to working and thriving within their community.

Our Mission - Community Counseling Centers of Chicago (C4), a behavioral health advocate and social service provider, offers quality, comprehensive customer-oriented services tailored to the diversity of its consumers.

Our Vision - Community Counseling Centers of Chicago (C4) will be, and will be recognized as, essential to the wellbeing of the communities we serve.

Philosophy - C4 believes that people recovering from mental illness and emotional trauma are able to live, work and thrive in the community.

Purpose:

The purpose of this position is to stabilize consumers in psychiatric crisis in the community. Consumers include children, adolescents, adults, and their families. The Responder will provide crisis intervention services, including information gathering, assessment, brief skill-based interventions, and safety planning, with the goal of immediate symptom reduction, stabilization, and restoration to a person-centered baseline level of functioning. The Responder will assist consumers in identifying and engaging in recovery- and resiliency-oriented goal development and achievement in a culturally aware and appropriate manner. In accordance with consumers goals and preferences, service(s) may include one or all of the following: skill-building, identification and/or use of natural supports, use of community resources, referrals to internal or external providers of care, and/or facilitation of emergency services.

Location and Work Conditions:

Although the Responder will be based at one of C4s sites, services are provided in a hybrid manner with the work environment being split between, office, community and remote (when permitted). Shifts are in 12-hour increments with day, evening, overnight, and weekend shifts available. Work may be stressful due to consumer behaviors, periods of high call volume, or tight deadlines. Responder must be willing to work certain weekends, some overnight shifts, and occasional holidays.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Answer crisis calls in response to mental health crises in various Chicago communities and drive to the location of the crisis within 30-60 minutes of receiving the call depending on level of crisis after triage
• Assess the client for indicators of abuse and level of mental health crisis in need of stabilization
• Provide crisis intervention services to individuals in crisis, with the goal of immediate symptom reduction and restoration to a person-centered baseline level of functioning
• As appropriate, provide brief and immediate mental health services or referral, linkage, and consultation with other mental health service providers
• Developmental crisis and mental health assessment or admission note resulting in the identification of the consumers mental health services or referral, linkage, and consultation with other mental health services
• Provide case management, outreach and aftercare services
• Work cooperatively with other members of the crisis team, including co workers and supervisors
• Maintain compliance with confidentiality policies and procedures
• Maintain positive and mutually respectful relationships with other human service providers, entitlement agencies, health care vendors, and the community
• Assist with outcome measures
• Maintain compliance with clinical documentation, timelines and agency policies and procedures including meeting required timeframes for documentation and service notes
• Report to assigned supervisor and actively seek consultation whenever necessary or requested by supervisor
• Attend clinical meetings and trainings
• Other duties as assigned by supervisor

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree in Social Work, Psychology, or a related field preferred
• Personal vehicle, valid Illinois drivers license, insurable driving record, and vehicle insurance is required.
• One year of crisis experience in a behavioral health or hospital setting is preferred.
• Additional experience in counseling or crisis work with adults is highly preferred.

Competencies (Minimum Skills, Knowledge and Experience):

• Ability to be respectful of the diverse cultures of the people served and to provide culturally appropriate, competent and individualized treatment in accordance with each clients age, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, and culture
• Knowledge of and ability to use appropriate behavioral and crisis intervention techniques
• Understanding of personal and professional boundaries
• Ability to plan, develop and manage multiple projects
• Organizational skills
• Time and stress management skills
• Communication skills to include interpersonal, teamwork, and collaboration skills
• Conflict resolution and diplomacy skills
• Computer literacy, specifically Microsoft Outlook, Teams, Zoom, etc.
• Problem-solving skills, including the ability to work collaboratively with partnered systems, ethically and within the best interest of the identified client
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to meet deadlines, productivity requirements, and navigate electronic medical record systems competently and complete documentation within appropriate billing timelines

Equal Opportunity Statement
Decisions and criteria governing the employment relationship with all employees at Community Counseling Centers of Chicago (C4) are made in a non-discriminatory manner, without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, age, FMLA status, or any other factor determined to be unlawful by federal, state, or local statutes.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by the individual(s) assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and skills required. Management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties and to assign other duties, as necessary. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and People of Color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. We are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles