Family Support Worker, Healthy Start

Mary's Center is committed to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) within our organization and the communities we serve. We embrace diversity of experiences, ideas, and individuals, and seek to bring a diverse group of candidates to the table.

Important Note: Mary's Center is mandating the COVID-19 vaccine + booster for all staff.

Position Summary

The Healthy Start Family Support Worker (FSW) works to build and maintain solid relationships with Healthy Start families in the community and serve as a liaison between health/social services and the individuals and families who they serve. Healthy Start participants are mainly but not exclusively pregnant and postpartum individuals and their infants up to 18 months, in specific wards of the District of Columbia.

The FSW provides regular virtual and in-home visits to participants and their families while sharing perinatal health education, support, and promotion of healthy behaviors. The Healthy Start FSW is part of a team equipped to conduct health and social screenings, education, and support. Some daily activities include the following: facilitating access to health and community services, accompanying participants to appointments, tracking, and promoting medical visits, strengthening parent-child interaction, and encouraging partner/father involvement.

Reportability

This position will report directly to the Healthy Start Supervisor.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily.

Assessment and Case Management:

• Implements required screening and intake questions evaluating health and social conditions, family dynamics, and community connections.
• Collaborates with Supervisor and Clinical Provider to review intake, identify issues of concerns related to participant's health or social condition, and provide services accordingly.
• Builds on participant's strengths, identifies support systems, and works alongside participant towards participant-identified goals.
• Plans visits ahead of time using case review, understanding of clinical and social aspects of participant's current health status, and program requirements.
• Reports incidents of child abuse and neglect and becomes an active member of the intervention team to assist families in modifying behaviors or conditions that promoted the abuse and neglect.
• Is comfortable traveling to and visiting participants in the community.
• Communicates virtually via phone calls, video conferencing, and text messages.

Support Perinatal Health Outcomes

• Educates participants about healthy behaviors and recommendations during phases of perinatal period; informs participants of resources and reinforces messages from health and social service providers.
• Supports partner/father role in the family unit with involvement in perinatal- and infant-related activities.
• Connects participants to services, such as Centering Pregnancy prenatal care, doulas, behavior health support, domestic violence advocate, or medication-assisted treatment.

Build Relationships:

• Maintains regular and open communication with the participant, using trauma-informed strategies to build trust and rapport with families.
• Conducts outreach to referred families to enroll them in the program. Respects cultural diversity and integrates the participant's values and culture into support plan that reflects their agenda and background.
• Respects differences and offers information about alternatives if certain cultural practices are harmful.

Documentation:

• Documents all participant encounters in Mary's Center EMR and grant-specific data bases within required timeframe, completely and accurately.
• Submits requested required reports in a timely manner.

Program and Professional Growth:

• Participates in team meetings and trainings, shares experience and insight, seeks input from others, and applies lessons from training to daily work practices.
• Raises concerns and questions in a manner that promotes discussion for teamwork and solutions.
• Commits to building reflective relationships.
• Participates in weekly supervision with Supervisor that includes reflective discussion, program expectations, as well as personal and professional growth.

Qualifications

The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Knowledgeable in social determinants of health, health education or public health strategies, interpersonal skills, and trauma-informed communication strategies.
• Skilled in provision of social services, strength-based support and relationship building. Able to think critically, problem solve collaboratively, and have reflective capacity.
• Skilled in data entry, with computers and utilizing Microsoft Office.
• Individuals who identify as a trusted member and/or has a unique understanding of the community served will be prioritized.
• Individuals with experience and/or passion for maternal and infant health is preferred.
• Candidates with bachelor's degrees are preferred while a degree is not required.
• Years of professional, volunteer, or personal experience in a related field will also be considered in candidate selection.

Language Requirement - Ability to communicate effectively in English is required. Additional language proficiency or fluency preferred.

Physical Demands - Regularly required to work at a computer and travel to community locations throughout the city. Regularly required to communicate with team members and community members. Ideally able to move objects up to twenty-five (25) pounds.

Work Environment - Mostly in a typical office and/or home setting with quiet to moderate noise level. May be exposed to extreme cold, heat, and humidity due to outside weather conditions. This position has the option of working a hybrid schedule - remotely & onsite, as needed. Will be expected to travel to various locations in the district and especially in Wards 7 and 8.

The Benefits:

• Health Insurance: medical, dental & vision - plus retirement options through 403(b) contribution and investment opportunities
• 25 days of paid leave annually (in addition to paid holidays), plus 5 educational days
• Tuition reimbursement of $2000/year towards education assistance and professional development
• Transportation subsidy via metro & bus
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)