Mental Health Counselor, Psychiatric Acute, Per Diem, Variable Shifts

Mental Health Counselor

About MarinHealth: Are you looking for a place where you are empowered to bring innovation to reality? Join MarinHealth, an integrated, independent healthcare system with deep roots throughout the North Bay. With a world-class physician and clinical team, an affiliation with UCSF Health, an ever-expanding network of clinics, and a new state-of-the-art hospital, MarinHealth is growing quickly. MarinHealth comprises MarinHealth Medical Center, a 327-bed hospital in Greenbrae, and 55 primary care and specialty clinics in Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties. We attract healthcare's most talented trailblazers who appreciate having the best of both worlds: the pioneering medicine of an academic medical center combined with an independent hospital's personalized, caring touch.

MarinHealth is already realizing the benefits of impressive growth and has consistently earned high praise and accolades, including being Named One of the Top 250 Hospitals Nationwide by Healthgrades, receiving a 5-star Ranking for Overall Hospital Quality from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and being named the Best Hospital in San Francisco/Marin by Bay Area Parent, among others.

Company: Marin General Hospital dba MarinHealth Medical Center

Compensation Range: $33.85 - $40.45

Work Shift: Variable Shift (United States of America)

Scheduled Weekly Hours: 0

Job Description Summary: Bachelor's degree in one of the social sciences such as psychology or sociology. Master's degree desirable. Additional five years of experience performing job duties equivalent to Mental Health Counselor will substitute for the required education.

Job Requirements, Prerequisites and Essential Functions:

Job Specifications:

• At least one year experience as a Mental Health Counselor or its equivalent in an acute inpatient psychiatric unit.
• Previous Nurse Aide/Tech experience preferred.

Experience:

• At least one year experience as a Mental Health Counselor or its equivalent in an acute inpatient psychiatric unit.
• Previous Nurse Aide/Tech experience preferred.

License and Certifications:

• Basic Life Support (BLS) required at hire.
• Integrative Agitation Management (IAM) (IAMTAC1) Required within 30 days of hire

Prerequisite Skills:

• Ability to work collaboratively with team members, physicians, and other departments
• Ability to problem-solve, establish priorities and maintain a calm demeanor while working in an atmosphere of conflicting demands
• Demonstrate oral and written communications skills
• Ability to read, speak, write, understand and follow English verbal and written instructions

Primary Customer Served (Age Specific Criteria):

• Early Adults: 18 up to 45 years
• Middle Adults: 45 up to 61 years
• Late Adults: 61 up to 80 years
• Late, Late Adults: 80 years and up

Employees in this position must be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care and/or service based on the physical, psycho/social, educational, safety, and related criteria appropriate to the age of the patients served in his/her assigned service area.

Patient Privacy (HIPAA Compliance): Employees in this position have access to protected health information. The protected health information a person in this position can access includes demographics, date of service, insurance/billing, medical record summary information, and all other information that may be contained in patient records. This position requires patient health information to perform the functions outlined as part of this position description.

Duties And Responsibilities:

Essential (Not Modifiable)

• Professional Practice and Patient Care Activities
  • Evaluates psychological and social dimensions of patients
  • Applies knowledge of psychopathology, psychodynamics and self-care theory and uses available resources in evaluation process
  • Documents patient information that nursing staff with nursing evaluation
  • Consults with nursing supervisor at completion of initial evaluation
  • Demonstrates ability to:
    • Evaluate and report subjective physical complaints and collaborate with nursing supervisor in identifying physical problems
    • Make elementary objective evaluation of physical/somatic complaints and disabilities or potential physical problems
    • Complete simple basic nursing tasks such as taking vital signs, collecting specimens, redoing simple dressings, bathing, feeding patients, ambulating
  • Plans a formal written plan of care for patients:
    • Utilizes all available resources and current nursing evaluation and intervention models in developing initial care plan according to unit initial evaluation protocol. Consults with nursing supervisor, physicians and others in developing initial care plan
    • Initiates plan based on knowledge of specific psychopathology and appropriate standards of care
    • When representing nursing in treatment conferences will be responsible for reviewing current care plan, updating plan according to team recommendations and reporting to nursing team any changes
    • Identifies nursing problems and specific goals in behavioral terms
    • Develops goals specifying expected outcomes.
  • Implements Plan of Care:
    • Implements medical plan, nursing orders and interdisciplinary care plan in accordance with established policies, procedures and protocols, using proper techniques and safety precautions
    • Observes and reports effects of drugs and other therapeutic and diagnostic measures in a safe and accurate manner
    • Documents intervention, patient response, effectiveness and complications using established evaluation models and unit protocols; communicates information to peers and physicians
    • Uses appropriate resources personnel and departments for consultation
    • Respects dignity and confidentiality of patient, acting as an advocate when necessary. Provides safe and secure environment
    • Functions within limits of hospital and nursing department policies and procedures
  • Evaluate Patient Care:
    • Reviews and evaluates effectiveness of intervention and implementation of plan, and consults with treatment team members to modify a plan as necessary
    • Determines level of accomplishment of goals, and expected outcomes following intervention
• Patient and Family Education and Discharge Planning
  • Evaluate need for patient and family instruction:
    • Evaluates social interaction between patient and family members in identifying:
      • Problem solving
      • Knowledge of identified problems
      • Safety
      • Self-care abilities
      • Insight into appropriate interventions
      • Plans Patient and family education
        • Sets realistic learning objectives and involves patient and family in planning
        • Identifies necessary information to be communicated
        • Develops a plan to meet the objectives
• Implements teaching plan
  • Individualizes instruction to meet patient's learning needs.
• Evaluates effectiveness of training plan and changes or modifies instruction based on evaluation

• Professional Expectations and Leadership
  • Demonstrates knowledge of ANA Standards of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing Practices, hospital nursing policies and procedures, and unit standards of care
  • Provides direction and leadership in patient care to new personnel, volunteers and peers
  • Acts as a resource person regarding patient care, specialty area, orientation and teaching of staff
  • Displays positive attitude and promotes good working relationships among staff and other disciplines and departments.
  • Demonstrates initiative and independence in assisting all patients towards meeting aftercare needs
  • Demonstrates collaboration and cooperation in conflict resolution
  • Demonstrates ability and accuracy taking and reporting patient vital signs, bathing, AM and HS care of patients. Provides care for incontinent patients
  • Participates in and supports research programs and activities; also participates in hospital committees and other activities which promotes the growth and development of nursing and/or patient care
  • Growth and Development
    • Identifies areas for professional growth
    • Develops and implements plans to meet identified needs through formal and informal means.
    • Evaluates professional growth/changes or modifies plans based on evaluation
  • Demonstrates competence in unit specific