Psychosocial Support Worker

Come Build Hope and Homes with Us
Psychosocial Support Worker - Full Time
- 18-month contract
St. Thomas, ON (The Station
- Queen Street)
**Salary**: $45,900-$54,600
**Position Description**: As the Psychosocial Support Worker, you will come alongside tenants who have experience with mental health and/or substance use to optimize housing stability. Offering support services that help individuals to flourish within their community. Using a service plan, you will assist tenants to learn skill sets needed for independent living within community. Engage in a collaborative assessment process of tenant’s progress, helping them achieve their social inclusion and community development goals, focusing on purpose-filled planning and intervene in crisis situations. As part of an interdisciplinary team, you will also enhance community engagement, tenant-led initiatives, and develop a safe environment for our tenants to thrive. This position will require a high level of resilience and willingness to work in close proximity to challenging situations.
**Hours of Work**: 40 hours per week. As the program operates 7 days a week, being on-call for 1 week every 4-6 weeks is required to support the tenants and each other on the team. The on-call rotation consists of carrying a work cell phone 24/7 for that one week, responding to urgent matters.
**WHAT YOU WILL BE DOING**:
Support, Direction and Commitment to Interdisciplinary Team
- Work as part of an interdisciplinary team to provide direct and indirect support to residents, encouraging housing stability. These supports will include: medication administration, apartment checks, implementation of pest management protocols, community events, meal program, and other supports as necessary.
- Attend trainings on recovery; psychiatric rehabilitation, trauma, supported employment practices, substance use and cultural competency. Keep apprised of new research and developments in these areas through journals, web sites and literature to transfer knowledge to the team and tenants in the most effective manner available.
- Assist tenants in gaining access to needed psychiatric, medical, social, residential, financial, and other services appropriate for the individual. Actively engage tenants in services including visits, appointments, programming, and activities within the community.
- Connect tenants to community resources and peer supports to promote community integration and inclusion. Provide education on available treatment or support models available in the community, completing referrals when needed and preparing individuals for such connections.
- Ensure all required documentation is completed in a timely, comprehensive, and legible manner and that health records are protected.
- Consult and collaborate with all team members on a regular basis. The goal of the Psychosocial Support Worker role is to holistically support a tenant within an interdisciplinary team. Therefore, team approaches should always be considered.
- Complete required assessment tools according to appropriate timelines.
- Coordinate, lead, and/or contribute to service planning for tenants.
- Take responsibility for a primary case load (either within a team-model or individual case-manager model) under the supervision of the Housing Support Team Lead and/or Program Supervisor
- Complete required documentation in a thorough and timely manner with a focus on maintaining and protecting tenant health records.
- Ensure effective integration of Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care residents within the greater supportive housing program.
- Liaise with Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care on resident wellness on routine basis.

**Psychosocial Support Duties**:

- Assist tenants in developing and practicing the skills defined in their service plans in consultation with tenant and interdisciplinary team. This may include accompanying tenants to appointments, leisure activities or other activities of interest including religious, educational, or vocational opportunities to provide support and encouragement.
- Providing support with identifying early warning signs of mental health decline, developing coping, crisis, and safety plans and developing and facilitating psychoeducational, self-help groups through a biopsychosocial and psychosocial rehabilitation lens: facilitating tenants’ learning of coping skills to help handle stressful situations / environments and developing resources that reduce future stressors.
- Championing the importance of skill development as part of an interdisciplinary team. This involves coming alongside the tenant in their goals; coaching independent living skills, coaching through appointment coordination, maximizing abilities to promote community independence, encourage tenants in maintaining good personal hygiene, self-confidence, and work with their social inclusion goals.
- Strive to help reduce bias and stigma, while fostering social inclusion within program communit