Behavioural Health jobs

Purpose and Mission

The behavioral health specialist is a key member of the primary care treatment team. Her main roles are to identify, triage and manages patients with medical and/or behavioral problems. A behavioral health specialist also supports patients through skill training that may involve psychoeducation and patient education strategies, as well as creates behavioral change plans for individual patients and behavioral health protocols for larger populations.

Most behavioural health specialists have at least a bachelor’s degree, and many have a master’s degree or other graduate certifications. Note that many of these healthcare professionals come from a social work background.

Reports To

Given that behavioural health specialists typically work at hospitals, nursing homes or in-patient psychiatric facilities, they will report to a department head or service chief in most cases.

Supervisory Responsibilities

Although some behavioural health specialists have direct supervisory responsibilities, such as overseeing other members of the healthcare team or training new employees, most have relatively few supervisory duties.

Qualifications

Most employers require behavioural health specialists to have at least a bachelor’s degree in human services, social work, or psychology. A growing number of employers today prefer candidates with a graduate degree, in most cases a master’s in social work or psychology.

Responsibilities of a Behavioural Health Specialist

The primary responsibilities of a behavioural health specialist include:

• Assisting primary health care providers in diagnosing and addressing mental disorders and other psychosocial problems
• Assessing the clinical status of patients sent by primary care doctors through brief a series of brief interactions
• Working with the primary healthcare team to effectively treat and manage patients with a broad range of chronic emotional or psychosocial problems
• Consulting with the primary care provider to refer patients to mental health specialists as required
• Assisting in identifying at-risk patients and developing of plans to minimize any additional emotional or physical deterioration
• Working with patients to prevent relapses or other morbidity in chronic conditions
• Working with the primary care team to assess and revise patient care plans
• Teaching patients, families and staff regarding methods for care, prevention and treatment enhancement
• Monitoring the behavioral health program of a facility, and identifying problems related to patient services, as well as making recommendations
• Participating in meetings and quality improvement training
• Serving on various committees as required
• Participating in the evaluation of peers and other members of the support staff
• Generally supporting the mission of the facility by continually focusing on the strategic goals.