LOCATION: Brooklyn, NY
REPORTS TO: Care Management
DEPARTMENT: Integrated Health - Care Management
SCHEDULE: Full Time / Hybrid
$1,000 Hiring Incentive
Agency Background
MercyFirst is a not-for-profit human and social service agency that has been serving children and families in need since we were founded by the Sisters of Mercy/Hermanas de las Misericordia in 1894. Today our agency continues to address the emotional and physical needs of children and families in Brooklyn, Queens and across Long Island through innovative treatments and life-changing interventions. We provide community-based prevention and family foster care services, group homes in the community for struggling children and families within the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, and short-term residential services for unaccompanied migrant children. Each year, Mercy First serves more than 3,000 children, teenagers and families overcome enormous obstacles, re-imagine their futures and develop their full potential.
Program Background
Mercy First is a proud member of the Collaborative for Children and Families Health Home serving youths 0 to 20 years of age. In Mercy First Health Home operations and in the Care Management role specifically, we are expected to honor the following core values which guide our activities and programs:
- Services must be family-driven and youth-guided - based upon the strengths and needs of the child, youth and family.
- Services must be individualized to meet each member’s established goals, outcomes and needs.
- Supports offered to families and children must be community based, with the focus of services as well as system management resting within a supportive, adaptive infrastructure at the community level.
- To the fullest extent possible, service models should follow evidence-based practices of care and treatment, and should be trauma-informed
Within the Health Home structure, the Care Manager plays a critical role in achieving the overall goals for coordination, integration and partnership in the delivery of care to children and families with complex needs. The Care Manager develops and implements a patient-centered, comprehensive Plan of Care for the member, in partnership with his/her caregivers and providers. The Care Manager also is a central point of contact for the family and child, to ensure that their needs are being met, their voices are heard, and their needs and preferences are integrated into plans of care. Likewise, the Care Manager is the key link among all service providers for each family, working to ensure that all providers are operating with complete, current and consistent information, and that they are aligned in the goals they each are pursuing with the family and child.
Position Summary
The Care Manager is ultimately responsible for the overall provision and coordination of services to assigned caseload. The Care Manager guides program enrollees and their caretakers (legal guardians) through the health care system by assisting with access issues, developing relationships with service providers, and tracking interventions and outcomes.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelors in social work or Associates in related field
- 2 years of related work experience in serving children and families in child welfare, developmental disabilities, mental health, healthcare and/or other systems as well as those receiving preventive services.
- Experience providing service coordination and information, linkages, and referrals for community-based services.
- Excellent communication skills (verbal and written)
- Proficiency in Microsoft Word and Outlook
- Ability to engage with clients
- Understanding and willingness to commit to the agency’s Mission, core values, Sanctuary Commitments and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB).
Responsibilities
- Obtains required Care Management enrollment consents from the individual or legal guardian
- Completes initial and ongoing needs assessments (Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths; CANS) to determine the individual’s most appropriate level of care management.
- Responsible for the overall management of the patient’s Individualized Plan of Care.
- Develop a patient centered Individual Plan of Care and complete assessments.
- Support adherence to treatment recommendations
- Monitor and evaluate a patient’s needs, including prevention, wellness, medical, mental health, care transitions, and social and community services where appropriate.
- Meets client contact requirements (keeping in mind that caseloads may be “blended”):
- Care Managers serving children will be required to have in-person visits with members on a consistent schedule as per the mandates of their acuity level (high, medium, or low).
- Meets Care Management documentation requirements in a timely and accurate manner by effectively utilizing designated Care Management Portal (Medicaid Analytics Performance Portal; MAPP) and Electronic Health Records as needed.
- Functions as an advocate for clients within the agency and with external service providers
- Promotes wellness and prevention by linking enrollees with resources and services based on their individual needs and preferences
- Educate the child/caregiver on care of chronic conditions, immunization, screening and other preventive interventions.
- Help clients obtain and maintain public benefits necessary to gain health care services, including Medicaid and cash assistance eligibility, Social Security, SNAP, housing, legal services, employment and training supports, and others.
- Effectively communicates and shares information with the individual and their families and other caregivers with appropriate consideration for language, literacy and cultural preferences.
- Conducts care planning meetings/conferences and serves as an interdisciplinary team member to effectively provide/coordinate comprehensive and holistic care
- Identifies available community-based resources and actively manages appropriate referrals, access, engagement, follow-up and coordination of services
- In the event of hospital admissions, actively engages in the discharge planning process ensuring that the patient has all recommended post discharge services in place prior to discharge
- Attends and participates in ongoing staff development trainings to enhance skills needed to effectively meet the demands of the Care Manager position
- Ensure that child has periodic evaluations and follow up treatment for dental, vision and hearing care, following Medicaid EPSDT guidelines
- All other duties, as needed, by CCFHH
Benefits/Perks
- A comprehensive health insurance package including medical, dental and vision plans for you and your family
- 403B retirement benefits
- Employer-paid life insurance and long-term disability insurance
- Generous paid time off (vacation, personal, sick, 12 paid holidays)
- Free employee assistance program through National EAP
- Insurance discounts for our staff and their families
- Trainings to support professional and personal development
- Employee wellness program
- Employee recognition activities
Salary Range
$50,000 per year
Hiring Incentive - $1,000 after 500 worked hours
MercyFirst is an inclusive, anti-racist, multicultural organization and an Equal Opportunity Employer who welcomes prospective employees from diverse backgrounds for all levels at the agency. We strive for a workforce that is reflective of the communities we serve, and do not discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, national origin, alienage or citizenship status, religion or creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, disability, age (18 and over), military status, prior record of arrest or conviction, marital status, partnership status, care giver status, pregnancy, genetic information or predisposition or genetic characteristic, unemployment status, status as a victim or witness of domestic violence, sex offenses or stalking, consumer credit history, or any other status protected by federal, state, and/or city law. This includes, but is not limited to, employment actions against and treatment of employees and applicants for employment.
