Mental Health Specialist
Human Services and Crisis Intervention (HSCI) Division
City of Culver City, California
Annual Salary: $91,560 - $111,758 DOE/DOQ
The City of Culver City is seeking a Mental Health Specialist to join its Human Services and Crisis Intervention (HSCI) Division within the Housing and Human Services Department. This role provides essential mental health services to those experiencing mental health emergencies, with essential job functions including mobile crisis intervention, patient advocacy, community resource referrals, and counseling. The ideal candidate has strong de-escalation and harm-reduction skills, along with the ability to directly work with diverse populations. They will be solutions-focused, often working in high-pressure situations that require quick thinking and clear communication. The City is looking for a candidate who is eager to learn and grow, while utilizing their street-based outreach, crisis intervention, and lived experiences to better the City’s response to mental health crises. If you are knowledgeable about trauma-informed care and wish to reduce harmful situations for our community’s most vulnerable populations, apply today!
THE JOB/THE IDEAL CANDIDATE
The Mental Health Specialist, reporting to the Mental Health Clinician and Division Manager, will work to implement treatment plans by leading activity groups, providing rehabilitation, and giving supportive counseling. In the event that the Mental Health Clinician is absent, they will provide direction to the Case Manager when out in the field. They will provide patient advocacy, determine patients’ needs, make full use of community resources, and help clients understand processes and programs available to them. The Mental Health Specialist will work closely with the Police and Fire and will also be an integral part of the City’s Mobile Crisis Unit. They will also regularly transport clients, requiring them to perform daily safety checks and the servicing of assigned vehicles.
This role requires street-based outreach experience, as this role will be a part of outreach teams working closely with the community. The ideal candidate will be comfortable working with those experiencing homelessness, mental health, and substance use challenges. They will be resourceful, passionate, and eager to connect with others. As this new Division begins to provide these exciting and innovative services to the community, this position will support the Division Manager in the development and implementation of policies and program management. This role requires a high level of patience, empathy, and understanding, along with a dedication to intense, yet highly rewarding work. The successful candidate will demonstrate their lived experiences, finding ways to use them to better serve these populations in need.