Behavioral Health Program Director

Behavioral Health Program Director

The Behavioral Health Program Director is a working clinical leader responsible for high-quality direct care and day-to-day clinical guidance within VVSD's CalVet-funded services. The position maintains an active caseload while supporting clinical consistency, access, utilization, documentation quality, risk management, and staff development. The Behavioral Health Program Director champions evidence-based and measurement-based care and helps ensure services are timely, culturally responsive, trauma-informed, compliant, and aligned with VVSD policies, grant requirements, ethical standards, and applicable law.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide individual, couples, family, and group psychotherapy to eligible veterans and family members, including adults, adolescents, and children, within the clinician's scope of competence.
• Conduct and document screenings, biopsychosocial assessments, diagnoses, treatment plans, progress notes, discharge summaries, referrals, and other required clinical records.
• Maintain an active caseload and meet established productivity, scheduled clinical-hour, and utilization expectations. Proactively address cancellations, no-shows, scheduling gaps, and barriers to engagement in coordination with clinic leadership and administrative staff.
• Complete accurate, clinically appropriate documentation within two business days of service, or sooner when required by policy, payer, grant, risk, or regulatory standards. Monitor and resolve incomplete or deficient documentation promptly.
• Use evidence-based, time-limited, trauma-informed interventions and measurement-based care to guide treatment decisions, monitor outcomes, and support clinically appropriate episode-of-care planning and discharge.
• Assess suicide risk, violence risk, abuse or neglect, substance-related concerns, and need for a higher level of care. Develop safety plans, complete required notifications and reports, and coordinate urgent response in accordance with law and VVSD procedures.
• Coordinate care with clients, caregivers, medical providers, case managers, community partners, and other disciplines, using appropriate releases of information and maintaining continuity during referrals and transitions.
• Provide in-person and telehealth services in accordance with licensure, privacy, documentation, and organizational requirements.

Clinical Leadership and Team Support

• Serve as the primary day-to-day clinical resource for assigned staff and promote sound clinical judgment, ethical practice, consistency, and accountability.
• Lead or participate in case consultation, clinical team meetings, care reviews, and interdisciplinary coordination. Escalate significant clinical, safety, access, staffing, or compliance concerns to the Regional Clinic Director promptly.
• Provide clinical supervision to associates or other staff when assigned and legally authorized, including supervision agreements, documentation, evaluation, and Board of Behavioral Sciences or other licensing-board requirements.
• Coach clinicians in evidence-based practices, case formulation, treatment planning, documentation, engagement, discharge planning, and effective management of complex clinical presentations.
• Support onboarding, training, competency development, and performance feedback for clinical staff in partnership with clinic and organizational leadership.
• Promote a respectful, collaborative, inclusive, and psychologically safe team culture. Address concerns directly and support timely conflict resolution.

Quality Compliance and CalVet Accountability

• Conduct routine chart reviews and monitor clinical records for timeliness, accuracy, medical necessity, treatment-plan alignment, risk documentation, signatures, and readiness for billing, audit, and grant review.
• Support compliance with CalVet grant terms, client eligibility requirements, approved service activities, data collection, outcome reporting, and documentation needed to substantiate program performance and expenditures.
• Manage the assigned program budget in partnership with organizational leadership and finance. Monitor expenditures, forecast program needs, support timely reconciliation and reporting, and ensure spending remains within the approved budget and applicable CalVet and VVSD requirements.
• Partner with administrative, revenue-cycle, and leadership staff to resolve authorization, coding, documentation, and claim issues that may delay or prevent reimbursement.
• Monitor clinical access, caseload distribution, utilization, documentation timeliness, treatment outcomes, and other assigned performance indicators. Develop and follow through on corrective actions when performance falls below expectations.
• Participate in continuous quality improvement, program evaluation, policy implementation, audit preparation, accreditation activities, and corrective action plans.
• Maintain confidentiality and protect health information in compliance with HIPAA, 42 CFR Part 2 when applicable, professional ethics, VVSD policy, and all applicable federal and California requirements.
• Prepare accurate weekly, monthly, grant, quality, and ad hoc reports as requested by the Regional Clinic Director or organizational leadership.

Additional Responsibilities

• Attend required clinical, supervision, administrative, quality, safety, and training meetings.
• Maintain current professional licensure, required continuing education, mandated-reporter status, and organizational training requirements.
• Follow VVSD safety, incident-reporting, emergency-response, workplace conduct, and information-security procedures.
• Perform other related duties as assigned to support program operations and client care.

Minimum Qualifications

• Master's or doctoral degree in social work, marriage and family therapy, professional clinical counseling, psychology, or a related behavioral health discipline from an accredited institution.
• Current, active, and unrestricted California license as an LMFT, LCSW, LPCC, or Psychologist.
• At least three years of post-degree clinical experience providing behavioral health services. Experience providing clinical supervision or leading clinical teams is required; three years of supervisory experience is preferred.
• Demonstrated competence providing assessment and psychotherapy to diverse populations. Experience with veterans, service members, military families, trauma, PTSD, and military culture is strongly preferred.
• Knowledge of current DSM diagnostic criteria, evidence-based and manualized treatments, measurement-based care, suicide-risk assessment, mandated reporting, and appropriate levels of behavioral health care.
• Ability to provide clinical services and supervision across in-person and virtual settings and to use an electronic health record and standard workplace technology proficiently.

Knowledge Skills and Abilities

• Strong clinical judgment, consultation, coaching, conflict-resolution, and leadership skills.
• Ability to balance direct service, clinical leadership, documentation, reporting, and competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Clear and professional written and verbal communication, including the ability to provide timely, constructive feedback.
• Ability to analyze clinical and operational data, identify trends, and implement practical performance-improvement strategies.
• Commitment to ethical, culturally responsive, trauma-informed, client-centered, and recovery-oriented care.
• Ability to work independently, collaborate across disciplines, maintain appropriate boundaries, and safeguard confidential information.

Physical and Work Environment Requirements

• Ability to sit or stand for extended periods, use a computer and telephone, read reports and electronic records, and communicate effectively in person and through virtual platforms.
• Ability to move throughout the worksite, bend, reach, and lift or carry light office materials, with or without reasonable accommodation.
• Ability to work in a professional clinical environment that may periodically be busy or noisy and to respond appropriately to urgent client or operational needs.

Equal Employment Opportunity and Accommodation

VVSD is committed to equal employment opportunity and to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with applicable law. This job description describes the general nature and level of work expected and is not an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or qualifications. Responsibilities may be modified based on program needs, funding requirements, and organizational priorities.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a non-profit organization serving our veterans, VVSD is a PSLF-eligible employer.