Mental Health Clinician Trainee/I/II (Behavioral Health)

About the Opportunity

**** positions that are within a designated healthcare related facility will be paid in accordance with healthcare minimum wage ****

This recruitment will close after 40 applications have been received.

ABOUT THE POSITION
BHRS is a mental health and substance use disorder services organization. Mental Health Clinician Trainee I/II responsibilities primarily involve providing para-professional counseling services to BHRS members. This includes but is not limited to, providing counseling, conducting clinical assessments, developing care plans, managing clinical cases, and offering rehabilitative services.
Mental Health Clinician Trainee’s can be assigned, based on departmental needs, to one of the various BHRS programs. This job classification is part-time, and employees are considered extra-help.

Some Programs Within BHRS:

• 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.
• 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 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 will be assigned to treatment programs and Residential Unit, which is designed to serve adults and older adults who suffer from a Co-Occurring Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorders.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Collaborative Court The Collaborative Court Team is a program with Stanislaus County Behavioral Health and Recovery Services was created to ensure improved coordinated entry into Behavioral Health care for Stanislaus County residents who are involved in the legal system.

To learn more about the Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Department, click here .

ABOUT THE TRAINEE DESIGNATION

Mental Health Clinician Trainees learn to perform the tasks of a Mental Health Clinician. This provides an opportunity to gain the experience needed to be considered for a Mental Health Clinician I Promotion.

• Trainees are part of the unclassified service of the County;
• All trainees will be appointed to the first step of the salary range for the appropriate position, and will be compensated 15% below the range established for the Mental Health Clinician I classification;
• Trainee appointments are not to last longer than one year. However, appointments are extendible to a maximum of two years in cases where minimum qualifications are involved; and
• Upon completion of the training period and the acquisition of minimum qualifications, the individual may be upgraded to a probationary appointment at step 1 of the Mental Health I Clinician salary range. (An approximate 15% increase in salary).

Incumbents may also be subject to overtime, standby, callback, weekend, holiday and shift assignments as identified in their MOU (Memorandum of Understanding).

Part-time extra-help is a provisional classification where permanent status may not be obtained. This position is subject to overtime, standby, shift, and callback assignments and will perform related duties as assigned. This position is non-benefited except for participation in a 401a program with Nationwide.”

The Job Task Analysis provides information detailing the physical and functional demands of the classification. For the complete job task analysis, visit the Risk Management website at http://www.stancounty.com/riskmgmt/ under the "Disability" tab.

Typical Tasks

• Meet with individuals and groups to assist them in identifying strengths and barriers and developing realistic plans to address them;
• Advise clients on available community resources;
• Act in a liaison and advocate capacity between the client, persons or agencies involved;
• Make referrals and other arrangements as assigned;
• Secure the cooperation of relatives in treatment programs;
• Participate in training programs conducted for the benefit of the community;
• Act as a consultant for other community agencies;
• Prepare and present cases for review by other staff;
• Prepare and maintain complex treatment and progress reports on assigned cases;
• Participate in matters relating to diagnosis, treatment, discharge and follow-up planning; and
• Work collaboratively with a wide range of disciplines in treatment planning.
• Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education/Experience)

KNOWLEDGE

• Principles, techniques and trends in counseling, psychotherapy, clinical case management, and various treatment modalities;
• Biological, behavioral and environmental aspects of emotional disturbances, mental disability, and substance abuse;
• Culturally proficient practices with diverse case load;
• Scope and activities of the public and private health and welfare agencies and other available resources; and
• Principles and techniques of mental health education, prevention, and crisis intervention within the community.

SKILLS/ABILITIES

• Perform psychiatric social work and psychotherapy of a complex nature with clients and groups;
• Prepare clear, concise case work records and make recommendations on the basis of such information; organize and manage a caseload; and work with a bureaucratic system;
• Retain personal objectivity while dealing with the problems of others;
• Perform the therapist's role in a manner consistent with professional standards and ethics;
• Determine functional impairments of clients and prioritize their needs;
• Decide appropriate treatment focus and methods without clinical supervision;
• Work with a team to integrate various clinical approaches into a treatment program; and
• Anticipate a potential crisis, manage and be able to apply appropriate clinical intervention when necessary.

