Peer Support Specialist (Consumer) CalAIM at County of Riverside in Riverside, California

Job Description:

ABOUT THE POSITION
The Riverside University Health System's Behavioral Health Department is seeking multiple Certified Peer Support Specialists. This posting will be used to fill multiple vacancies for Consumer openings in Riverside.

Consumer candidates must have personal recovery experience from mental health or substance abuse, for at least 1 year. Competitive candidates will possess current or previous experience as a consumer, family advocate or parent partner of mental health or substance recovery services.

This recruitment is for a Justice Involved ECM team. Justice Involved ECM teams will provide services both in-person inside Riverside County jails and juvenile halls and with justice-involved consumers after their release from these institution. Positions may require a law enforcement background investigation which requires completion of an extensive questionnaire, meeting with a background investigator, and submitting several references.

What is Cal AIM?
California Advancing and Innovating Medical CalAIM is a state funding initiative. This initiative aims to help advance and transform Medi-cal to improve services that will provide well-rounded care beyond the doctor's office and hospital to address the individual's physical and mental health needs. CalAIM encompasses services and programs such as Enhance Care Management, Community Support, Justice Involved initiative, and Population Health Management, among many others. These programs primarily focus on improving patients' access to health care and better health outcomes.

What is ECM?

Enhanced Care Management (ECM) is an essential part of CalAIM. ECM provides care management for the most complex patient populations, such as the homeless population, adults who are high utilizers, children and youth, adults with serious mental illness, individuals with long-term care services, justice-involved populations, birth equity, and intellectual developmental disabilities. This program provides comprehensive care management and coordinates the individual's whole health needs.


In order to be considered, candidates must be able to share personal experiences with others.
HOW IT WORKS
- Applicants will answer questions about personal experience, work experience, and qualifications.
- The most competitive applicants (based on specialized skills) will be referred
for interviews.
- Applicants will receive email notification once their application is no longer being
considered due to Candidate Pool expiration.

Valid California Driver's License and CALMHSA MEDI-CAL PEER SUPPORT SPECIALIST CERTIFICATION may be required at various locations.

EXAMPLES OF ESSENTIAL DUTIES
• Provide meaningful self-disclosure of personal lived experience of behavioral health-related or substance abuse-related recovery and resiliency to the people served in the system of care (required by State Certification).

• Inform, train, support, and empower consumers, families and caregivers who directly or indirectly receive behavioral health services.

• Communicate, represent and promote the consumer, families and caregivers' perspective within the behavioral health system.

• Facilitate self-help groups for clients, youth, family members, and caregivers.

• Attend and participate in special events, conferences, workshops, and trainings within the behavioral health system and in the community.

• Develop activities, programs and resources which support consumers, families and caregivers in achieving their goals.

• Supports the appropriate recognition, acceptance and understanding of social and cultural factors in the provision of behavioral health services.

• Develop effective working relationships with agencies and organizations to advocate for consumer, family and caregiver empowerment.

• Help prepare and support clients, families and caregivers at consumer progress consultation meetings and at a variety of formal and informal hearings.

• Help consumers and those who support them to articulate their needs.

• Focus on and is sensitive to consumer, family and caregiver satisfaction with the services received and general satisfaction with behavioral health services.

• Assist and promote consumers and those who support them in support networks and activities.

• Document all activities as required, following appropriate Medi-Cal billing practices.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Education: Possession of a high school diploma, G.E.D. equivalency or high school proficiency certificate is required.

Experience: Depending on the assignment, current or previous recovery experience as a consumer of behavioral health and/or substance abuse services or as a family member/caregiver of a former or current behavioral health and/or substance abuse consumer.

AND

California State Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Certification.

Knowledge of: The needs and difficulties faced by ethnically diverse consumers, families and caregivers of behavioral health and/or substance abuse consumers; the public and/or private agency services available for families, children and adults with serious behavioral health needs, such as schools, social services and other systems; the self-help and consumer oriented treatment models; and methods to effectively communicate with consumers, families and caregivers, the community and the behavioral health treatment team.

Ability to: Understand the principles of the behavioral health system and effectively work within the system; effectively represent and advocate for the consumer perspective within the community and behavioral health system; understand and articulate the cultural and social factors affecting behavior patterns; effectively communicate the workings of the behavioral health system to service consumers, parents, family members and caregivers; establish and maintain strong working relationships with a wide range of community agencies and organizations; obtain and record accurate information for case documentation and other reports.

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
Veterans' Preference:
The County has a Veterans Preference Policy. Upload a copy of your (or your spouse's) Member-4 Form DD-214 (or NGB-22) indicating dates of service, and a copy of your spouse's letter of disability (if applicable) with your application. For privacy reasons, it is recommended that you remove your social security information from the document(s). A Human Resources Representative will review the materials and determine if you qualify for veterans' preference. See the policy here: here (Download PDF reader) ( Download PDF reader ).

Reasonable Accommodations:
The County of Riverside is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to applicants as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). If you are a qualified individual and need a reasonable accommodation to take this exam, contact the recruiter before taking the exam. For additional information and the accommodation form, visit the Disability Access Office web page at: http://dao.rc-hr.com

Pre-Employment:
All employment offers are contingent upon successful completion of both a pre-employment physical exam, including a drug/alcohol test, and a criminal background investigation, which involves fingerprinting. (A felony or misdemeanor conviction may disqualify the applicant from County employment).

