Mental Health Specialist/Supervisor/Administrator Series

California State Personnel Board Specification

Series established November 28, 1979

Scope

This series specification describes classes used in the Department of Mental Health to work with public and private community and/or forensic mental health agencies, service providers, and State hospitals to plan, cost, and monitor programs. Interface may be required with other State, governmental, and private agencies. Incumbents are responsible for: providing leadership and assistance in developing new programs serving mentally disabled, mentally disordered offender, and judicially committed clients residing in the community; coordinating responsibility of a State hospital Forensic Services Program; or directing and maintaining licensure, certification, and accreditation at the State hospital. Typical duties include: reviewing and approving county performance contracts or State hospital plans; reviewing, monitoring, and evaluating mental health agency, service provider, or State hospital operations; conducting planning efforts for community or State hospital service delivery systems; evaluating the quality of care provided; negotiating service contracts with mental health agencies and service providers; providing assistance and training to mental health agency, service provider, and State hospital staff; performing program policy analysis; developing, designing, and conducting methods to review mental health and State hospital programs; recommending and sponsoring relevant legislation; analyzing and approving the budget of mental health and State hospital programs; and assessing current and future resource needs of the program.

Factors Affecting Position Allocation

In this series allocation factors include: scope of responsibility assigned; complexity of the work; independence of action; responsibility for program development and coordination; impact of decisions on statewide program; and degree of supervision exercised.

Definition of Levels

Associate Mental Health Specialist

This is the full journey level in the series. Under direction, incumbents perform complex technical and staff support duties in various mental health programs. Incumbents may be required to independently revise existing policies and/or to develop new policies and procedures with input and review from the Staff Mental Health Specialist, who is considered the expert in the given program area, or from a Mental Health Program Supervisor. Typical duties include: providing staff work in developing and implementing program policies; providing program evaluation or audits (fiscal, organization, staffing, conformance with policies, etc.) for a geographic area of the State, a particular program area statewide, grant projects, or contracts; serving as the primary liaison between the Department and mental health agencies, service providers, other State agencies, courts, and survey agencies on all program and fiscal matters, including interpreting laws and Department policies and regulations; assisting in problem solving and program implementation; reviewing and determining appropriateness of requests for administrative assistance; reviewing grant applications or proposed budgets for expenditures of funds; monitoring State hospital compliance with Health Care Finance Administration (HCFA), State licensing requirements and Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) accreditation; providing technical assistance, advice, and consultation to appropriate departmental staff, mental health agency staff, and other public and private agency staff toward the development and maintenance of mental health programs and mental health reporting systems; researching and drafting responses to special requests for information related to mental health or State hospital programs; preparing mental health agency contracts; planning and coordinating activities to develop needed services; and developing legislation or legislative bill analyses.

Incumbents may act as a project leader or as a leadperson over a small group of equivalent or lower-level positions, or act as the sole incumbent overseeing a well-established program or geographic area of a program.

Staff Mental Health Specialist

A limited number of positions may be allocated as high-level, nonsupervisory specialists. Incumbents perform duties having significant impact on the Department's operations. Positions at this level are those where the function performed is critical to the Department's basic mission. Incumbents develop, implement, and evaluate innovative mental health programs, policies, pilot projects, or prototypes.

Incumbents may act as a project leader or as a leadperson over a small group of lower-level analytical or clinical staff.

Mental Health Program Supervisor

This is the full supervisory level over a staff of 6-10 Staff Mental Health Specialists or professional level analytical, clinical, or contract staff. Incumbents are responsible for managing a major function at Headquarters or at a State hospital; developing and implementing policies and procedures having a statewide impact on mental health programs; and making recommendations on issues impacting future program structure and funding.

Mental Health Program Administrator

Positions at this level have full management and supervisory responsibility over a staff of 11 or more Mental Health Program Supervisors, Staff Mental Health Specialists or professional level analytical, clinical, or contract staff. Incumbents are responsible for: formulating and recommending policies and procedures on highly sensitive issues impacting program development efforts; directing and implementing policies and procedures affecting the mental health system; representing the Department at legislative and public hearings; assisting in planning efforts for the statewide delivery of mental health services; and negotiating with and assisting the leadership of community groups and private agencies, Federal and local government, mental health agencies and service providers, and mental health boards and commissions.

Minimum Qualifications

All Levels:

The following education requirement applies only to the non-California state service experience patterns of all four levels.

Education Requirements: Equivalent to graduation from college. (Supervisory, administrative, or clinical experience in the field of mental health may be substituted for the required education on a year-for-year basis.)

Associate Mental Health Specialist

Either I

One year of experience in California state service performing analytical staff work (including the planning, costing, or monitoring of a program) in a program for the mentally disabled or in a related human services area comparable to those duties performed by a Staff Services Analyst, Range C. or

One year of experience providing professional clinical treatment in a State hospital in the Department of Mental Health at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Psychiatric Social Worker.

Or II

Three years of experience either: (1) performing analytical staff work in planning, costing, or monitoring of a program for the mentally disabled or in a related human services area (experience applied toward this pattern must include at least one year performing duties comparable to those performed by a Staff Services Analyst, Range C); or (2) providing professional clinical treatment for the mentally disabled at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Psychiatric Social Worker in a State hospital for the mentally disabled.

(Possession of a Master's Degree in Psychology, Rehabilitation, Nursing, Social Work, Public Administration, or closely related field may be substituted for two years of the required experience. Candidates who possess one year of the required experience and are in their final quarter or semester of completing the required course work will be admitted to the examination, but they must produce evidence of successful completion before they may be considered eligible for appointment.)

