MHAW Launches Home and Community-Based Services Hiring Drive

Pictured: Association for Mental Health and Wellness leadership and staff gave a presentation about the Home and Community Based Services program and the Health and Recovery program at a recent meeting of the Suffolk Care Collaborative.

Ronkonkoma, NY – March 6, 2019: The Association for Mental Health and Wellness (MHAW), one of Suffolk County’s leading providers of mental health-related services, is growing again. With the award of State funds to expand the organization’s Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) program, MHAW is seeking staff with multiple credentials and experiences who are committed to assisting people facing mental health and substance use challenges in their paths to recovery and life goals.

HCBS enables individuals to receive assistance in natural rather than in clinical settings. There are five managed care entities that authorize and support HCBS in Suffolk; MHAW was cited as a partner by all five to expand their HCBS services initiatives.

“Suffolk County is home to nearly 10,000 people with disabling mental health challenges, many of whom will welcome the assistance of staff trained in the most current rehabilitation and recovery-practices,” said Michael Stoltz, LCSW, Chief Executive Officer of MHAW. “Now, thanks to the availability of new resources through the managed care entities and the State and federal government, MHAW is seeking staff who want to be a part of a team that will deliver some of the most innovative mental health services that researchers have promoted across the country."

MHAW is recruiting mental heath professionals under the following job titles, as well as administrative support positions:

• Peer Specialists/Navigators
• Licensed Behavioral Health Professionals
• Quality Assurance Professionals
• Health Home Care Managers serving adults and children
• Medical Billers

A complete list of positions and job descriptions can be found at www.careers.mhaw.org.

HCBS services are accessed with the assistance of trained care managers operating under State-certified Health Homes. Care managers locate and engage people who face recovery challenges including mental health and substance use as well as housing instability, family discord, isolation, and economic insufficiency.

MHAW has been a distinguished provider of psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery-directed services prior to and since its 2014 formation from three prior entities -- Clubhouse of Suffolk, Mental Health Association in Suffolk, and Suffolk County United Veterans. A key element HCBS service teams are the deployment of people who have had lived experiences with recovery, both their own or as part of their family experience. “Trained peer support personnel represent the most dynamic new element in our community behavioral health workforce,” said Mr. Stoltz. MHAW also operates the Joseph P. Dwyer Veterans Peer Support Project where trained Veteran peers engage and assist Veterans struggling with post-service transition challenges, including mental health and substance-use disorders.

For nearly ten years, MHAW has offered a highly-regarded program, Careers in Recovery and Wellness, which has helped people who aim to become trained and certified as peer services providers.

“Being a mental health service provider is both gratifying and challenging,” said Mr. Stoltz. “Our new staffers will join and learn from a team of dedicated individuals devoted to empowering people to pursue and sustain healthy and enriched lives. We invite you to join us on this critical mission.”

For more information about employment opportunities, contact Kristi Bosco at the Association for Mental Health and Wellness at 631-471-7242 x1455, at kbosco@mhaw.org or go to www.careers.mhaw.org.

About the Association for Mental Health and Wellness

The Association for Mental Health and Wellness (MHAW), a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation based in Ronkonkoma, NY, provides programs, services, and advocacy for people facing mental health challenges with an enhanced focus on serving military Veterans.

MHAW dates back to 1955 with the incorporation of the Mental Health Association in Suffolk County (MHA Suffolk). In 1990, Clubhouse of Suffolk was launched, providing a wide array of vocational rehabilitation services and recovery programs. With the growing need to provide services for Veterans with PTSD and other battle-related brain injuries, Clubhouse merged with MHA Suffolk and Suffolk County United Veterans in 2014 to form the Association for Mental Health and Wellness.

MHAW is committed to the core practice values of empowerment, hope, opportunity, and cultural competence. All of the agency’s direct service workers are trained in the importance of addressing health from trauma-informed and whole person perspectives with enriched understanding of the social and economic conditions that contribute to physical and mental health and substance abuse.