Our vision is to be the trusted quality care provider within our communities by supporting individuals and families to reach their full potential. Clarecare is a professional social enterprise organisation providing a range of people centred social services to individuals and families in County Clare for over 55 years. Current services provided include Family Support, Older Person Services (comprising of Home Support, Day Centres and Social Worker Older Persons) and Bushypark Addiction Treatment Services. Clarecare’s headquarters are based in Ennis with local offices in Shannon, Kilrush, Killaloe and Ennistymon. Further information is available on www.clarecare.ie and www.bushypark.ie JOB DESCRIPTION: Project Worker (Full-time, 1 year fixed term contract - with possibility of extension, subject to funding)To work as part of the HSE funded Pilot Cocaine Initiative Project, through Bushypark Treatment Centre for the Mid-West Region ROLE: Project Worker to support clients and family members impacted by cocaine and other polydrug substance mis-use in the Mid-West Region.JOB RELATIONS: The Project worker will work as part of the Bushypark Cocaine Team and will report to the Project Co-ordinator or designate with support from the Counselling Team and Centre Manager or designate where relevant.JOB LOCATION: The Project Worker will be part of the Bushypark Team and will normally be based out of Ennis, Co. Clare with flexibility to travel within the Mid-Western Region is essential e.g. Limerick/Tipperary.JOB DETAILS: The successful candidate will work as part of the Cocaine Team in Bushypark and liaise regularly with same. Flexibility and willingness to travel and work outside of normal hours is necessary. Training and supervision will be provided to the successful candidate.CONTRACT TYPE: This is a full-time, 1 year fixed term contract of employment to March 2025 (with possibility of extension subject to funding).HOURS OF WORK: The working week is 37.5 hours per week which includes 30 mins daily lunch break. You will normally work on a Monday to Friday basis. Some evening work and 1 Saturday morning every 5 weeks will be required as the project evolves. Your work days/hours are subject to change and flexibility regarding work days/hours is required in this position. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE POSITION: General Responsibilities:· To be accountable to the Project Co-ordinator or designate.· To adhere to both Clarecare and Bushypark policies and procedures in relation to your work.· To maintain files in accordance with HRB and CHKS accreditation standards in order to ensure that good record keeping practices are in place.· To fulfil the administrative responsibilities of the post.· To complete statistics as required by the line manager. · To maintain professional boundaries in all work with clients· To comply with the clinical standards of the Centre· To support the work of staff, volunteers, students and others involved in Bushypark and Clarecare.· To actively participate in regular external personal supervision as required by your accrediting body and provide receipt of attendance. · To actively participate in meeting with your Line Manager.· To engage in in-house and other relevant training and to keep up to date with new developments in addiction, counselling and psychotherapy. · To perform such other duties appropriate to the position as may be assigned to you by the Polydrug Co-ordinator or designate.Principal Duties and Responsibilities:Clinical Practice: · To actively promote positive health outcomes for clients through holistic interventions· Advocate for clients and ensure they are consulted and involved in their care plans· One to one work with clients with addiction issues and their concerned persons.· Developing individual strategies and care plans with service users.· Developing aftercare plans with clients and family members in conjunction with team· Assess and identify needs of clients and help to design to care plans· Liaising with referral agencies and other relevant services.· Preparation and delivery of psycho-education with individuals where required· Case managing clients where necessary in line with NDRIC.· Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team and on own initiative. · Support clients and concerned persons pre and post treatment via phone / on-line platforms.· Assist clients in accessing a range of community resources to build recovery capital· Development of progression routes for clients including referrals to self-help groups, community initiatives and other specialised services· Participate in Clinical Multi-disciplinary Team meetings and liaise with GP’s and/or other primary health care staff, Psychiatric Services, Statutory/Voluntary and other agencies as required.· Observe professional ethical standards and behaviours as required by Bushypark/Clarecare policies and guidelines e.g. Children First, Safeguarding Vulnerable Persons at Risk of Abuse, Freedom of information Act, Data Protection Act, etc and requirements of relevant Professional Accrediting Bodies, ensuring confidentiality of records and security of same. · Maintaining relevant records and files as required by Bushypark and Clarecare.· Facilitate and participate in clinical audits and quality audit projects when required. Essential Requirements: · A professional qualification to at least Level 7 on the Irish National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) - QQI in Social Care/Applied Social Studies in Social Care or related discipline. Related disciplines are: Counselling and Psychotherapy, Youth and Community Work, Psychology, Social Science and Nursing OR· Have an equivalent qualification and full registration from another jurisdiction. AND · A minimum of 2 years’ relevant experience of working with addiction, mental health, trauma and/or with vulnerable clientsAND· Candidates must possess knowledge of some of the following interventions: CBT, Brief Interventions, Motivational Interviewing, SMART Recovery, SFT, CRA and Craft.· An understanding of the nature of addiction, trauma and related issues.· Understand the principles of harm reduction and the issues associated with providing services in outreach environments.· An ability to work in a service where clients are presenting with multiple and complex needs.