Shelter Clinician
PINE STREET INN INC·Boston, Massachusetts
PINE STREET INN INC·Boston, Massachusetts
The Shelter Clinician provides direct outreach, clinical support, and engagement services to homeless individuals with serious mental illness or co-occurring disorders. They coordinate care with community partners and internal departments to facilitate housing pathways and integrated psychiatric treatment.
Pays $72,000 - $80,000.00 annually DOE, (Salary ranges provided are based on relevant experience and skill set) LOCATIONS: Shattuck Shelter and Yawkey House
The Shelter Clinician is a non-essential position in the event of an emergency and will work 100% site based
The Shelter Clinician will work in collaboration with shelter-based team members and community partners on the coordination of services for homeless individuals who have serious mental illness and/or co-occurring disorders.
The Shelter Clinician is responsible for providing direct outreach and engagement services to the guests at Pine Street Inn (PSI) within a framework of trauma-informed care, harm reduction approach and housing first model. The Shelter Clinician will provide comprehensive clinical support to shelter guests while honoring their self-determination along every step of the housing pathway. The Shelter Clinician will work to build rapport with guests and establish connections within the organization and community to support integrated care. The Shelter Clinician will address guests’ immediate needs; reduce service access disparities; connect guests with appropriate psychiatric, medical and substance abuse treatment services; and assist guests on a path toward safe housing in collaboration with the Housing Placement department.
The Shelter Clinician will work with the guests’ providers as indicated in the Individual Action Plan (IAP). When the guest is engaged, the clinician will facilitate a Comprehensive Assessment, which aligns with the IAP developed in partnership with the guest and the Individual Service Plan (ISP) completed by case management.
The Shelter Clinician will work in collaboration with the guests’ psychiatrist and community-based resources to support the guests IAP. Outreach and engagement is a significant function of the role as accessibility, consistency, and collaboration are basic principles of care in order to engage guests in services. For guests who are transient in that they move from shelter to shelter or from shelter to street and back, the clinician will work with the PSI Outreach Program to ensure guest safety and continuity of care. Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program (BHCHP), which is co-located at each PSI shelter and participates in our street Outreach Program, is a full collaborator embedded in our service community and will be a partner in supporting the guests’ medical needs.
The Shelter Clinician will facilitate individual and group interventions based on evidence-based practices, which include but are not limited to: Motivational Interviewing, Trauma-Informed Care, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Harm-Reduction and Person-Centered Approach.
The Shelter Clinician will work in collaboration with other departments across the shelter system who support guests who are eligible for Managed Assertive Treatment Coordination for the Homeless program (MATCH) to ensure coordination of care as well as avoid duplication of services. The Shelter Clinician will work collaboratively and directly with DMH, HOT, BEST, and Housing Placement (HP) to bring together the needed resources in the most effective way, building on guests’ strengths while utilizing the least restrictive environments and methods.
The Shelter Clinician will complete required documentation, meeting the standards set forth in the organization’s goals for quality data and compliance with DMH and PSI regulations. The Shelter Clinician will share a 24/7 on-call rotation with the other PSI clinicians and the Associate Director of Shelter Clinical Services.
Recognize the impact of violence and victimization on development and coping strategies Identify recovery from trauma as goal Employ an empowerment model Maximize guest choices and control over her/his recovery based in a relational collaboration Create an atmosphere that is respectful of the guests’ need for safety, respect, and acceptance Emphasize the guests’ strengths, highlighting adaptations over symptoms and resilience over pathology Minimize the possibilities of re-traumatization Strive to be culturally competent and to understand each person in the context of their life experiences and cultural background Solicit guest input and involve guests in designing and evaluating services
Qualifications: Education/Training:
Minimum of three (3) years’ experience and proficiency working with individuals with mental illness to include comprehensive assessment, action planning and discharge planning Minimum of three (3) years’ experience and proficiency in working with individuals with co-occurring disorders Minimum of three (3) years’ experience and proficiency working with individuals who are homeless, residing in shelters and/or on the streets Experience in community-based outreach and engagement Knowledge of mental illness, trauma, addictions, co-occurring disorders, and homelessness Experience with homeless services and housing resources in the Boston area Experience with teamwork within organizational and community systems Experience in developing individual care plans/treatment plans Experience in crisis prevention, intervention and management
Knowledge of individual and group treatment
PREFERRED: Knowledge and practice of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace Experience with change management Experience working with migrant and underserved populations
Market context
In Massachusetts, behavioral health employers often look for licensed or license-eligible clinicians with experience supporting at-risk youth and families, so demand tends to stay steady for candidates who can work across settings and age groups. These roles can be competitive because employers usually want a master’s degree, a clear licensure path, and practical experience; review the summarized requirements and benefits here, which are AI-summarized from the original job description to save research time, then confirm your licensure status and tailor your application to youth and family work.
