Social Worker IA&T - CPS Investigations

Child Protective Services Investigative, Assessment and Treatment Social Worker

The primary purpose of the Child Protective Services Intake / Investigations / Assessment Unit is to receive, investigate and assess referrals of child neglect, abuse and dependency including immediate responses to crisis for at risk children in complex cases. Services to families in Nash County will enhance the family's ability to function independently and will prevent child neglect or abuse from reoccurring.

Services for maltreated children are aimed at strengthening family life by supporting and improving parental/caretaker abilities, which will assure a safe nurturing home for children. Services are home-based and are preventive, rehabilitative and non-punitive with efforts directed toward identifying, providing or arranging services as needed. Social workers may provide group, family or individual treatment to clients of any age and any developmental, medical, mental, substance abuse, financial or family problem.

Child Protective Services is an advanced professional level of casework. Casework is accomplished through parent/caretaker cooperation and consent or if the child's safety is at eminent risk, through court petition as the agency's responsibility foremost to protect the child. The social worker will analyze situations and determine the course of action often under very stressful and at times dangerous situations.

The unit also provides public education regarding risk of maltreatment, incidents of maltreatment reporting methods and procedures and the availability of preventive, protective and case management services.

The primary purpose of the Child Protective Services Investigative, Assessment and Treatment social worker is to provide services to families and children in an effort to secure a more protective environment. Duties rotate among IA&T staff as follows:

1. Receive intake calls, interview reporter and complete the CPS Report form.

2. Investigate reports of neglect, abuse and dependency of children, and develop appropriate safety plans to ensure the safety of children.

3. Employee is required to testify in court and prepare court studies for cases petitioned to the court.

4. Employee will participate in the "on call" after-hours coverage for the agency.

Working hours generally rotate from 8:00 a.m.

- 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Employees are given the opportunity to manage their workday in order to be available to accommodate client's work and school schedules.

Thorough knowledge of social work principles, techniques, and practices and their application to complex casework and community problems in order to effectively work with the wide cross section of clients and their presenting problems including medical, mental and substance abuse issues.

Considerable knowledge of family and group dynamics and a range of intervention techniques.

Considerable knowledge of developmental stages and tasks, human behavior, and socioeconomic problems and their treatment as the worker is responsible for identifying children who are abused, neglected, or dependent, assessing the contributory factors and making recommendations for solutions to the identified problems.

Considerable knowledge of governmental and private organizations and other resources within the community.

Considerable knowledge of laws, regulations, and policies which govern Child Protective Services.

General knowledge of methods and principles of casework supervision and training.

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with clients, associates, administrative superiors, social medical, legal, civic and religious organizations.

Ability to train or orient lower-level employees, students, or interns.

Ability to express ideas clearly and concisely—orally and in writing.

Ability to plan and execute work effectively.

Ability to operate an automobile.

Ability to use a personal computer and access the State Network.

Ability to intervene in crisis situations and to effectively function under stress and to deal with conflict situations and hostile personalities.

Ability to function with a high level of autonomy.

Ability to function cooperatively with members of a team.

Ability to accept constructive criticism.

Ability to refrain from causing or contributing to disruptions or hostility in the workplace.

Ability to make thorough assessments through intense observation skills, interview and social work practice and be able to accurately communicate orally and in writing.

Nash County offers cafeteria-style benefits including:

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Life Insurance

Vision Insurance

Supplemental Health Benefits (Accident, Critical Illness, and Hospital Indemnity Insurances)

Disability Insurance (Long-Term and Short-Term Disability)

Retirement Membership in the North Carolina Local Government Employees Retirement System is a requirement for all regular full-time and regular part-time employees. Employees contribute 6% of their annual compensation before it is…