· Excellent communication (both written and verbal) and interpersonal skills with the ability to work on own initiative and as part of a developing team.· Well-developed computer skills i.e. MS Word, Excel and Outlook to facilitate you devising reports and care plans, etc.· Excellent organisational and planning skills.· Lone working applies.· Be committed to his/her continuous professional development (CPD).· Be willing to work 1 Saturday mornings x every 5 weeks.· Ability to maintain the principles of confidentiality in all areas of work.· 2 positive references from current/most recent paid employment.· Positive current Garda Vetting Disclosure via Clarecare.· Undertake a Pre-employment Medical Assessment· Undertake any other relevant duties as assigned.· Full clean driving licence. Desirable· Training in addiction studies· Good working knowledge of local service provisionSalary & Benefits:The gross salary & benefits on offer for this 1 year full-time, fixed term contract (which may be extended, subject to continued funding) is commensurate with relevant experience. The gross salary on offer is €35,000. Benefits:· 26 days annual leave per annum for full-time staff, excluding Public Holidays – entitlement.· In-house supervision provided by the Poly Drug Co-ordinator or designate.· Free access to Employee Assistance Programme Services via VHI.· Defined Contribution Pension Scheme Membership on successful completion of probation (6 months duration).· Payroll deduction facility for Health Insurance cover with VHI or LAYA.· Cycle to Work Scheme.· Access to Sick Pay Scheme full terms on successful completion of probation (6 months duration).· Access to Clarecare’s Wellness Programmes. NOTE: The foregoing contains an outline of the main duties and cannot be complete. You will be required to respond flexibly when ad hoc tasks arise which are not specifically covered in this job description. This includes additional duties which may arise from future legislation affecting the Charities sector. Further information on Bushypark Addiction Treatment Services Bushypark Addiction Treatment Centre (Clarecare service) provides a range of community and residential based supports for clients and family members impacted by addiction. Bushypark was established in 1991 in response to an identified need for a residential service in addition to the development of community-based services supporting clients from the Mid-West Region to access addiction related supports. The opening of the service also supported the development of other groups and initiatives providing support for people impacted by a range of addictions and associated behaviours.Over the past 33 years in excess of 14,000 persons have accessed a range of services provided by Bushypark. Almost 4,500 clients have undertaken the 28-day residential treatment programme, while over 12,500 persons have accessed a range of community-based supports. Bushypark provides services from its centre located 3 miles outside Ennis with outreach services provided across the region. Over the 33 years since its inception, Bushypark has seen a significant change in the drug use and behaviours and underlying issues for clients presenting to all of our services. There has been a significant shift from alcohol only clients to those presenting with polydrug use. We have also seen a massive increase in the number of clients presenting with dual diagnosis.In response to these changes in patterns, Bushypark has made changes to ensure that it remains responsive to client needs and to improve outcomes for clients presenting to our many services. These main changes include-:- Development of a dual diagnosis project – we have a weekly dual diagnosis group run by a Counsellor and trained SMART facilitator who works with clients who have engaged with services in the Mid-West Region to address their addiction and underlying mental health issues. This project is delivered using a blended approach of online and face to face provision- While the Minnesota model had been at the centre of the service’s philosophy for many years, the model has evolved to an even more client centred approach and to a more holistic biopsychosocial model, while maintaining abstinence as a goal for clients attending the residential programme. Bushypark recognises harm reduction for clients attending community-based services of pre- treatment and for the cocaine and polydrugs community programmes.- Introduction of a ‘Health and Wellness Programme’ that is incorporated into the residential programme and has become a recovery pathway for clients post treatment and for those engaging in our community services. This programme includes sports activities, nutrition, mentoring, yoga, art, chaplaincy and GP site visits as a way of supporting clients to build their own resources and capacity to attain recovery within their local communities. We have links with external agencies who deliver these activities on our behalf both inhouse and externally. - Bushypark services incorporates a trauma informed approach to the care of the clients who engage with our services. Ongoing training and supervision for staff in this area ensures that this remains a key value of our work across all our services.- As the clinical services provided to clients are delivered by accredited counsellors and psychotherapists, clients are supported to deal with a range of underlying issues to assist them in understanding their substance misuse and associated behaviours. Underlying issues presenting include Adverse Childhood Experiences, Trauma, Abuse, Loss, Neglect and other presenting issues. By understanding and dealing with these issues, the clients are afforded with the opportunity to develop long-term recovery pathways without the use of substances and fewer relapse episodesThrough our ongoing training and staff continuous personal development programmes we continuously strive towards maintaining the highest possible standards of client care and ensure that we are delivering the most effective interventions of treatment for our clients. Bushypark holds full CHKS accreditation, a quality standard that covers all aspects of the service from clinical care to corporate governance in addition to various service related standards for catering, estate management etc. This accreditation ensures that quality improvement is key to all aspects of our work and that we are working on continuous