Adult & Family Services Caseworker

Job Title:

Adult & Family Services Caseworker Salary range: $45,760/YR, DOE

Location:

1001 S. Main Street. Lamar, CO. 81052 Department:
Human Services

Hours:

Full-Time, Non-Exempt

Job Description

SUMMARY:

Under general supervision of the Adult & Family Services Manager or designee, assesses the safety and well-being of at-risk and vulnerable children and adults for Prowers County Department of Human Services; provides case management services, and assists clients in accessing community resources. Duties may vary according to specific job assignment.

Essential fuctions, as defined under the Americans with Disabilities Act, may include any of the following representative duties, knowledge, and skills. This is not a comprehensive listing of all functions and duties performed by incumbents of this class; employees may be assigned duties which are not listed below; reasonable accommodations will be made as required. This job described does not constitute an employee agreement and is subject to change at any time by the employer.

Essential duties and responsibilities may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Assesses vulnerable families, children, and adults referred to Prowers County Department of Human Services using a strength-based assessment models; evaluates clients' needs, resources, barriers, and finances; performs intake assessment and develops plans to achieve clients' safety and well-being.
• Responds within the state mandated time frames to referrals that meet criteria for assessment response.
• Assists clients to develop treatment and other support plans and goals, using knowledge of human/social services theories, practices, state laws, assistance programs, and community services.
• Determines the urgency and severity of risk and makes recommendations regarding appropriate actions to be taken.
• Provides services to protect children, vulnerable youths, and vulnerable adults from abuse, neglect, and exploitation; manages crises and emergencies.
• Determines clients' eligibility for community services, searches for community partners and service providers to assist clients, and refers clients to community agencies based on needs and problems identified in the assessment; coordinated multiple services as required.
• Assists cleints in accessing private and public resources and serives; follows up on referrals made and actions to be taken by the client; maintains thorough case documentation for each client.
• Provides life skills to clients; assists in the placement of children into out-of-home placements.
• Documents all case assessment activites, communications, and assessments in the state computer tracking system; performs duties in compliance with County, state, and federal time constraints and submits all necessary documentation for supervisory review.
• Updates and maintains a variety of files, records, and other documents; gathers, compiles, and synthesizes data for reporting purposes; develops summary records and prepares reports, including court reports; prepares case files and assessments for review.
• Coordinates resolution of clients' needs and technical issues with community partners, services providers, legal system representatives, and law enforcement agencies.
• Support the relatioship between Prowers County government and the general public by demonstrating courteous and cooperative behavior when interacting with citizens, visitors, and performs other duties as required or assigned.
• Maintains regular and reliable attendance.
• Makes appropriate inter-departmental client referrals for services (e.g. economic assistance, child support).
• Enter Child Welfare and Adult Protection referrals into the appropriate data management systems and cross report to other mandatory reporters as directed by law and agency policy .
• Attends scheduled meetings, trainings, and community events.
• Responds to email and phone messages in a timely manner.
• Exercises prudent judgement in decisions made with due regard to the impact on liability to Prowers County and the possible impact to department staff and clients.
• Use department time keeping systems to accurately track work time in assigned program areas.
• Provide honest and reliable testimony in court cases as needed.
• Serve in an on-call capacity when assigned.

• All responsibilities may not be performed by all incumbents. Provides home or office based counseling to clients on topics such as safety, appropriate discipline, decision making, de-escalation of agitated persons, and improving communications amoung family members; assists clients in developing a plan to practice skills between sessions.
• Develops initial family assessments and evaluations for Supervisory review using state-mandated instruments to determine the characters and suitability of the applicant(s), appropriateness of the home, and child care practices. Reviews all home aassessments with the Home Study Review Team prior to certification of a family foster home.
• Completes…