SUPERVISING SUBSTANCE ABUSE COUNSELOR

Definition

Under the direction of a supervisory official in a State department or other agency, plans, develops and supervises counseling components necessary for the treatment and rehabilitation of patients suffering from drug addiction; performs other related duties as required.

Examples of work

• Plans, develops, and supervises a counseling program within the treatment facility, including responsibility for supervision of subordinate staff.
• Monitors the collection and processing of urine and other specimens to test for the presence and use of controlled substances.
• Responsible for the supervision of subordinates in the treatment of their patients.
• Plans and conducts periodic staff conferences to develop and maintain professional staff.
• Directs the identification, collaboration, coordination and integration of available community resources and service into the program.
• Prepares performance ratings for staff members and supervises the performance ratings of other personnel assigned to the program.
• Provides professional input for the review and evaluation of other treatment and rehabilitation services.
• Instructs new substance abuse counselors in departmental regulations and approved counseling procedures.
• Participates in diagnostic, case progress and client or patient evaluation conferences.
• Supervises the preparation of technically sound and informative case reports and patient histories containing finding, conclusions and recommendations.
• Assigns, reviews, and evaluates the work of subordinate employees.
• Supervises the work operations and/or functional programs and responsible for employee evaluations and effectively recommending the hiring, promoting and/or disciplining of employees.
• Keeps current with literature and trends of thought in the field of counseling with particular emphasis on drug/alcohol addiction.
• Responsible for training and supervision of subordinate counselors.
• Plans, develops and evaluates program activities for individuals with co-occurring substance abuse disorders.
• Supervises daily operations of program activities and coordinates scheduling of programs outside of institution.
• Schedules and conducts regular meetings with Addiction Services staff; submits reports on program and related issues.
• Assigns duties to Addiction Services staff.
• Develops and maintains peer review. Identifies areas for quality improvement and develops process to make such improvements.
• In coordination with the Medical Director, assesses staff education/training needs throughout institution pertaining to chemical dependency and provides general orientation.
• Acts as an activities liaison to state and community agencies, programs and committees.
• Meets with various patient treatment administrations to discuss and remediate patient transition issues.
• Meets and visits with community referral programs/agencies to help form aftercare service network for institution's Addiction Services patients. Attends county, state and regional meetings.
• Monitors client's attendance and active participation in Addiction Services programs and groups and takes corrective action for non compliance.
• Develops new programs and groups to address client's needs, specifically to enhance client reintegration into the community.
• Prepares case histories and reports.
• Maintains records and files.
• Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.

Experience

Three (3) year of experience in counseling or social work having responsibility for gathering and analyzing social or health information from clients, the determination of their needs, and the planning and carrying out of a treatment plan geared to the needs of individual clients; one (1) year of which shall have been in a supervisory capacity.

<b>SPECIAL SKILL</b>

Candidates to the Marie H. Katzenbach School for the Deaf must be able to communicate effectively in the language of the deaf, particularly American Sign Language, sufficiently to perform duties of this position, and must successfully pass a screening process administered by the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Committee at the School.

License

Applicants must possess a license as a Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LCADC), issued by the Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners, New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, Department of Law and Public Safety.

Appointees will be required to possess a driver's license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform essential duties of the position.

Knowledge, skills and abilities

• Ability to interpret laws, rules and regulations and apply them to specific situations.
• Knowledge of counseling techniques.
• Knowledge of the types of training and supportive therapy required for substance abuse.
• Knowledge of the current facts, theories, hypothesis, programs and research in the area of narcotic and dangerous drugs.
• Knowledge of basic quality improvement techniques.
• Knowledge of problems encountered in giving assignments and instructions to groups and individuals and supervising the performance of their work.
• Knowledge of effective supervisory techniques.
• Ability to effectively supervise, motivate, and evaluate the performance of a staff of subordinates assigned to the unit.
• Ability to organize and develop appropriate work programs, schedules and procedures.
• Ability to organize assigned counseling work, analyze problems which arise in the treatment of drug addicts and develop effective work methods.
• Ability to analyze, comprehend, interpret and apply established rules, regulations, standards and policies to specific areas.
• Ability to provide a broad range of highly skilled direct professional social work services.
• Ability to instruct subordinate counselors in the utilization of community resources in the adjustment of patients, to follow-up procedures and to establish and maintain cooperative community relationship.
• Ability to assign and instruct individuals and groups and supervise the performance of their work.
• Ability to develop and supervise intake and follow up measures.
• Ability to supervise the preparation of statistical and other documented reports containing findings, conclusions and recommendations.
• Ability to relate and adjust to individuals of varied types, including professional staff, clients, and patients and their families.
• Ability to develop training and staff development techniques.
• Ability to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.
• Ability to read, write, speak, understand, and communicate in English sufficiently to perform duties of this position. American Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as acceptable forms of communication.
• Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible as long as they can perform essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. If the accommodation cannot be made because it would cause the employer undue hardship, such persons may not be eligible.

Note

The examples of work for this title are for illustrative purposes only. A particular position using this title may not perform all duties listed in this job specification. Conversely, all duties performed on the job may not be listed.