improvement strategies to enhance the services we provide and to improve client experiences and outcomes across all our programmes.Bushypark has experience of working with gender-based issues, ethnic minority groups and for people presenting with a complexity of issues to its many services over the yearsThe HSE through its Estate Management Capital Programme are funding a significant capital expansion programme for Bushypark Treatment Centre to enhance its capacity for both its residential and its community-based supports provision. This development which is currently underway is recognition of the need for the additional service provision in the area of addiction and is aligned with the goals of the National Drug and Alcohol Strategy ‘Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery – A health led response to drug and alcohol use in Ireland 2017-2025’. It will allow us to increase our residential beds by 34% and to expand pre-treatment and post treatment supports including expanded access for external groups and projectsIn 2022, we completed renovations to the family centre on the grounds of Bushypark into ‘A Health and Wellness Centre’. This standalone building currently hosts a range of outreach and community-based groups and projects. This building will provide a base for further enhanced project into the future and will allow for the development of day and community projects.Both of these capital investments will assist Bushypark to significantly increase our capacity to deliver services for clients from all parts of the Country both for its community and its residential programmes. It will provide a base for outreach work and for the further expansion and development of online resources. This development is strategically aligned to Strategic Priority 2 of the NDS as outlined above to ‘enhance access to and delivery of drug and alcohol services in the community’. As part of our work we also deliver actions across other Strategic Priority areas, including SIG 3 ‘Develop Integrated Care Pathways for high risk drug users to achieve better health outcomes’ and also Sig 4 ‘Address the social determinants and consequences of drug and alcohol use in disadvantaged areas’. Bushypark secured funding to develop a gym facility on the grounds of the service which enables us to provide a skills-based programme for clients attending various Bushypark services in terms of sport, activity and nutrition. It provides a pathway for clients through the Sports Partnerships to continue to engage in a range of activities post treatment and to support/encourage children and family members also to engage in a range of ‘Health and Wellness’ based activitiesThe polydrugs project at Bushypark supported the development of a pilot project in the West Clare area facilitated by Clare Sports Partnership, particularly focusing on Kilrush/West Clare area, an area of very high deprivation figures and high levels of substance abuse including cocaine. This project has been a very successful inter-agency initiative that received funding to contract a links worker under the Healthy Ireland Initiative. t. As a very successful model of reducing relapse rates and for engaging with and sustaining hard to reach clients it has proven to be an excellent model that we are proposing to replicate in other parts of the region in conjunction with the MWRDAF and other agenciesOver the past 15 years, Bushypark continued to see Cocaine use as being one of the top 3 drugs presenting in conjunction with alcohol, cannabis and/or prescribed medications. Similar to other services and in line with the findings of the HRB we have seen a significant increase in the numbers of clients identifying cocaine as being their primary drug of choice since 2018, with a very acute increase on this in the past 18 months, we are therefore well placed within the region to develop and expand our current service to an increased case load and to a wider geographical community. In 2020, 37% of clients presenting to Bushypark had cocaine as their primary addiction. In 2022, this figure had increased to 46%, a 16% increase in 2 years. This is in addition to a marked increase in the number of clients presenting with polydrug use, including cocaine as one of many drugs of choice. To deal with the growing trend of cocaine use presenting both to our community based and residential based services, Bushypark in conjunction with the HSE in Mid-West Region and the MWRDAF were successful in an application to the National Social Inclusion Office for a dedicated Cocaine Initiative Project for the Mid-West Region. The project commenced in October 2022 with the recruitment and training of staff and the development of procedures and protocols for the project. Following 16 months of work, the project has far surpassed its KPI’s thus acknowledging the skills and competence of the staff involved and also the need for the project in the areaClients are met on a one to one basis in addition to the provision of group and online support. In addition to this family members are also supported on a one to one and through group supports to deal with the impact of a loved one’s cocaine use. Various workshops are held for clients engaging with the services and themed groups are held in response to issues as they emerge. Presentations are made to GAA clubs, schools and work places thus providing educational supports for the community and the pathways for referral and recoveryThe Polydrug Project delivers initiatives, online, face to face and in group settings. The project also undertakes family conferences, inter-agency case management and collaboration work to ensure that the client gets the best outcomes. The Polydrug Co-ordinator who runs this project in conjunction with a group of trained facilitators uses a number of key skills and interventions in dealing with clients impacted by cocaine addiction, these include – Brief Intervention, Motivational Interviewing, SMART Recovery Principles, and CBT. Individual treatment planning and developing recovery capital are key elements for the client in moving from a using stage to a recovery stage.
If you are seeing this message it may be an redirection error,
please contact our support with this code:
TW96aWxsYS81LjAgQXBwbGVXZWJLaXQvNTM3LjM2IChLSFRNTCwgbGlrZSBHZWNrbzsgY29tcGF0aWJsZTsgQ2xhdWRlQm90LzEuMDsgK2NsYXVkZWJvdEBhbnRocm9waWMuY29tKQ==