Position Title: Crisis Triage Specialist

Employee Classification: Counselor

College/Division: Student Success & Enroll Management

Department: 520700-COUNSELING AND STU DEV CTR

Internal or External Search: External - Open to all applicants

Location: Las Cruces

Offsite Location (if applicable):

Target Hourly/Salary Rate:  Commensurate with qualificaitions.

Appointment Full-time Equivalency:  1.0

Exempt or Non-Exempt:  Exempt

Summary:  Join our team!

Classification Summary:
Provides professional counseling to students on academic, financial, and personal matters. Provides individual and group therapy and counseling. Responsible for vocational testing and assessment, program development and evaluation, and outreach activities. Consults with academic departments and student affairs organizations.

Classification Standard Duties:
Provides counseling, therapy, and/or psychotherapy to clients and families as appropriate to the position; prepares treatment plans, discharge plans, and follow-up care programs; provides therapeutic crisis intervention and emergency services as required. Collects data about patients through interview, case history, psychological tests, and/or observational techniques; evaluates data to identify causes of problems and to determine proper therapeutic approach or referral to other specialists. Provides casework management of a specialized caseload, as appropriate to the requirements of the individual position; performs research and case assessments; prepares individualized studies for admission, placement, and/or discharge, as applicable.Provides and/or arranges for therapeutic interventions as appropriate for patients or clients in a crisis condition and for those with serious disturbance problems. Follows up to determine reliability and validity of treatment used; makes recommendations regarding modification to services and service delivery. Consults with other legal and treatment agencies and individuals in relation to patient/client records, rights, and responsibilities. Consults with other therapists and related professional and paraprofessional staff, as appropriate, in the performance of therapeutic and/or casework; refers clients to appropriate service agencies as required. Participates in the review of clinical issues and program policies and procedures. Participates in, leads, and/or coordinates training sessions and workshops to enhance treatment skills. May lead paraprofessionals in performance of clinical duties. Performs miscellaneous job-related duties as assigned.

Required Education, Experience, Certification/License, Equivalency
Required Education:Master's degree in a related field.; Required Experience:Three (3) years of professional experience directly related to the standard duties as outlined.; Equivalency:None; Required Certification/License:

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
KNOWLEDGE:Knowledge and understanding of clinical counseling principles, programs and methodology. Knowledge and understanding of clinical social work and mental health counseling principles, methods, procedures, and standards. Knowledge of case management. Knowledge of clinical operations and procedures. Knowledge of community mental health resources. Knowledge of crisis intervention techniques. Knowledge of legal and ethical issues related to patients' rights. Knowledge of psychological test administration, scoring, and interpretation.; SKILLS:Interviewing and psychological/developmental evaluation skills.; ABILITIES:Ability to apply mental health counseling methods and techniques. Ability to develop and present educational programs and/or workshops. Ability to evaluate the progress of therapeutic programs and to make individual modifications. Ability to maintain emotional stability to cope with human suffering, emergencies, and other stresses.Interviewing and psychological/developmental evaluation skills.
Ability to apply mental health counseling methods and techniques. Ability to develop and present educational programs and/or workshops. Ability to evaluate the progress of therapeutic programs and to make individual modifications. Ability to maintain emotional stability to cope with human suffering, emergencies, and other stresses.

Job Duties and Responsibilities
The crisis triage specialist will rapidly evaluate complex mental health situations to develop, recommend, and implement crisis interventions with students and campus partners. This position will receive incoming calls and walk-in appointments from students, staff/faculty, and emergency responders to assist in the assessment, evaluation, and intervention of crisis situations. The crisis triage specialist will also participate in treatment and discharge planning and referrals for students following a crisis situation.

Preferred Qualifications

Special Requirements of the Position

Department Contact:  Bethany Wellman, 575-646-2731, bwellman@nmsu.edu

Contingent Upon Funding: Not Applicable

Bargaining Unit Eligibility: This is NOT a bargaining unit position with American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME).

Standard Work Schedule: Shift: Other Shift

If Not a Standard Work Schedule: Standard M-F 8-5 with emergency on-call hours

Working Conditions and Physical Effort

Environment: Work is normally performed in a typical interior/office work environment.

Physical Effort: No or very limited physical effort required.

Lifting Requirements: Requires handling of average-weight objects up to 10 pounds or some standing or walking.

Risk: Work environment involves some exposure to hazards or physical risks, which require following basic safety precautions.