Forensic Support Team – Forensic Navigator – Health Professional III *Remote Position* Forensic Support Team – Forensic Navigator – Health Professional III *Remote Position*

Department Information

This position is open only to Colorado state residents

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CDHSCareers

This is a remote position where your home address serves as your official work location. However, this is primarily a field-based role requiring regular weekly visits to assigned jails and courts within the Denver Metro area. 

This vacancy / open jail assignment will be assigned to Denver or within 40 miles of the Denver Metro area. The successful candidate is expected to reside within a reasonable distance of the assigned location and be able to travel. 

About OCFMH and the Forensic Support Team:

Located within the Colorado Department of Human Services, the Office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health (OCFMH) is responsible for policy development, service provision and coordination, program monitoring and evaluation, and administrative oversight for the public behavioral health system. OCFMH funds, supports and monitors numerous mental health and substance abuse community programs and providers. OCFMH is responsible for conducting competency, restoration and other evaluations to better serve clients needs. OCFMH also operates the Colorado Mental Health Hospitals at Fort Logan and Pueblo and the Forensic Services Division. OCFMH executes the States’ federal responsibilities as the State Mental Health Authority and State Substance Abuse Authority for the purposes of administering federal mental health and substance abuse block grant funds.

The Forensic Support Team (FST) primary population focus is on incarcerated individuals involved in Competency. This team supports the movement of forensic clients to and from jails, to an inpatient or outpatient OCFMH restoration program by providing notification and information between agencies and departments. Navigators are not case managers, clinicians, or involved in community supervision. Navigators act as care coordinators working to ensure that all internal and external stakeholders have access to up-to-date client information. In collaboration with stakeholders, they help to ensure that services are being delivered to clients in an appropriate and effective manner.

Care coordination is the cornerstone of the Forensic Support Team. In this construct, care coordination meets clients who are at the intersections of criminal justice and behavioral health systems and works to increase efficiency and improve clinical outcomes for individuals waiting in jail for inpatient competency restoration. This is done by bringing together criminal justice and behavioral health stakeholders and information systems to coordinate health services, client needs, and information to help better achieve the goals of competency restoration.

Forensic Navigators are assigned to individuals:

• Waiting in jail for a competency evaluation
• Waiting in jail for admission to inpatient restoration
• Individuals participating in inpatient restoration
• Individuals returning from inpatient restoration waiting in jail to be reviewed by the court

Description of Job

About the Position:

The Forensic Navigators meet face-to-face with competency involved individuals and multidisciplinary teams within each jail including Jail Based Behavioral Health Services (JBBS) providers, jail administration, and jail medical staff to assess clients’ needs within the jail.

The Forensic Support Team strategically coordinates care and communicates the needs of competency involved clients to relevant internal and external stakeholders. The Forensic Support Team serves as the primary point of contact for OCFMH competency services. This team supports the movement of forensic clients to and from jails, or to an inpatient or outpatient OCFMH restoration program by providing transition planning, notification, and information between agencies and departments. Duties in this position include:

Communication & Case Coordination:

• Works closely with Colorado Courts, providing the courts with information related to transition plans, status updates, and changes to clinical status and location
• Works closely with both prosecuting and defense attorneys communicating information related to transition plans, status updates, and changes to clinical status and location
• Requires frequent visits and coordination with county jails, including jail administration, jail medical and/or jail mental health providers including Jail Based Behavioral Health Services (JBBS)
• Knowledgeable about community resources and works closely with various community stakeholders such as community mental health providers, outpatient restoration providers, housing agencies, the Momentum Program, Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, Bridges Court Liaisons, and various other agencies.

Collect, Maintain, and Provide Relevant Client Information:

• Reports to the assigned Program Coordinator
• Documentation is essential to care coordination and is done any time there is relevant information to report about a client’s clinical status and care
• Documentation is done after every collateral or face-to-face client visit
• Documentation includes reports on the status of the client, any changes in condition(s) or symptoms, and issues or concerns related to their well-being or progress towards competency
• Documentation is placed into a centralized data system
• Documentation is used to illustrate ongoing communication occurring between the jail, courts, and the Office of CIVIL AND FORENSIC MENTAL HEALTH
• Responsible for court reporting and court appearances
• Knowledgeable about state and federal laws regarding confidentiality and ensures information is provided only to stakeholders entitled to the information
• Oversees processes that ensure forensic clients’ records are adequately protected in accordance with federal and state guidelines and ensures procedures are implemented so that records are released based upon allowable accesses
• Works with various external and community stakeholders to implement individualized discharge plans, assisting the forensic client with referrals for the necessary services when he/she is transitioning between an inpatient or jail setting to the community
• Seeks supervision or consultation with the Program Coordinator when necessary and informs the Program Coordinator of any issues that arise
• Knowledgeable about the restoration, mental health and other support services available in their assigned judicial district/s

Education, Outreach and Other Duties as Assigned:

