Recovery Coach (Suffolk County Jail Project)

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Recovery Coach will support the recovery needs of patients in a new, 45-bed men’s behavioral health unit operated by Boston Medical Center (BMC) located in the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department’s Jail. The position must have knowledge of recovery support systems, experience facilitating recovery groups, knowledge of trauma informed care, and positive beliefs and feelings regarding patients with various levels of recovery. The recovery coach will facilitate patient access to recovery-oriented SUD treatment, resources, and recovery groups within the behavioral health unit, and maintain ongoing patient support to serve as a motivator, ally, role model, problem-solver and advocate for patients. The Recovery Coach should possess a thorough understanding to successful recovery, tailor health messages and provide links to available resources and treatment options. This position requires good organizational skills and the ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

This role requires practicing non-judgmental patient-centered care and cultural humility in order to care for an impacted patient population who is often marginalized within the healthcare and justice systems. 

As part of this innovative new collaboration between BMC and SCSD, this role will report into the BMC Department of General Internal Medicine. Work will be completed within office and clinical settings, both of which are housed within a setting of incarceration. This is a full time daytime position. The person who fills this position must adhere to all of BMC’s RESPECT behavioral standards.

Position: Recovery Coach (Suffolk County Jail Project)      

Department: Psychiatry

Schedule: Full Time

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES / DUTIES:

• Engage patients in a correctional setting, helping individuals establish goals to aid in their recovery through assisting patients identify and resolve personal and environmental obstacles to recovery
• Facilitate and co-facilitate skill-building support groups, and emphasize the importance of quality-of-life activities and community membership.
• Maintains up-to-date resources for self-help programs for patients to utilize post-release including SMART, NA, CA, AA and SOAP groups
• Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team including providers, case workers, spiritual health, and correctional staff to support patients recovery
• Commit to becoming an Agent of Change through presenting regular trainings and periodic in-service trainings for non-peer staff
• Seek Continuing Education in the Peer Support field to ensure that best practices are upheld and that emerging evidence is incorporated into the daily work
• Be knowledgeable of links for patients to sources of post-release sober housing, recovery-supportive employment, health and social services, and recovery support with a strong emphasis on a harm reduction model and medication treatment
• Address and resolve issues, including assisting patients with special needs, dealing with challenging or disruptive patients, handling patient complaints, conflict resolution, and other issues that arise.
• Use language that conveys caring and is non-judgmental and utilize motivational enhancement techniques and motivational interviewing that helps encourage patients to identify and prioritize their personal needs
• Adhere to departmental/organizational policies and procedures including maintaining HIPAA standards and confidentiality of protected health information
• Comply with established metrics for performance and adheres to documentation and work flow standards including clearly documenting all progress and submitting required data within expected time frames

(The above statements in this job description are intended to depict the general nature and level of work assigned to the employee(s) in this job. The above is not intended to represent an exhaustive list of accountable duties and responsibilities required).

JOB REQUIREMENTS

EDUCATION:

• Associate's degree (or equivalent combination of formal education and experience in community health) plus a minimum of 2 years in healthcare / SUD treatment field is required.

• BA/BS in Human Services (psychology, social work, public health, etc.) preferred but can substitute for three years relevant experience in working with patients with SUD

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS REQUIRED:

• Prior Completion of the Certified Addiction Recovery Coach (CARC) certification preferred

EXPERIENCE:

• Experience with Microsoft office suite (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.)

• Experience working with patients experiencing homelessness preferred

• Experience working in settings of incarceration or with justice-involved individuals preferred

• Minimum of 1 years demonstrated experience and engaged in a recovery network

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES (KSA):

• Knowledge of substance use disorders and/or mental health and a harm reduction approach

• Medical knowledge, assessment abilities, communication, and people skills

• Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment

• Ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing

• Knowledge of community, social, and health resources, particularly substance use-related resources.

• Expertise in establishing working relationships with patients, their family, professionals, and the community, including the ability to collaborate with a multidisciplinary health care team.

• Computer competency, inclusive of the ability to access and enter data.

• Effective verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills to facilitate interactions with various members of the health care team, patients, and their families.

• Bilingual or multi-lingual skills (beyond that of English) appropriate to the patient population served, is preferred.

• Demonstrated flexibility with client’s priorities, evolving needs, and goals.

• Sensitivity to ethnic, cultural, gender, and sexual orientation diversity; values; beliefs; and behaviors.

• Demonstrated critical thinking and problem solving ability.

• Flexibility in schedule to meet the unit needs, some weekends required

Preference for individuals who are available to work evenings, flex hours, and/or on Saturdays

Equal Opportunity Employer/Disabled/Veterans