Community Health Specialist - STI Program

Lake County; Waukegan (IL); On-site; USD 52,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

Lake County Health Department and Community Health Center seeks a dedicated health program staff member to deliver direct HIV/STI counseling and testing across clinic, home, and outreach settings. You will implement activities, coordinate referrals, and maintain documentation per Illinois public health protocols.

You will collaborate with community partners, contribute to program evaluation, and ensure timely reporting while managing confidential information with high integrity.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree provides entry with two years of experience; Master’s degree requires no experience; High School Diploma/GED requires 7 years of experience.

Responsibilities

• Provide direct services to clients in community, clinic and home settings according to need and established program protocols.
• Plan and implement activities for clients and consumers.
• Develop and maintain positive contacts with allied community service providers.
• Provide follow-up and referral to appropriate allied community services.
• Plan and promote networking among individuals and organizations that provide services to targeted clients.
• Maintain daily reporting responsibilities for all job responsibilities.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

High School Diploma/GED

Job description

Under general supervision, prepares and offers direct individual and community services, client advocacy, and provides both general and specific health interventions in the community, clinic and home settings. Work assignments are in-depth and of a broad scope requiring a moderate degree of responsibility and independence of action.

Scheduled Hours: 37.5 hours per week

• Provide direct services to clients in community, clinic and home settings according to need and established program protocols and procedures.
• Plan and implement activities for clients and consumers.
• Assist in development and implementation of marketing strategies to reach targeted client groups and recruiting clients into needed services.
• Develop and maintain positive contacts with allied community service providers.
• Provide follow-up and referral to appropriate allied community services.
• Plan and promote networking among individuals and organizations that provide services to targeted clients.
• Maintain appropriate documentation of direct services in accordance with established program procedures.
• Maintain accountability for work through timely submission of quantitative and qualitative data for direct services.
• Based on practice experience and analysis of service data, make recommendations for future program directions.
• Participate in staff meetings and assigned training activities.
• Actively contributes to the planning and implementation of program evaluation activities.
• Write reports.
• Develop and maintain computer skills needed to complete assigned duties.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Program Specific Functions

• Complete and maintain all certifications required by the Illinois Department of Public Health HIV Section to provide Counseling, Testing and Referral services; Linkage to Care services, Group Prevention and Support services, HIV Navigation Services, Medication Adherence counseling, Surveillance Bases Services, Health Education and Risk Reduction Counseling services; and, provide HIV test results to individuals seen through the Program.

• Complete and maintain all certifications required by the Illinois Department of Public Health STD Section to provide Comprehensive Risk Counseling services; STD Clinic services; Disease Investigation Services; and, appropriate surveillance functions.

• Provide comprehensive, competent and individualized one-on-one HIV/HCV/STD counseling and testing to individuals in an office and/or outreach environment as regulated through the Illinois Department of Public Health.

• Provide group prevention and support related to STI, HIV and HCV transmission/prevention IVHIVto a group of individuals choosing to attend a program sponsored support group.

• Maintain daily reporting responsibilities for all job responsibilities.

• Accurately maintain and update information in the STI Program’s database daily.

• Accurately maintain and update information in the Lake County Health Department & Community Health Center’s NextGen data system.

• Provide oversight and management of a specific program area of responsibility including, but not limited to Syphilis surveillance, Hepatitis surveillance, STI services, Routine HIV Testing, HCV and PrEP case navigation, special events, community relations and outreach.

• Schedule appointments for the clinic services, counseling services and nursing services using approved protocols and algorithms.

• Maintain a collaborative and friendly working relationship with all other programs you would have contact or interaction with at any point of a normal business day.

• Participate in representing the STI Program to other sections within Lake County government, the community, other professionals, other organizations, State agencies, etc., in the most positive and responsive manner.

• Maintain an exceptionally high level of patient confidentiality as to never create lists of patients; send names of patients through correspondence including email, voice mail or written word; discuss patient information with another patient; identify an individual is a patient in a public or private setting; and respect all wishes of patients as to their confidentiality as long as it is within the realm of permissible actions of a LCHD/CHC employee.

• Assist the STI Program Coordinator with programmatic analysis, project design, organization, implementation and review.

• Assist the STI Program Coordinator with training and educational opportunities for all staff within the Program.

• Promptly return all phone call messages, handwritten messages, e-mails, faxes and other forms of communication from families, providers, program staff and others consistently within 48 business hours of their arrival.

• Participate in regularly scheduled staff meetings, trainings or Program specific meetings.

• Other duties as assigned

• Bachelors, masters degree, or high school diploma or GED equivalent preferably in a related field (public health, health education, social work, psychology, sociology, early child development, communications, etc.)
• With Master’s degree, no experience required.
• With Bachelor's degree, two years of experience required or;
• With High School Diploma or GED equivalent, 7 years of experience required.

• Requires the ability to lift up to 30 pounds (ie, carrying supplies, handling patients, etc).
• Requires a valid driver’s license and use of personal vehicle.

As the largest human service provider in Lake County, we believe that services must be available without barriers. No residents are turned away due to the inability to pay. We believe in providing services in an environment of mutual respect, free of discrimination or bias. Whether assuring accessible and effective care, impacting policy, or assessing and monitoring risks, the Lake County Health Department and Community Health Center has been an essential part of the public health system in Lake County for 60 years. We are looking for passionate, qualified team members who can help make a difference in our agency and, most importantly, in our community.

Additional information about the Lake County Health Department, our culture, and why you should join our team can be found at https://lakecountyil.attract.neogov.com/health-department.

At this time, you must live in Illinois or Wisconsin to be eligible to work at Lake County Health Department. You can find our salary grades at https://www.lakecountyil.gov/4515/Salary-Grades. For unionized positions, a list of our collective bargaining agreements can be found here: https://www.lakecountyil.gov/2686/Collective-Bargaining-Agreements. This position is represented by AFSCME Council 31.

Any offer of employment is conditioned on the successful completion of a background screening, drug and alcohol testing and may include a pre-employment medical exam.

The Lake County Health Department and Community Health Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other protected characteristics.