PSYCHIATRIC SOCIAL WORKER I/ EMERGENCY APPOINTMENTS HOMELESSNESS

TYPE OF RECRUITMENT:
  OPEN COMPETITIVE- EMERGENCY

October 3, 2023 at 8:00 a.m.(Pacific Time) 

EXAM NUMBER:

   b9034P-EA 

This announcement is a re-post to reopen the filing period.   

The LA County Board of Supervisors recently declared a local state of emergency for homelessness, and the County is working to revise and expand our response to help all who are affected. We are looking for qualified and passionate individuals to help us in the mission of addressing issues like housing, mental health, and substance use. If you are looking for a new career that will directly benefit the population of LA County, this may be the opportunity for you.

 

Department of Mental Health is seeking qualified candidates to fill emergency Psychiatric Social Worker I vacancies related to the homelessness crisis. 

Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%. 

Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment to Psychiatric Social Worker I.

Interviews individuals, their families and/or significant others to obtain a family, social, employment, medical, substance abuse, and mental health treatment history.

Assesses client's functioning in his/her environmental setting.

Develops a tentative CCCP designed to resolve or cope with the mental or emotional problem, which may include individual, group, family or marital counseling, case management, and/or referral to another treatment source such as a psychiatrist, a psychologist, a vocational or rehabilitation counselor, or another agency. 

Plans and conducts the client's therapy program under the guidance of supervisory staff by considering the client's treatment goal and by determining the priorities of the programs to be dealt with and the length and modality of therapy.

Provides psychotherapy to individuals, groups, families, and significant others.

Provides case management services to secure resources for clients, families, and significant others in order to achieve treatment goals. 

Serves as a member of a mental health emergency intervention team and/or joint law enforcement/mental health emergency intervention team by evaluating the behavior of persons to determine if they are, as a result of a mental disorder, dangerous to themselves, others, or gravely disabled.

Requests LPS-authorized persons to complete an application for immediate 72-hour detention at a hospital facility.

Interviews persons seeking psychiatric assistance on an emergency basis and utilizes crisis intervention techniques to prevent hospitalization and to aid the person in dealing with the emotional crisis.

Assists clients, families, and significant others by discussing their reactions and attitudes concerning mental health problems and co-occurring substance abuse disorders; explains need for treatment; and encourages all concerned parties to work together cooperatively to resolve the problem and minimize the stresses that impact social functioning. 

Works with families and significant others toward gaining their acceptance of and participation in treatment recommendations.

Participates in multi-disciplinary team conferences to discuss and evaluate the nature of the client's problem, to evaluate the client's progress, and to develop a CCCP.

Participate in research to increase knowledge of mental health problems and to improve therapeutic treatment methods, as needed. 

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
A Master's degree* from an accredited** School of Social Work.

LICENSE:

A valid and active Associate Clinical Social Worker registration issued by the California Department of Consumer Affairs, Board of Behavioral Sciences.

Master of Social Work graduates must become registered as an Associate Clinical Social Worker with the California Department of Consumer Affairs, Board of Behavioral Sciences within sixty (60) days from commencement of employment with the County of Los Angeles.  Active and valid Associate Clinical Social Worker registration must be maintained continuously until successful completion of the examination process for licensure as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.  Registered Associate Clinical Social Workers must obtain licensure within six (6) years from the original date of registration with the California Department of Consumer Affairs, Board of Behavioral Sciences.  Failure to obtain licensure within the aforementioned timeframes may result in termination.

You MUST meet the above requirement(s) in order to be appointed to fill any vacancies related to this recruitment.
 

A valid California Class C Driver License or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.

PHYSICAL CLASS:
Physical Class II – Light. This class includes administrative and clerical positions requiring light physical effort that may include occasional light lifting to a 10 pound limit and some bending, stooping, or squatting. Considerable ambulation may be involved. 

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT INFORMATION: 

*Withhold Information:  Applicants who expect to receive their Master's degree within six (6) months of filing an application may compete in the examination, and if successful, will be withheld from certification for employment until original documentation of successful completion of the required education is received. Applicants must attach proof (original or photocopy of an original) of their college transcripts or degree indicating the field of study from an accredited college or university, or a letter with the Registrar's signature on school letterhead with school seal indicating a planned graduation date within 6 months to their application at the time of filing or within seven (7) calendar days of filing.

Transcript: **In order to receive credit for any college or university course, or any type of college or university degree such as Bachelor's or higher, you must submit a legible copy of the official diploma,  or  official transcripts from the accredited institution which shows the area of specialization with your application at the time of filing or within 7 calendar days of filing directly to exams@dmh.lacounty.gov. 

• Foreign degrees must be evaluated for equivalency to United States accredited institutions standards by an academic credential evaluation agency recognized by The National Association of Credential Evaluation Services or the Association of International Credential Evaluators, Inc. (AICE). See Employment Information under Accreditation Information.

Official Transcript is defined as a transcript that bears the college seal and states "official and/or copy" issued by the school's Registrar Office.  A printout of the transcript from the school's website is NOT considered official and; therefore, will NOT be accepted and may result in your application being incomplete or rejected.    

EXAMINATION CONTENT 

Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%.  Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment.

APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION
Applicants are required to complete and submit an online Los Angeles County Employment Application AND Supplemental Questionnaire in order to be considered for this examination. Paper applications, resumes, or any unsolicited documents will not be accepted in lieu of completing the online application and Supplemental Questionnaire.  Application filing may be suspended at any time without advance notice.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING ONLINE
Applications must be submitted online only and will be reviewed for interview consideration on an ongoing basis. If you have not been contacted within 60 days and the recruitment remains open or reopens for filing, we encourage you to submit a new application. This will allow you to reaffirm your interest and update any relevant information.  

Many important notifications will be sent electronically to the email address provided on the application, so it is important that you provide a valid email address. Please add hsacks@dmh.lacounty.gov as well as noreply@governmentjobs.com and info@governmentjob.com  to your email address and list of approved senders to prevent email notification from being filtered as span/junk/clutter mail.
 

You have the ability to opt out of emails from LA County.  If you unsubscribe, you will not receive any email notification for any examination for which you apply with Los Angeles County.  Regardless of whether you choose to unsubscribe, you can always check for notifications by logging into governmentjobs.com and viewing your profile inbox, which saves a copy of all emailed notices.

Plan to submit your online application well in advance before the deadline as you may be required to verify your email address.  This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on govermmentjobs.com/careers/lacounty,gov you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts.  This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER LANGUAGE
Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes.  Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number.

COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT LIBRARIES
For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.
 

FAIR CHANCE EMPLOYER
The County of Los Angeles is a Fair Chance employer.  Except for a very limited number of positions, you will not be asked to provide information about a conviction history unless you receive a contingent offer of employment.  The County will make an individualized assessment of whether your conviction history has a direct or adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job, and consider potential mitigating factors, including, but not limited to, evidence and extent of rehabilitation, recency of the offense(s), and age at the time of the offense(s).  If asked to provide information about a conviction history, any convictions or court records which are exempted by a valid court order do not have to be disclosed. 

 
NO SHARING USER ID AND PASSWORD
All applicants must file their applications online using their own user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.
 

DEPARTMENT CONTACT 
Department Contact Name: Heleodora "Lola" Sacks, Exam Analyst
Department Contact Phone: (323) 705-4072 or (213) 972-7034
Department Contact Email: exams@dmh.lacounty.gov

ADA Coordinator Phone: (323) 705-4072
Teletype Phone: (800) 735-2922
California Relay Services Phone: (800) 735-2922  

Salary : $76,804 - $98,035