Employment Documents:
Upload a copy of any license(s), official/unofficial transcript(s), degrees, and/or related employment documents to your NeoGov account. If your education was completed outside of the United States, you will need to provide a copy of your Foreign Education Equivalency evaluation from a member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services or( NACES )Association of International Credential Evaluators, Inc.( AICE ).

What's Next?
This recruitment is open to all applicants. Applicants who are current County of Riverside employees and/or current employees of the County of Riverside's RUHS may be considered before other applicants depending on the volume of applications received.
Qualified applicants may be considered for future vacancies throughout the County.

Application Period:
BASED ON THE NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS RECEIVED, THIS POSTING MAY CLOSE WITHOUT NOTICE.
Applications received prior to the closing date will be considered based on the information submitted. Changes or alterations cannot be accepted. All applicants must submit a complete application by the closing date of this recruitment. No late applications will be permitted. Include relevant work experience details on resume and/or application. Applicants who fail to provide information demonstrating they possess the position requirements may not be considered further in the application process. A description of job duties directly copied from the job classification or job posting will not be considered.

For questions regarding this recruitment contact the recruiter, Nicole Prado: nprado@rivco.org .

GENERAL APPLICATION INFORMATION:

Please read and follow any special application instructions on this posting. Click the 'Apply' link located on this page to submit your application. For instructions on the application process, examinations, Veteran's preference, pre-employment accommodation or other employment questions, please refer to our web site, www.rc-hr.com . A pre-employment physical examination and background check may be required.

MEDICAL/DENTAL/VISION INSURANCE: A choice of different medical, dental and visions plan are available to elect. The County provides a Flexible Benefit Credit contribution as governed by the applicable LIUNA Memorandum of Understanding to contribute towards the cost of these plans.

Note: Employees on assignment through the Temporary Assignment Program (TAP) receive different benefits. See the list here .
MISCELLANEOUS RETIREMENT: County of Riverside has three retirement Tiers through the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS).

• 
  Tier I (Classic Member - Formula 3% @ 60): Applicable to current and former County of Riverside local miscellaneous employees hired prior to 08/24/2012 and did not withdraw CalPERS contributions. The employee contribution is eight (8%) percent.


• 
  Tier II (Classic Member - Formula 2% @ 60): Applicable to local miscellaneous employees 1) hired after 08/23/2012 through 12/31/2012; 2) Previously employed with another CalPERS contracting public agency or a reciprocal retirement system, with a break in service of less than six months between the separation date with the previous employer and the appointment date with the County of Riverside. The employee contribution is seven (7%) percent.


• 
  Tier III (PEPRA New Member - Formula 2% @ 62): Applicable to CalPERS local miscellaneous new members hired on or after the implementation of the Public Employees' Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA) which took effect January 1, 2013. As of July 1, 2020, the employee contribution is 7.25% and subject to change annually.
  

A new member is defined as any of the following:

A new hire who enters CalPERS membership for the first time on or after January 1, 2013, and who has no prior membership in any California Public Retirement System.

A new hire who enters CalPERS membership for the first time on or after January 1, 2013, and who was a member with another California Public Retirement System prior to that date, but who is not subject to reciprocity upon joining CalPERS.

A member who first established CalPERS membership prior to January 1, 2013, and who is rehired by a different CalPERS agency after a break in service of greater than six (6) months.

CalPERS refers to all members that do not fit within the definition of a new member as "classic members".

Contribution rates are subject to change based on the County of Riverside annual actuarial valuation.

Note:

This summary is for general information purposes only. Additional questions regarding retirement formulas can be sent to retirement@rivco.org or by calling the Benefits Information Line at (951) 955-4981,
Option 2.

If you have prior service credit with another CalPERS agency or within agencies, please contact CalPERS at (888) 225-7377 to determine which retirement tier would be applicable to you. CalPERS is governed by the Public Employees' Retirement Law. The Retirement Law is complex and subject to change. If there's any conflict between this summary and the law, the law will prevail over this summary.
DEFERRED COMPENSATION: Voluntary employee contribution with a choice between two 457 deferred compensation plan options.

VACATION ACCRUAL (Bi-Weekly Accrual):

0< 3 year = 80 Hours (10 Days)
4< 9 years = 120 Hours (15 Days)
10 or more years = 160 Hours (20 Days)

Maximum Vacation leave accumulation is 480 hours.

SICK LEAVE: Four (4) hours Sick Leave accrual per pay period with unlimited accrual.

HOLIDAYS: Normally 12 paid holidays per year

BEREAVEMENT LEAVE: Allowed 5 days (3 days are County paid; 2 additional days can be taken from accrued Sick Leave balance)

BASIC LIFE INSURANCE: Equal to one times annual base salary not to exceed $50,000 of term life coverage. Premiums are paid by the County. Additional Supplemental Life plan is available for employee purchase.

DISABILITY: Short-term Disability benefit pays up to a maximum of $461.54 weekly, payable up to a maximum of 52 weeks.

POST RETIREMENT MEDICAL CONTRIBUTION: A monthly contribution is made by the County towards retiree health insurance offered through the County as governed by the applicable Memorandum of Understanding.

OTHER: There may be other benefit provisions as specified in the applicable Memorandum of Understanding. Please contact the recruiter listed on the job posting directly for more information.

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