Staff Mental Health Specialist

Either I

One year of experience in California state service performing analytical staff work comparable to those duties performed by an Associate Mental Health Specialist in a program for the mentally disabled. or

Three years of experience providing professional clinical treatment in a State hospital in the Department of Mental Health at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Unit Supervisor.

Or II

Four years of experience either: (1) performing analytical staff work in planning, costing, and monitoring of a program for the mentally disabled (experience applied toward this pattern must include at least one year performing duties comparable to those performed by an Associate Mental Health Specialist); or (2) providing professional clinical treatment for the mentally disabled, including three years at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Unit Supervisor in a State hospital for the mentally disabled.

(Possession of a Master's Degree in Psychology, Rehabilitation, Nursing, Social Work, Public Administration, or closely related field may be substituted for two years of the required experience. Candidates who possess two years of the required experience and are in their final quarter or semester of completing the required course work will be admitted to the examination, but they must produce evidence of successful completion before they may be considered eligible for appointment.)

Mental Health Program Supervisor

Either I

One year of experience in California state service performing duties in a program for the mentally disabled comparable to those performed by a Staff Mental Health Specialist. or

Two years of experience in California state service performing duties in a program for the mentally disabled comparable to those performed by an Associate Mental Health Specialist. or

One year of experience directing the activities of a multidisci-plinary treatment staff in a State hospital in the Department of Mental Health at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Program Assistant.

Or II

Five years of experience either: (1) performing analytical staff work in planning, costing, and monitoring of a program for the mentally disabled (experience applied toward this pattern must include at least two years performing duties comparable to those performed by an Associate Mental Health Specialist); or (2) directing the activities of a multidisciplinary treatment staff for the mentally disabled, including one year at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Program Assistant in a State hospital for the mentally disabled.

(Possession of a Master's Degree in Psychology, Rehabilitation, Nursing, Social Work, Public Administration, or closely related field may be substituted for two years of the required experience. Candidates who possess three years of the required experience and are in their final quarter or semester of completing the required course work will be admitted to the examination, but they must produce evidence of successful completion before they may be considered eligible for appointment.)

Mental Health Program Administrator

Either I

One year of experience in California state service performing duties in a related program for the mentally disabled comparable to those performed by a Mental Health Program Supervisor. or

Two years of experience in California state service performing duties in a program for the mentally disabled comparable to those performed by a Staff Mental Health Specialist. or

One year of experience directing the activities of a multidisciplinary treatment staff in a State hospital in the Department of Mental Health at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Program Director.

Or II

Five years of broad and extensive experience either: (1) performing analytical staff work in planning, costing, and monitoring of a program for the mentally disabled (experience applied toward this pattern must include at least two years performing duties compar- able to those performed by a Staff Mental Health Specialist); or (2) directing the activities of a multidisciplinary treatment staff for the mentally disabled, including at least one year at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of a Program Director in a State hospital for the mentally disabled.

(Possession of a Master's Degree in Psychology, Social Work, Rehabilitation, Nursing, Public Administration, or closely related field may be substituted for two years of the required nonsupervisory experience. Candidates who possess three years of the required experience and are in their final quarter or semester of completing the required course work will be admitted to the examination, but they must produce evidence of successful completion before they may be considered eligible for appointment.)

Knowledge and Abilities

Associate Mental Health Specialist

Knowledge of: Principles and practices of public administration, and budgetary preparation and control; methods of clinical treatment of mentally disabled clients; mental health planning and procedures; social aspects of mental and emotional disturbances and mental deficiency; current trends in mental health, public health, public welfare, and governmental budgeting.

Ability to: Work with community or forensic mental health administrators to improve mental health services; analyze situations accurately and take effective action; develop cooperative working relationships with community or forensic mental health administrators and health professionals; interpret mental health-related laws and their application to program situations; work effectively with clients; communicate effectively.

Staff Mental Health Specialist

Knowledge of: All of the above, and techniques, trends, and problems in the operation of public and private mental health institutions; programs and trends in community or forensic mental health services in California; laws and regulations governing community or forensic mental health programs partially or totally funded by the State or Federal Government; principles and practices of organization and fiscal management; treatment programs; laws and regulations relating to Federal and State funding programs and State hospital and community treatment program organization; aspects of clinical services; principles of public personnel administration and supervision. Ability to: All of the above, and work independently in identifying mental health program deficits and needs; developing recommendations for improvement of service delivery systems.

Mental Health Program Supervisor

Mental Health Program Administrator

Knowledge of: All of the above, and principles, practices, programs, problems, and trends in mental health administration; policies, standards, and functions of the California State Department of Mental Health; organization and administration of mental hospitals; principles of community organization and functions of public and private agencies concerned with mental health; principles and practices of organization, fiscal management, personnel administration, and supervision; provisions of the law pertaining to the Federal Grant-In-Aid Program, State aid, community and/or forensic mental health services, and operation of private institutions for the mentally disabled or judicially committed; the organization and function of the California Mental Health Directors Association and the California Mental Health Planning Council; the Department's Equal Employment Opportunity Program objectives; a supervisor's/manager's responsibility for promoting equal employment opportunity in hiring, employee development, and promotion; requirements for ensuring nondiscrimination in service delivery.

Ability to: All of the above, and develop program policies, standards, and procedures; supervise and administer subordinate staff; take a leadership role in formulation and management of a group of centralized mental health programs; supervise a multidisciplinary team of professionals and paraprofessionals and effectively promote equal employment opportunity in hiring; maintain a work environment that is free of discrimination and harassment; ensure nondiscrimination in service delivery.

Special Personal Characteristics

All Levels:

An objective and sympathetic understanding of the mentally and emotionally disturbed; tolerance and tact.

Class History