Activity Coordinator

Activities Coordinator

The Activities Coordinator is primarily responsible for providing services to the activity program to meet the patients'/residents' social, recreational, physical, educational and spiritual needs by using meaningful activity. The Activity Programs are used to enable the patients/residents to function and maintain their dignity and fullest mental and physical capacity for as long as possible. These programs are also used to enhance the patient's/resident's feelings of usefulness and encourage self-confidence, self-respect, and empowerment.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

• Appropriately assess and re-assess the patients'/residents' activity interests, needs and concerns through observation, conversation, and with written information.
• Write patient/resident progress notes accurately, neatly and in a timely manner, and in accordance with facility and departmental documentation standards/regulations.
• Record patient/resident codings/changes and other necessary information accurately and promptly.
• Plan/choose patient/resident activities with creativity and variety.
• Assist with writing unplanned events or changes to scheduled events on appropriate calendars/notices. Notify other departments/nursing units as necessary.
• Plans the calendar with appropriate, age-related patient/resident activities both in large and small groups or using one-to-one treatments. Emphasis, should be placed on activities the resident is interested in.
• Assist patients/residents to perform or participate in activities.
• Adapt the activity so that the patient/resident can be successful as possible with the least amount of help and yet maintain the resident's highest functioning capabilities.
• Work with other Activity staff and other disciplines in a cooperative manner to foster the most appropriate safe and least restrictive environment for the patient/resident.

Qualifications:

• Must be at least twenty-one (21) years of age or older
• High School diploma or GED. One (1) year experience working in a children's services program or in a residential setting is preferred. A minimum of two years of college education with at least 12 semester (18 quarter) hours in the social sciences may be substituted for one year of work experience.
• Valid State Driver's License with appropriate Endorsements

Physical Demands:

• This position requires the staff person to stand, walk, sit, reach with hands and arms, climb or balance, stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl, and talk and hear. The staff person must also be able to occasionally lift and/or move 50 lbs. Specific vision abilities are required for this position due to the supervision that includes close, distant and peripheral vision, color and depth perception and the ability to adjust focus. Also, as a bona fide job requirement, the staff person must also be able to perform a physical restraint on a student using the authorized technique designated by the program and only as a last resort for protection from harm to self or others.

Work Environment:

• The students in this program are termed "At Risk" youth who have been exposed to either the legal or social service system. During the performance of one's duties, a staff person may be asked inappropriate questions, displays of socially inappropriate behaviors, the use of profanity and sexually explicit language. These students may have a history of violent or assaultive behaviors that could be demonstrated during their stay here. Staff persons may be exposed to racial slurs, derogatory comments, sexually suggestive phrases or threats of physical harm from students toward either staff or their families. There will be occasions when staff will be exposed to the elements of nature.

Note: This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive; an employee will also perform reasonably related responsibilities as assigned. This organization reserves the right to review or change job duties as need arises. This job description does not constitute a written or implied contract of employment.