Community Health Worker

North Star Health, an FQHC comprised of multiple PCMH practices delivering team-based care in Southern VT and Southwest New Hampshire, is seeking a Community Health Worker (CHW) to be a part of our Community Health Team (CHT) and play a critical role in helping individuals access the care they need through the provision of screening, brief interventions and connections to services to address a range of needs including behavioral health services and substance use treatment, food insecurity, housing and economic assistance. Our ideal candidate will be a team player who is community-minded, an exceptional listener and advocate, with experience in meeting people where they are at and providing assistance to help them access the service they require, ideally in a healthcare or social service setting. We have positions serving our Ludlow and Londonderry Vermont health centers.

In this role you will

• Promote and work to achieve our mission and vision to connect with and care for our community so everyone may enjoy health and wellness.
• Work as part of the Community Health Team, in collaboration with primary care, behavioral health and substance use treatment teams
• Reach out to individuals following a psychosocial assessment; foster relationships as the face of North Star Health and key point-of-contact to assist individuals in achieving goals, identifying needs, and coordinating services.
• Conduct follow-up assessments and engage individuals through motivational interviewing to identify priority needs and areas for intervention or follow up
• Identify next steps to address findings including referral to an appropriate level of care either with North Star Health or an external service provider
• Provide brief interventions as appropriate to address screening results, either directly or through referral
• Outreach to both organizations and individuals, including meeting individuals in their home and going to a variety of service locations;
• Assist in coordinating care for individuals, identifying and addressing their barriers to and social influences on good health; assist in patient enrollment, schedule appointments, assist with transportation, and follow up on care delivery.
• Collaborate with local health and social service organizations to assist them in enhancing services and addressing systemic barriers to health and social services.
• Documents all patient encounters; complete required reports; maintain electronic patient files, including referrals, releases, assessments and other documents acquired on behalf of the patient.
• Support fellow team members in answering phones and addressing patient requests and other tasks as needed.

Requirements

Requirements for the role

• You have experience with direct service provision, preferably in a healthcare or social service setting working with individuals with a variety of needs including behavioral health and substance use issues
• You have a passion for working within the community you are a part of, or have been a part of in the past.
• You are flexible, team-oriented, and willing to wear different hats
• You have an ability to effectively and independently plan, organize, and coordinate access to health services.
• You have excellent communication skills, including writing, listening and organizing information
• You excel at empathy and human interactions, and want to improve the health of individuals and communities.
• You are comfortable working with people who are in distress and who may be experiencing a range of challenges and difficulties in their lives and living circumstances
• You are an independent self-starter and a strategic thinker who is eager to learn, improve, and grow.
• You have experience or the capacity to use computer-based tools including typing, web-based applications and client-related databases
• You are excited about how technology can support your work and help drive the ongoing evaluation toward new, better, care.
• Unrestricted Driver’s License

Interested candidates should provide a cover letter addressing the scope of the role , in addition to completing the application.

We take care of our team! Our comprehensive benefits package includes medical, dental, and vision coverage, a 401(k) with company match, generous paid time off, and engaging wellness programs that make it easy and fun to stay healthy. We're committed to supporting your well-being - at work and beyond.