Careers

Description:

Summary

The Prevention Division (HIV/STI/HCV program) seeks to reduce the incidence of HIV and STI, as well as contributing to reduction in overdose fatalities. Fatal and non-fatal overdoses have reached unprecedented levels over the last two years. The Robert Clewis Center (RCC) Syringe Services Program provides clean syringes, smoking supplies, drug checking and other harm reduction services and is co-located with the Pathways Buprenorphine Clinic and adjacent to the Evergreen Treatment Services mobile methadone van (MMV).

The Education Specialist (Peer Linkage Specialist (PLS)) will work with RCC Education Specialists and Social Workers to identify clients who use opioids and may be interested in treatment. The Education Specialist (Peer Linkage Specialist PLS) will educate clients about local treatment options, answer questions, assess client preferences and make warm handoffs to Pathways and the MMV. They will also provide referrals to other important social and health services. They will triage clients to the RCC Social Worker for more in depth services as needed. The PLS will also back up the RCC Education Specialists by working shifts at RCC1, RCC2, SCORE and NORE.

Commitment To Equity and Social Justice

Named after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most influential civil rights leaders in our nation’s history, King County is a vibrant international community with residents that represent countries from around the world. It is a region with increasing diversity that cherishes the traditions of many cultures.

The county government has a deep commitment to equity and social justice and advancing practices, strategies, and policies that promote fairness, justice, and opportunity for all – in our workplaces and our communities. With this commitment, King County has adopted a pro-equity agenda to advance regional change and ensure that residents from all communities are incorporated into our emergency planning and public outreach efforts.

We recognize that structural racism consists of principles and practices that cause and justify an inequitable distribution of rights, opportunities, and experiences across racial groups. Since declaring Racism is a Public Health Crisis in June 2020, King County and Public Health committed to being intentionally anti-racist and accountable to Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities.

To learn more, please visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/elected/executive/equity-social-justice.aspx

Work Schedule

Monday - Friday 9 -6; some evenings and Saturdays

Work Location

Robert Clewis Center, 2124 Fourth Avenue

Job Duties

• Provide Harm Reduction services for needle exchange customers 
• Provide information and service referrals to outreach contacts, peer educators and needle exchange customers 
• Conduct street and van-based outreach to engage persons who use drugs in targeted communities, 
• Distribute accurate and culturally and linguistically appropriate education materials and information targeted to persons who persons who use drugs.. 
• Train and provide on-going coaching and support for needle exchange customers on how to administer Naloxone.

Experience, Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills

Ideal Candidates:

• Experience in an urban social service setting or related experience with persons who drug use in a harm reduction setting. 
• Demonstrated current knowledge of HIV/AIDS, STDs, hepatitis and other blood-borne infections, particularly in relation to drug use; street life; slang vocabularies; drug use practices; harm reduction concepts and principles; local drug treatment; health care; and criminal justice systems and resources. 
• Fluency in Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, Word, and Excel)
• Valid Washington State Driver’s License and the ability to drive a ½ ton county van to locations in and outside King County. 
• Ability to lift 30-pound boxes over one’s head.

Desired Candidates:

• Demonstrated excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate complex information in a culturally appropriate, consistently respectful, and non-judgmental manner to a wide variety of audiences including people who may be drug impaired, mentally ill and/or angry. 
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community 
• Experience resolving conflicts and defusing aggressive and/or violent clients 
• Demonstrated skill in delivering harm reduction interventions to people who use drugs. 
• Demonstrated ability to communicate clearly and effectively, orally and in writing, with supervisor, co-workers, health care providers, and the public. 
• Demonstrated ability to work independently following established protocols and policies and work effectively as a member of a team.
• Demonstrated ability to carry out assignments and responsibilities reliably in a thorough, accurate, and timely manner.