Occupational Therapist - Culver City Outreach

Company Description

Background

Since 1976, St. Joseph Center has been meeting the needs of low-income and homeless individuals and families in Venice, Santa Monica, Mar Vista, and surrounding communities.  The Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community organization that assists people without regard for religious affiliation or lack thereof through comprehensive case management and integrated social service programs.  The Center enjoys broad-based community support as well as a sponsored relationship with its founders, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet.  St. Joseph Center serves approximately 6,000 individuals annually.

Brief Description of Principal Activities

Multifaceted intervention, prevention, and education services are carried out at four sites on the Westside of Los Angeles.  St. Joseph Center’s integrated programs provide clients with concentrated and coordinated access to services according to the nature of their needs.

Job Description

The Occupational Therapist works as a team member within a multi-disciplinary homeless street outreach team, in collaboration with social service professionals, ensuring the delivery of quality care in accordance to the rules and regulations established by Culver City Council of Homelessness for contracted services, as well as adhering to the mission of St. Joseph Center.  The Culver City Outreach Occupational Therapist will use the “whatever it takes” approach and strong clinical lens to help people experiencing homelessness get connected to resources as well as occupational supportive services, in order to obtain permanent housing.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

The Occupational Therapist’s key areas of responsibility include: 

Key Areas of Responsibility:

• Provide street based outreach, navigation, and mental health support to individuals experiencing homelessness.
• Meets the client’s goals and needs and provides quality care by assessing and interpreting evaluations and test results and determining occupational therapy treatment plans.
• Provide support and assistance to clients with accessing resources in the community.  Establish and maintain professional and positive relationships with staff, clients, and community providers.   
• Facilitates development and rehabilitation of clients with mental, emotional, and physical disabilities by planning and administering occupational therapy.
• Link clients to appropriate bridge/interim housing programs and assist them in completing required paperwork in order to enroll them in permanent housing programs.
• Helps clients develop or regain physical or mental functioning or adjust to disabilities.
• Implements a practice in functional, pre-vocational, vocational and homemaking skills and fosters activities of daily living.
• Promotes maximum independence by selecting and constructing therapies according to individual’s physical capacity, intelligence level, and interest.
• Prepares client for return to employment by consulting with employers; determining potential employee difficulties; retraining employees; and helping employers understand necessary physical and job accommodations.
• Evaluates results of occupational therapy by observing, noting, and evaluating client’s progress and recommending and implementing adjustments and modifications.
• Maintains professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops, reviewing professional publications; establishing personal networks, and participating in professional societies.
• Complies with federal, state, and local legal and certification requirements by studying existing and new legislation, anticipating future legislation, enforcing adherence to requirements, and advising management on needed actions.
• Participate in staff meetings, trainings, conferences, program evaluation and program development.

Essential Duties:

• Implement case management service plan goals, emphasizing coordinated strategies for addressing mental health/substance abuse issues, relapse prevention, medication management, and any other risk factors that could impede permanent housing and provide ongoing assessment of client progress in attaining goals.      
• Build trust and rapport with individuals experiencing homelessness. 
• Utilize a harm reduction model when working with clients with chemical dependency or abuse issues.
• Link clients to appropriate bridge/interim housing programs and assist them in completing required paperwork in order to enroll them in permanent housing-related programs.
• Keep highly organized files for each client and enter appropriate data into the region’s Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).
• Assist clients to enroll in mainstream benefits and obtain identific