Child & Family Service Case Manager Specialist

Full Job Description

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Division of Family Well-Being and Protection, Bureau of Child Protective Services is seeking a Child & Family Service Case Manager Specialist (Job Classification: Social Worker 3) to join our team!

This position will be located in Ottumwa.

This is a full-time opportunity, Monday – Friday with typical hours being from 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM with paid overtime as needed including after-hours and weekend on call rotation. All paid overtime must be pre-approved by leadership.

The primary purpose of this position is to work with children that have already had parental rights terminated and the focus is on achieving permanency.

You will be expected to establish permanency through adoption, guardianship or by transitioning youth into adulthood.

Timely, accurate, meticulous documentation, reliability and organization is extremely crucial for this position.

As a Social Work Case Manager Specialist, there will be times in which you will have to remove children. This can be a difficult and challenging process.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Assess the ongoing risk to children, develop safety plans, assess the strengths, and needs of the child and family, and make recommendations to various county attorneys and courts.
• Frequent interaction with law enforcement, medical/mental health community partners, schools, etc.
• Requires the ability to apply Iowa Code, agency policy, and sound professional judgment to highly complex situations involving crises and or chronic abuse or neglect
• All cases assigned to persons in this position require home visits, detailed interviews, and thorough narrative documentation

Troubleshoots problematic situations to find innovative solutions to present to administration and the supervisor. Confronts crisis situations and high stress situations in a calm and orderly manner.

Maintaining confidential information as required by the agency and assuring safety is a top priority for all in the office

• Obtain information from a wide variety of sources, including written materials, telephone conversations and through computer databases and to be able to read and interpret the data
• Identifies rules, principles, or relationships that explain reasonable facts, data, or other information that analyzes information and draws accurate conclusions
• Interacts in a team environment to manage group processes, facilitates, and encourages cooperation, pride, trust, and group identity, fosters commitment and team spirit
• Works with others to achieve goals
• Within an office environment, provides Division support to large segment of agency through managing internal and external requests for information and legislative reviews requiring comprehension of request, independent
• Judgment and adherence to agency formatting of timely response or communication. Interact with employees and customers in a positive customer service manner to resolve problems and answer customer inquiries. Customer contacts may include correspondence, telephone, or walk-ins to the local office
• This position will be required to work or be on standby during nights and weekends on a rotational basis.

The ideal candidate will demonstrate:

• Successful management of a full case load
• Strong observational and analytical skills, as well the ability to respectfully engage families as partners in planning for safety and establish a working relationship with families
• Excellent judgment and communication skills and the ability to provide good written documentation in a timely manner
• The ability to develop case plans, use critical thinking skills, prioritize work and work under pressure
• The ability to use independent judgement to make sound decisions, demonstrate integrity and confidentiality and a strong work ethic.

To ensure the Service Area is providing the best service to the residents of Iowa, applicants should demonstrate exceptional customer service skills, integrity, and a strong work ethic.

Preference will be given for education or experience which correlates directly with the requirements and duties of the position.

Benefits

Working for the State of Iowa comes with its perks. In addition to a competitive salary, you'll enjoy a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your well-being and professional growth:

• Health, Dental, and Vision Coverage: Health and dental insurance packages to keep you and your family healthy at a low cost with outstanding coverage!
• Paid Time Off: Take time to recharge with paid time off, including vacation (96 hours/year to begin, increasing with years of service), sick leave (144 hours/year), and paid holidays (9 days/year).
• Retirement Plans: Participate in retirement plans such as IPERS (employees contribute 6.29% and the State of Iowa contributes 9.44%) as well as our Retirement Investors Club (RIC), Employer Sponsored Retirement Plan (the State of Iowa matches dollar for dollar up to $75/month).
• Flexible Spending Accounts: Take advantage of flexible spending accounts for medical and dependent care expenses.
• Insurance Coverage: Benefit from life insurance and free long-term disability insurance for added peace of mind.
• Employee Assistance Program: Access resources and support through our Employee Assistance Program for personal and professional challenges.
• Employee Discount Programs: Enjoy discounts on a variety of goods and services through our employee discount programs.

For additional information on benefits click here.

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Background Checks

Applicants will be required to complete a background check to be considered for this position.

The State of Iowa is an EEO/AA Employer

HHS values those with “lived experience” and encourages adults who were fostered as youth, foster parents, and/or parents who were in the DHS system to apply.

Minorities, women, persons with disabilities and veterans are encouraged to apply (Hearing and Speech Impaired – Relay Iowa 1-800-735-2942 TDD).

E-Verify and Right to WorkThe State of Iowa participates in E-Verify, a federal program that helps employers confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees.

Within the required timeframe, new hires will be verified through the E-Verify system to ensure authorization to work in the United States.

The State of Iowa also complies with the federal Right to Work laws, which protect employees’ rights to work without being required to join a labor organization.

For more information, please visit www.e-verify.gov.

Qualifications

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's degree and the equivalent of three years of full-time experience in a social work capacity in a public or private agency;graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's degree in social work and the equivalent of two years of full-time experience in a social work capacity in a public or private agency;a Master's degree in social work from an accredited college or university;an equivalent combination of graduate education in the social or behavioral sciences from an accredited college or university and qualifying experience up to a maximum of thirty semester hours for one year of the required experience;employees with current continuous experience in the state executive branch that includes the equivalent of one year of full-time experience as a Social Worker 2 shall be considered as qualified.

For additional information, please click on this link to view the job description.

Additional Information

For designated positions in case management, the appointing authority may request those applicants possessing a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with a major or at least 30 semester hours or its equivalent in the behavioral sciences, education, health care, human services administration, or social sciences and the equivalent of 12 months of full-time experience in the delivery of human services in the combination of: chronic mental illness, developmental disabilities, and intellectual disabilities as a Targeted (Medicaid) Case Manager;an Iowa license to practice as a registered nurse and the equivalent of three years of full-time nursing or human services experience with the above population groups.

Applicants wishing to be considered for such designated positions must list applicable course work, experience, certificate, license, or endorsement on the application.