Family Advocacy Program (FAP) Clinical Counselor for Children

Summary

Serve as a Clinical Counselor within Commander, Navy Installations Command (CNIC), Fleet and Family Readiness Department (N9), Family Readiness Division (N91), Fleet and Family Support Program (FFSP). The primary purpose of this position is to provide short-term, non-medical clinical counseling for separation, grief, deployment, relocation, relationship issues, parent-child interactions, interpersonal issues and other challenges.

Applications reviewed every two weeks.

• Provide direct non-medical, short term solution focused counseling services to eligible children, parents, families and groups using psychotherapeutic services, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness-based therapies, acceptance and commitment therapy, solution-focused brief therapy, family systems therapy, expressive therapies, etc.
• Assess client's needs and the nature and scope of their problem(s) and behavior, explore basic personality structure in relation to behavior patterns, mechanisms and symptoms, and analyze information collected to develop a diagnostic impression and treatment plan, and/or provide treatment referrals, as appropriate, to other clinical agencies.
• Conduct clinical and psychosocial assessments of children in families referred to the FAP for child abuse/neglect and/ or domestic abuse allegations; which may include assessing children who are alleged victims of child abuse/neglect, other children in the home, and children who have witnessed domestic abuse.
• Conduct comprehensive and complex clinical assessments to identify crisis situations, e.g., suicide or homicide risk, danger of physical or sexual abuse to family members, and increased risk of further family violence.
• Provide crisis intervention and safety planning, as required
• Recognize symptoms in clients with diagnosable disorders falling outside of the authorized scope of practice such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, substance use disorders, major depression or other symptoms requiring specialized medical/psychiatric intervention and/or longer-term treatment.
• Assist individuals and families with finding satisfactory ways of coping with commonly occurring life stresses (e.g. career change, work-related stress), family dynamics (e.g. divorce, communication problems), parenting, crisis response (e.g. physical, sexual or emotional abuse), or other stressors. Identify crisis situations (e.g., suicide or homicide risk, danger of physical or sexual abuse to family members, increased risk of interfamilial or extra familial violence) when conducting clinical assessments, and provide immediate crisis intervention, conduct risk assessment, and prepare and/or coordinate safety planning IAW best practices in the mental health community.
• Educate military, civilians and families on suicide intervention and at-risk behavior.
• Comply with reporting protocols involving high-risk case when reporting risk of suicide, homicide, domestic abuse or child abuse, and high-visibility cases.
• Inform military and civilian agencies on scope of practice, how to engage in services, available counseling services (i.e., couples, individual, and children/family), and clinical issues and treatment related to children and adolescence; and train on clinical areas of interest (i.e., sleep hygiene, healthy communication, etc.) upon request and if availability allows. Consult and coordinate with other military and civilian service agencies on specific client cases (i.e., military treatment facility behavioral health, civilian military health providers, CPS, etc.),
  
  on an ad-hoc basis.
• Collaborate with civilian community service boards and organizations regarding issues unique to military children.
• Coordinate and/or provide in-service training on child abuse, neglect, and trauma to other FFSC staff.
• Serve as designated case manager and primary FAP point of contact for PSB-CY cases, ensuring all actions comply with Department of Defense (DoD) and Navy instructions and civilian reporting requirements. Receive initial reports of problematic sexual behaviors in children and youth (PSB-CY) from military and civilian representatives and take all steps required under the FAP PSB-CY.
• Complete all required assessments and documentation (clinical notes, collateral contacts, treatment plans, and required statistical data) in the DoD Military Community and Family Policy PSB-CY Case Management System, as required.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Conditions of employment

• Must provide proof of U.S. Citizenship or U.S. National.
• A valid State driver's license is required to operate motor vehicles.
• Must successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. Any discrepancies must be resolved as a condition of employment.
• A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if the selectee fails to meet the pre-employment requirements, including failure to report to any scheduled appointments.
• Must be current in continuing education credits/units.
• May be required to serve in an “on…