Respite Worker Intern

Founded in 1974, Community Access continues to uphold and operate as a pioneer of supportive housing and social services in NYC for people with mental health concerns. We proudly lead advocacy efforts that rally our community to promote human rights, social justice, and economic opportunities for all. We are built upon the simple truth that people are experts in their own lives. Our programs are spread across 25 locations and include over 1200 units of supportive housing in three boroughs, the Howie the Harp Advocacy Center, Peer-driven Crisis Respite Center, Adult Home Initiative, Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) and the Intensive Mobile Team (IMT).

Department Overview

The Residential Crisis Support Program, also known as the Crisis Respite Center, provides a short-term peer staffed alternative to psychiatric hospitalization in a home like setting. We aim to create a warm, friendly, and supportive environment where guests, as the participants are called, can learn to use new recovery and relapse prevention skills. This is achieved through 24-hour peer support, self-advocacy education, self-help training, and mutual understanding. The program offers people experiencing a psychiatric or emotional-related crisis with a short-term stay (starting at 14 days and no more than 28) that allows individuals to maintain daily activities and connect with community-based services and supports.

Core Principles

All CA staff, interns, and volunteers alike are responsible for understanding and incorporating certain principles into their work and into their relationships with program participants. These principles are:

• Program participants’ right to self-determination.
• Respectful communication.
• Services that support recovery and healing consistent with and nurturing each participant’s cultural background, experience, identity, and values.
• Clear professional boundaries to support the limits and possibilities of services.

Areas of work:

• 1:1 guest engagement
• Workshops
• Progress note writing
• Support around preparing meals
• Support around guest rooms and general housekeeping
• Accompanying guest on tasks, appointments and trips in the community
• Perform other duties as assigned
• The capacity to learn and do all aspects of an admission

This job description reflects management’s assignment of essential functions; it does not prescribe or restrict the tasks that may be assigned.

Internship requirements:

• Have an understanding, appreciation and commitment to the philosophy and mission of Community Access.
• Experience as a service recipient in the mental health system and willingness to share personal experience appropriately and respectfully
• Graduate of core peer training specialist program preferred
• Establish and maintain polite, professional, and effective working relationships with all employees and participants alike during the performance of duties.
• Good oral and written communication skills.
• Be creative and flexible.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Ability to maintain confidential information, as related to position.
• Basic level computer skills; Microsoft Word, Excel and Awards.
• Demonstrated flexibility with ability to change priorities with limited notice.
• Must be fingerprinted and cleared by the NYS Justice Center