Outreach Specialist

Riverside County Street Outreach

Service Coordinator 1- Outreach

REPORTS TO: Program Manager/Director of Inland Empire Housing Services

HOURS: 40 CLASSIFICATION: Non-Exempt Day Shift M-F 8am- 5pm with possible on call coverage from 5pm-8pm

SUMMARY: The Service Coordinator I - Outreach is a member of the Homeless Coordination team. Primary tasks include street outreach and engagement, housing linkage and ongoing case management services with individuals experiencing homelessness.

DUTIES: The following reflects essential functions for this job but does not restrict other tasks, which may be assigned: Direct Service and Support

• Engages people without homes to initiate contact, develop rapport, and assess individuals for service needs.
• Evaluate immediate needs such as crisis intervention, medical attention, showers, clothing, food, emergency shelter, etc.
• Evaluate appropriate triage or linkage to housing, health, and financial resources to help resolve homelessness and refer to community partners.
• Engage assigned clients to achieve their goals and objectives and report to the team and clinically qualified staff regarding changes clients of level of functioning, support networks, adequacy of living arrangements, financial status, physical health, level of self-care.
• Work in collaboration with other local outreach teams to schedule collaborative outreach events to provide whole person care in the field.
• Provide transportation to support stabilization efforts.
• Maintain member files in compliance with funder requirements. Assist with the collection of data, and submission of quarterly/annual reports.
• Attend Step Up staff meetings and training courses as requested
• Coordinate with City Departments such as Library, Police, Fire, Public Defender, Parks, and Recreation to support, assist with homeless population education to staff and linkage to services.
• Support in the effort to achieve all contract assigned performance benchmarks. Documentation and Data Collection
• Complete the homeless survey tool, VI-SPDAT on all homeless individuals encountered to determine severity of need. Submit tool results to local CES for entry and housing match.
• Maintain member files in compliance with funder requirements.
• Assist with the collection of data, and submission of quarterly/annual reports.
• Enter all member demographics into welligent EHR.
• Enter all case management documentation and organizational documentation into County Clarity/HMIS system.
• Develop individual service plans and track progression of goals and each engagement with progress notes entered into Clarity/HMIS.

SKILLS:

• Knowledge of, or experience with mainstream benefits and services competencies such as Critical Time Intervention, Motivational Interviewing, Trauma Informed Care, Housing First, Harm Reduction, etc.
• Ability to work collaboratively with others and in a team. Initiative and solution focused practice.
• Uses good time management skills and resources to balance case load direct service and paperwork.
• Works within skills and scope of practice asking for support and training to improve abilities when needed.
• Ability to work as a team member on the streets, in homeless facilities or with other homeless community providers such as police, churches and hospital ER's.
• Ability to engage individuals on the streets in a meaningful manner which imbues trust enough to accept services offered.
• Understands and promotes safety first to self and team members.

QUALIFICATIONS: 1 year of related work experience working with homeless population, in a social service field, or volunteer position. Case management experience is essential, including the ability to chart patient progress to meet documentation requirements. Candidate must have own transportation and current California driver's license and insurance and will be required to drive to and from engagement points, events, etc. Position requires occasional transporting.

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION: Work with people experiencing homelessness whether on the streets, in shelters or other places of habitation or services, may present inherent challenges and difficulties such as: exposure to bed bugs or other infestations, unpleasant smells or odors, individuals who may have poor hygiene or unclean homes due to homelessness, mental health symptoms, or poverty. Additionally, in working with our members, employees may encounter instances of profanity, sexually explicit or derogatory language, or verbal or physical expressions of anger and trauma. Very rarely do these situations ever escalate to physical contact, and negative or derogatory communication patterns can often be negotiated successfully. All direct care staff are provided adequate training to develop skills to deescalate crisis situations that may arise and Step Up has established procedural safeguards for all employees to mitigate (but not eliminate) these inherent risks of employment.

Please Note: This position is part of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU721) Bargaining Unit.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; use hands and fingers; handle or feel; reach with hands and arms; talk; and hear. The employee is frequently required to walk, balance, stoop, kneel, and/or crouch. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 15 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus. Keyboard data entry required. Step Up utilizes the principles of trauma-informed care and mental health recovery. These principles inform our Core Values of Hope, Wellness, Voice and Choice, Respect, and Collaborative Relationships. As representatives of Step Up, employees agree to adhere to these values in their interactions with members, colleagues, supervisors, and associated community members.

STEP UP CORE VALUES

HOPE - We believe all people have the capacity for positive growth and change. We use hope to inspire and motivate ourselves, our members, our colleagues, and our community.

WELLNESS-We believe in promoting a culture that supports healthy and fulfilling lives. We use a supportive environment to foster well-being for ourselves, our members, our colleagues, and our community.

VOICE AND CHOICE - We believe in the right to choose and be heard. We use voice and choice to create meaningful outcomes and empowerment for ourselves, our members, our colleagues, and our community.

RESPECT- We believe in promoting interactions that are non-judgmental, transparent. We use respect to guide all of our words and actions with ourselves, our members, our colleagues, and our community.

COLLABORATIVE RELATIONSHIPS - We believe in forming partnerships to share resources, knowledge, and experiences. We use collaborative relationships to strengthen accomplishments for ourselves, our members, our colleagues, and our community.

Step Up is committed to providing quality services that adhere to the highest ethical standards and principles. All Step-Up employees agree to adhere to the ethical policies and codes of conduct, as outlined in the Employee Handbook and those specified for this grant.

I can perform the functions of this job as described with or without reasonable accommodation.

Employee Name (Print):______________________________________________

Employee Signature: ________________________________________________

Date:________________

Step Up provides equal employment opportunities without regard to age, ancestry, color, creed, mental or physical disability, marital status, medical condition, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other consideration made unlawful by federal, state, or local laws.

STEP UP IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER