Mental Health Clinician I/II

Mental Health Clinician Opportunity

This recruitment may close at any time. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

Mental Health Clinicians can be assigned, based on departmental needs, to one of Behavioral Health and Recovery Services' (BHRS) various behavioral health programs. Summaries of BHRS programs are provided below.

Under direction, Mental Health Clinicians provide clinical assessments, care planning, counseling, clinical case management, support medication-assisted treatment, and other rehabilitative / psychotherapeutic services in community behavioral health settings. Mental Health Clinicians are expected to work independently but also function effectively as part of a service team. The incumbents may supervise professional and technical personnel, and provide education and consultation services to other staff, community agencies and the public. In addition, Mental Health Clinicians may administer and coordinate mental health programs, and perform other related work as required. Bilingual applicants are strongly encouraged to apply. Upon successful completion of our bilingual proficiency assessment, you'll receive an additional $1 per hour in compensation.

Questions? We're Here to Help! If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, the recruitment process, or need assistance with your application, please contact the Behavioral Health & Recovery Services Recruitment Team at View phone number on click.appcast.io or View email address on click.appcast.io.

Application deadlines and tentative exam dates:

All exam dates are tentative and subject to change. Oral Examinations are anticipated during the listed week.

• Application deadline: April 17, 2026 | Oral Examination: Tentatively April 27, 2026
• Application deadline: May 8, 2026 | Oral Examination: Tentatively, May 18, 2026

To learn more about the Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Department, visit

BHRS Programs:

Adult System of Care (ASOC) Service Teams are utilized to provide comprehensive outpatient services to adults with a serious mental illness and/or substance use disorder of Stanislaus County. The focus of treatment efforts is to enable clients to function at their highest level in community. Emphasis is placed on assisting clients in identifying and achieving goals, which are meaningful to them. Treatment Teams are comprised of multi-disciplinary staff and are currently utilizing the psycho-social rehabilitation and recovery models of service delivery.

Children's System of Care (CSOC) Services for children and youth are provided in various programs that work with children, youth and young adults age 0 to 21 years. The Mental Health Clinician will provide intensive services to children and adolescents identified with Serious Emotionally Disturbed (SED), as well as provide services and support to their family/caregivers. This may include children and youth who are involved with the Child Welfare or Probation systems. The Mental Health Clinician will also work with transitional age young adults and/or non-minor dependents who have opted into the foster care system as an adult. Services are provided in the field (in home, school, and community settings). Mental Health Clinicians in this subsystem work collaboratively with outside partners through a Child and Family Team process to ensure coordination of care.

The CARE Program CARE is a multidisciplinary team of mental health, criminal justice, and other service providers who facilitate, provide, and share responsibilities of assessment coordination and treatment services to appropriately meet the complex mental, physical, and social needs of the targeted population. The target population includes individuals that may have severe and persistent mental illness, exhibit high-risk health and safety behaviors, engage in vagrancy-related criminal behavior, and experience severe SUDs; and for a variety of reasons, they are not accessing or accepting services. BHRS mental health services providers are embedded on the team to support clients with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) and facilitate direct access to treatment services. The CARE team includes Modesto Police, Probation, Community Services Agency, Telecare, and Public Health. The overarching goal is to see an increase in the target population transition from saying "no" to help to saying "yes" to help.

Substance Use Disorders (SUD)

The Mental Health Clinician assigned to the Substance Use Disorder continuum of care provides services across all ASAM levels, including withdrawal management, residential, outpatient and recovery services. Treatment programs serve youth, adults, and older adults with mild, moderate, or severe SUD including those with co-occurring mental health disorders. Incumbents are expected to provide comprehensive assessments, authorize and sign ASAM placement decisions, deliver individual and group counseling, facilitate family therapy, and support care coordination. Services are delivered in compliance with the Drug Medi-Cal Organized Delivery System (DMC-ODS) and 42 CFR Part 2 requirements, while maintaining a person-centered and recovery-oriented focus. Mental Health Clinicians collaborate closely with multidisciplinary teams, justice partners, and community agencies to reduce stigma, and increase access to care.