We recognize your time is valuable, please only apply if you meet the following required qualifications.
MENTAL HEALTH CLINICIAN TRAINEE

• The Mental Health Clinician position can be made at the Trainee level. For this recruitment, appointees will be selected at the Trainee level consistent with the County's 'Trainee' provision. This means their appointment will be 15% below the salary assigned to the Mental Health Clinician I.
  
• The person applying for the 'Trainee position' is not required to meet the minimum qualifications but must be within two (2) years of acquiring the education and experience required for the Mental Health Clinician I.
• Appointments under the 'Trainee' provision will be up to 12 months, or 24 months in cases where minimum qualifications are involved. For successful performance and meeting the minimum qualifications, the Trainee will be considered for regular appointment.
  

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE

MENTAL HEALTH CLINICIAN I
PATTERN I

• Graduation from an accredited two (2) year Graduate School of Social Work with the receipt of a Master's Degree of Social Work which can lead to licensure as a Clinical Social Worker.

PATTERN II

• Graduation from an accredited graduate program with receipt of a Master's Degree which can lead to a License as a Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) or a Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT); AND
• Meet qualifications to participate in a Short-Doyle program; AND
• Eligible to be licensed as either a Licensed Clinical Social Worker or a Marriage and Family Therapist in the State of California.

The Mental Health Clinician I classification is a Veterans' Preference Program eligible job classification. For more information, please click here (Download PDF reader).

MENTAL HEALTH CLINICIAN II
PATTERN I

• Graduation from an accredited two (2) year Graduate School of Social Work with receipt of a Master's Degree and acquisition of the State recognized license.

PATTERN II

• Graduation from an accredited graduate program with receipt of a Master's Degree and acquisition of a LCSW or MFT License which meets qualifications to participate in a Short-Doyle program.

PATTERN III

• Doctoral Degree in Clinical Psychology may be substituted for the above educational requirement; AND
• Two (2) years of experience in a Mental Health setting under clinical supervision as required to qualify for the State recognized license.

LICENSE

• Licensed as either a Licensed Clinical Social Worker or Marriage and Family Therapist in the State of California; OR
• A license as a Psychologist in the State of California may be substituted for the above licensure requirement.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATION
In addition to the qualifications referenced above, applicant screening will focus on the following desirable qualifications. Please list any of these qualifications you may have within the "Duties" section of the online application.

• Current Contracted Employee with Stanislaus County Behavioral Health and Recovery Services.

Application and Selection Procedures

APPLICATION PROCEDURES/FINAL FILING DATE

Applications cannot be submitted after 40 applications have been received, or February 21st, 2025, at 5:00 PM . Make your online application as complete as possible so a full and realistic appraisal may be made of your qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed application.

Attaching your resume and cover letter are an optional feature for those who wish to do so in addition to completing the required application. Information on your resume and cover letter will not substitute for the education, work experience and required fields on the County application. The online County application is the primary tool used to evaluate your job qualifications.

EXAMINATION PROCESS

Most County recruitments consists of the steps detailed below and are governed by Merit Principles. The examination process ensures that all applicants are given the same opportunity to gain employment within Stanislaus County.

• Application Review and Screening. Applications are carefully screened based on information provided. Those who submit incomplete applications that lack relevant qualifications or do not submit all required documents will not be invited to move on.
• Written Examination. Applicants will be invited to participate in a written exam that tests knowledge for the position.
• Oral Examination. Applicants are invited to a panel interview in which they will be evaluated by County subject matter experts.
• Eligible Lists. Candidates who pass the examination will be placed on an eligible list for that classification. Eligible lists are effective for six months, but may be extended up to eighteen months.

TENTATIVE RECRUITMENT SCHEDULE
Apply By: Oral Examination: February 27, 2025 Week of Marth 5th
The eligible list generated from this recruitment will be used to fill future full-time, part-time, extra help and on-call vacancies for the Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Department.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Final appointment will be conditional upon successfully passing a County paid pre-employment medical screening (if applicable for position) and a job-related background investigation.

Some positions may require possession or the ability to obtain, and maintenance of a valid California Driver’s license or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job related essential functions.

Stanislaus County supports the good health of its workforce. More information is available at http://myclubwellness.org

Cell phones are typically incompatible with the online application format or browser. We recommend using a desktop or laptop computer. If you are still having technical difficulties, please call NEOGOV at 1-855-524-5627.

Benefits associated with this position can be found at Benefits Summary .

Closing Date/Time: 2/27/2025 5:00 PM Pacific

• 

• Stanislaus County

• (209) 525-6341

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