• Provides information to the courts regarding options and current availability of community-based restoration and mental health treatment services in their assigned judicial districts
• Knowledgeable regarding the processes for accessing services to respond to inquiries from the courts regarding both inpatient and outpatient continuum of forensic services
• Responds to requests for information regarding program availability or resources within assigned judicial districts
• Any other duties that aren’t listed in the above duty statements that may need to be completed by this position to meet the needs of the agency and the department
• Forensic Navigator may be asked to provide Psychoeducation and Pre Restoration Education services to competency clients waiting for inpatient admission depending on FST staffing levels, jail availability, and at the discretion of the Department and/or Leadership Staff

Minimum Qualifications, Substitutions, Conditions of Employment & Appeal Rights

Minimum Qualifications:

Six (6) years of relevant experience in an occupation related to the work assigned to

this position

OR

Education and Experience:

A combination of related education and/or relevant experience in an occupation

related to the work assigned to this position equal to six (6) years

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with individuals involved in the Competency system
• Experience with criminal justice systems (jails/ courts/ probation/ parole/ corrections)
• Experience with Behavioral Health systems (Mental Health, Substance Abuse, Community Mental Health work, hospital work, case management)
• Experience in case management or case coordination in a clinical and/or criminal justice setting
• Experience in Forensic/Criminal Justice, Social Work, Behavioral Health, Case Management or Care Coordination
• Educational background in Social Work, Criminal Justice, Counseling or Human Services

Conditions of Employment:

• A pre-employment criminal background check will be conducted as part of the selection process as this position is deemed to have direct contact with vulnerable persons. Felony convictions, convictions of crimes of moral turpitude, or convictions of misdemeanors related to job duties may disqualify you from being considered for this position. Should your background check reveal any charges or convictions, it is your responsibility to provide the CDHS Background Unit with an official disposition of any charges. Additionally, you will be required to take a drug screen
• Current and valid Colorado Driver’s License
• In-state travel required
• TB testing
• Former employees of the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS) who were disciplinary terminated or resigned in lieu of termination must disclose the information on your application and may not be eligible for employment at CDHS.

APPEAL RIGHTS:

If you receive notice that you have been eliminated from consideration for this position, you may file an appeal with the State Personnel Board or request a review by the State Personnel Director.

An appeal or review must be submitted on the official appeal form, signed by you or your representative. This form must be delivered to the State Personnel Board by email (dpa_state.personnelboard@state.co.us), postmarked in US Mail or hand delivered (1525 Sherman Street, 4th Floor, Denver CO 80203), or faxed (303.866.5038) within ten (10) calendar days from your receipt of notice or acknowledgement of the department’s action.

For more information about the appeals process, the official appeal form, and how to deliver it to the State Personnel Board; go to spb.colorado.gov; contact the State Personnel Board for assistance at (303) 866-3300; or refer to 4 Colorado Code of Regulations (CCR) 801-1, State Personnel Board Rules and Personnel Director’s Administrative Procedures, Chapter 8, Resolution of Appeals and Disputes, at spb.colorado.gov under Rules.

Supplemental Information

How to Apply

The Assessment Process

For additional recruiting questions, please contact jazzma.gamboa@state.co.us

About Us: 

If your goal is to build a career that makes a difference, consider joining the dedicated people of the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS). Our professionals strive to design and deliver high quality human and health services that improve the safety, independence, and well-being of the people of Colorado. In addition to a great location and rewarding and meaningful work, we offer:

• Strong, secure, yet flexible retirement benefits including a PERA Defined Benefit Plan or PERA Defined Contribution Plan www.copera.org plus 401(k) and 457 plans
• Medical and dental health plans
• Employer supplemented Health Savings Account
• Paid life insurance
• Short- and long-term disability coverage
• 11 paid holidays per year plus vacation and sick leave
• BenefitHub state employee discount program
• Employee Wellness program MotivateMe
• Excellent work-life programs, such as flexible schedules, training and more
• Remote work arrangements for eligible positions
• Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. For more

information, go to https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dhr/student-loan-forgiveness-programs.

Our Values:

We believe in a people-first approach: To serve the people of Colorado, we develop a culture and work environment that creates an energized, inspired, and healthy team capable of giving their best to Coloradans.

Balance creates quality of life: We want our team to be resilient through a supportive workplace that values flexibility, health and wellness, and employee engagement.

We hold ourselves accountable: We take responsibility through our actions, programs, and results for the state of health and human services in Colorado.

Transparency matters: We are open and honest with employees, our partners, the Coloradans we serve, and the public.

We are ethical: We abide by what is best for those we serve by doing what is right, not what is easy.

Collaboration helps us rise together: We work together with all partners, employees, and clients to achieve the best outcomes for Coloradans.

We are committed to increasing the diversity of our staff and providing culturally responsive programs and services. Therefore, we encourage responses from people of diverse backgrounds and abilities. 

ADAA Accommodations: CDHS is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAA Coordinator, Nancy Schmelzer, at cdhs_ada@state.co.us or call 1-800-929-0791.

~THE STATE OF COLORADO IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER~

The State of Colorado offers permanent employees a variety of benefits including medical, dental, life and disability insurance, as well as a comprehensive leave program. Please click the following link for detailed information: www.colorado.gov/pacific/dhr/benefits 

Please note that each agency’s contact information is different; therefore, we encourage all applicants to view the full, official job announcement which includes contact information and class title. Select the job you wish to view, then click on the “Print” icon.

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