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) is a 24-hour, seven day a week program. CERT provides emergency mental health assessment and referral services for emergent and pre-emergent behavioral health situations in collaboration with families, consumers, law enforcement and emergency room personnel. Some services are provided in the community through a mobile task force. Non-crisis services include a consumer and family member-staffed Crisis Support Line and on-site peer support available to consumers and families who need support and referrals. Individuals are able to call to access services or request a psychiatric evaluation. CERT personnel should possess sophisticated diagnostic and assessment skills and be available for shift work.

Crisis Care Mobile Units (CCMU) The Crisis Emergency Response Team (CERT) program will embed trained crisis mental health staff from Stanislaus County Behavioral Health & Recovery Services to ride along with Modesto Police Department (MPD) patrol officers and Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office (SO) patrol deputies from 1400 to 2200 hours Monday through Friday. CCMU Clinicians will respond with law enforcement to provide mobile crisis services, Triage screening, de-escalation/resolution for individuals experiencing behavioral health crises. CCMU Clinicians will work with BHS and CST staff to provide peer support, and coordination with medical and behavioral health services, and follow-up.

Medi-Cal Assessment Team (MAT) The Medi-Cal Assessment teams provides mental health assessments to children and adult beneficiaries. The MAT Mental Health Clinician will perform initial assessments to individuals referred for or seeking mental health services. The MAT Mental Health Clinician will assist in linkage for those assessed to programs within BHRS, Contractors, and or alternate level of care such as mild-moderate and or community services. MAT personnel should posses sophisticated diagnostic and assessment skills.

Quality Services The Quality Services/Compliance team ensures the following: 1. Quality of care issues are identified, monitored and appropriate corrective actions are taken 2. Pursue continuous quality improvement, through department audits 3. Behavioral health services provided to beneficiaries meet established quality of care standards (Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) protocol; Information Notices (IN); All State Plan Letters (APLs)), 4. Quality is evaluated in the areas of access, satisfaction, continuity of care and quality of care, 5. Provide on-going Electronic Health Record (EHR) Navigation training 6. Program certification and re-certification activities, including program National Provider Identifier (NPI)s and modes of service, and 6. Changes are made and monitored related to DHCS protocol updates. In addition, the compliance component of the Quality Services program ensures the following: 1. Establishment and implementation of procedures and a system with dedicated staff for routine internal monitoring and auditing of compliance risks, prompt response to compliance issues as they are raised, investigation of potential compliance problems as identified in the course of self-evaluation and audits, correction of such problems promptly and thoroughly (or coordination of suspected criminal acts with law enforcement agencies) to reduce the potential for recurrence, and ongoing compliance with the requirements under the contract (Corrective Action Plan (CAP) follow up from all peer reviews; review/discussion of limited mental health contact; review and provide information related to compliance for fact finding data), 2. Implement a compliance program that includes: Written policies, procedures, and standards of conduct that articulate the organization's commitment to comply with all applicable requirements and standards under the contract, and all applicable laws (provide training opportunities for BHRS compliance program plan; 3. Implement and maintain procedures designed to detect fraud, waste and abuse that include provisions to verify services reimbursed by Medicaid were received by the beneficiary, 4. Monitor access line compliance and procedures in addition to other compliance related requirements in protocol, Mental Health Plan (MHP) contract, and DMC-ODS Internal Government Agreement (IGA)), and 5. Assist with managing and monitoring privacy issues.

Utilization Management (UM) The Utilization Management team evaluates medical necessity, appropriateness and efficiency of services provided to Medi-Cal beneficiaries (outpatient treatment plan review; assessment updates), ensures consistent application of review criteria for authorization decisions (outpatient treatment plan; Service Authorization Requests (SARs); SUD Residential), conducts concurrent review and authorization for all psychiatric inpatient hospital services and psychiatric health facility services (DBHC; Telecare PHF; Out of