FAMILY SUPPORT SPECIALIST

Marion County Public Health Department; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 36,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

Marion County Public Health Department is seeking a Home Visitor to support at-risk families through intensive in-home services, focusing on parent-child bonding, development, and safety. You will educate parents, develop Family Service Plans, and document interactions in a statewide database.

The role requires strong communication, cultural humility, and the ability to travel to family homes between 7:00 am and 7:00 pm, Monday through Friday. Indiana driver’s license is required.

Qualifications

• Minimum of a high school diploma or equivalent.
• Experience in working with or providing services to children and families.
• Bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, sociology, child development, family studies, or a related field.
• 1+ years of previous work with families and children (0-3 years of age).
• Infant mental health endorsement.
• Valid Indiana driver’s license, access to reliable vehicle, and current automobile insurance required.

Responsibilities

• Conduct intensive home visitation visits with at-risk families and document interactions.
• Complete screenings and utilize tools to assess needs; develop Family Goal Plans.
• Coordinate community referrals and track client progress.
• Prepare and plan home visits based on family needs and scheduled preventative care.
• Respond to crises and maintain professional boundaries while protecting confidentiality.

Skills

Relationship building

Cultural competency

Communication skills

Empathy

Tech savvy

Education

Bachelor’s degree in related field

High school diploma or equivalent

Tools

statewide database

Job description

Select how often (in days) to receive an alert:

Sub-Division:MCPHD

FLS Status: [[JOB_REQUISITION_CUSTOM27]]

Marion County Public Health Department is an organization that celebrates diversity, and seeks to employ a diverse workforce. We actively encourage all individuals to apply for employment and to seek advancement opportunities. Marion County Public Health Department also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities as required by law. For additional questions please contact us at: [e-mail] .

Job Role Summary

This position is responsible for working with and supporting families identified as being at risk. Perform intensive home visitation services that focus on promoting positive parent/child interaction, bonding and attachment, and healthy child development. Educate parents on child development. Design and implement activities with parents to promote healthy childhood growth and development. Systematically assess the ongoing needs of families and refer to appropriate community resources. Support families with goal setting. Document all interactions with families in a centralized database.

Responsibility 1: Home Visits

• Complete outreach activities (phone calls, drop by visits, mailings, etc.) as directed by program policy and/or supervisor to engage families in the home visiting process.
• Travel to various families’ homes, as well as other community locations, to complete home visits.
• Educate parents on child development and safety through use of curricula and other evidence-based materials.
• Observe and document parent/child interactions. Acknowledge strengths and address concerns appropriately.
• Complete screenings and tools, including developmental screenings, depression screenings, and other required tools, according to program policy. Plan interventions to support any risks identified through screenings.
• Support families with creating Family Goal Plans, including developing a goal, overcoming barriers, providing resources, and celebrating successes.
• Develop Family Service Plans with appropriate interventions to address risk factors.
• Provide appropriate number of home visits to families at various service levels (75% or more of all visits required must be completed).
• Provide necessary community referrals to families and follow-up on progress.
• Complete incident reports as needed per policy.
• Check health insurance status and make referrals to assist families in obtaining access to medical care.
• Track preventative medical care, such as postpartum visits, well-child visits, and childhood immunizations.
• Monitor program acceptance rate and retention rate.
• Be flexible in scheduling as needed between the hours of 7:00 am and 7:00 pm on Monday through Friday.

Responsibility 2: Documentation and Data Entry

• Document all family interactions in the statewide database within designated time frames per program policy.
• Track and document all outreach activities, including phone calls, drop by visits, mailings, and e-mails.
• Document each home visit thoroughly by writing a narrative using the statewide required template.
• Enter results of all screenings and tools in the statewide database.
• Document community referrals provided to families, preventative medical care, and incident reports.
• Mail letters to families as a source of outreach.
• Complete mileage records according to due dates.
• Complete filing in a timely manner in adherence with policy.
• Track well-child visits and record immunizations for focus child.
• Meet required weekly and monthly paperwork deadlines.

Associated Job Duties

Responsibility 3: Home Visit Planning

• Plan appropriate content for home visits based on families’ needs, strengths, risks, and values.
• Select curricula and materials to use for parent education.
• Develop activities to promote interaction and attachment between the parents and child.
• Determine which screenings and tools are due in order to take materials to the home visit.
• Review Family Goal Plan prior to home visit.
• Consider approaches to implement interventions based on the Family Service Plan.
• Check for upcoming preventative care based on America Academy of Pediatrics schedule.

Responsibility 4: Judgment

• Report accurate and reliable information to supervisor.
• Assist appropriately in crisis situations, i.e., locating housing, shelters, food, diapers, formula, etc.
• Work independently to provide quality customer service and maintain integrity in all client interactions.
• File child abuse and neglect (CAN) reports when required.
• Utilize interpreters to provide services to non-English speaking families.
• Demonstrate ability to be non-judgmental and accepting of individual differences.
• Lead with curiosity, be empathetic, and actively listen while working with families.
• Maintain appropriate professional boundaries with families.
• Follow the program’s values (HIPEER – Humility, Integrity, Partnership, Empowerment, Excellence, Respect) in all interactions with families and colleagues.

Responsibility 5: Public Health Duties

• Participate in public health emergency preparedness exercises and in response to public health emergencies, as directed.
• Participate in a minimum of two health fair events totaling a minimum of eight (8) hours annually. These events may occur on weekends.
• Protect and maintain confidentiality of each family’s and employee's medical and personal information which may be obtained in the course of provision of care or employment.
• Job duties may require individuals to remove confidential information from workplace setting to another site to provide service. If the information is removed, it must be protected and secured as if the employee were at the office.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Required:

• Minimum of a high school diploma or equivalent
• Experience in working with or providing services to children and families

Preferred:

• Bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, sociology, child development, family studies, or a related field
• 1+ years of previous work with families and children (0-3 years of age)
• Infant mental health endorsement

Licenses/Certifications Required

• Valid Indiana driver’s license, access to reliable vehicle, and current automobile insurance required

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• An ability to establish trusting relationships
• Acceptance of individual differences
• Experience and humility to work with culturally diverse families
• Knowledge of infant and child development
• Willingness to engage in building reflective capacity (e.g., capacity for introspection, communicating awareness of self in relation to others, recognizing value of supervision, etc.)
• Proficiency with technology
• Unconfined sitting, working at computer, attending meetings, etc; standing and walking; steady use of hands and fingers – data entry; limited lifting and carrying
• May be exposed to substandard and unsanitary living conditions
• May be exposed to allergens of all types (i.e. pets, dust, smoke, etc.)

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status.