Psychiatrist

Job Summary
The IHSC mission is comprehensive and the unique detention environment requires a broad clinical background. The core scope of practice includes but is not limited to: evaluation, formulation of diagnoses, and treatment of psychiatric and mental health care needs, including family units; urgent and emergency mental health care, public health management, case management, collaboration with an interdisciplinary team, and gender specific care, including transgender care and management of mental health care during pregnancy. All health care provided to ICE detainees is governed by IHSC policy and established detention standards.

Responsibilities

• 1. Provides direct care to patients within discipline Scope of Practice and performs functions in accordance with current accepted practice, licensure, certification, credentialing and or granted privileges.
• 2. Provides treatment of persons throughout the life span as appropriate to discipline and facility setting.
• 3. Provides telepsychiatry services for patients at other IHSC facilities as needed and as the local facility allows, only in the states the provider is licensed, to include:
• Working with the patient’s local primary care provider (PCP) to coordinate care for
• any identified medical concerns (patient’s local administrative staff will coordinate
• the appointment).
• Using IHSC video teleconferencing equipment and electronic medical records (EMR)
• software to examine and record the patient’s plan of care.
• Telepsychiatry services will be provided in accordance with the IHSC Tele-Mental
• Health Services policy.
• OPTIONAL: Provider may choose to obtain additional state licensing, outside of thestate of his/her duty station, to provide out-of-state telepsychiatry services.
• 4. May be expected to respond to and or coordinate response to medical emergencies.
• 5. Prescribes and monitors psychiatric medication treatment services including monitoring the side effects of medication and/or adverse reactions.
• 6. Offers comprehensive psycho-educational information with each medication/somatic treatment regarding the patient’s mental illness, emotional disturbance or behavior disorder, treatment goals, potential benefits and the risk of treatment, self-monitoring aids, and identifies support groups for therapeutic assistance.
• 7. Utilizes the evidence-based algorithms for decision-making regarding patient assessment and medication management.
• 8. Utilizes evidence-based tools (i.e. Assessment of Involuntary Movement Scale) in the identification of risks associated with medication induced movement disorders.
• 9. Adheres to medical standards in accordance with IHSC policies, American Psychiatric
• Association standards, and legal requirements.
• 10. Determines the need for core treatment and specialty services for identified patients in a full range of psychiatric problems.
• 11. Performs various diagnostic and treatment procedures, including cognitive and behavioral psychotherapy, supportive individual and group psychotherapy, somatic therapies (including the use of traditional and atypical drugs).
• 12. Provides professional, recovery based psychiatric care considerate of cultural and ethnic diversity and focuses on empowering individuals to change their own lives.
• 13. Assures patients are treated with dignity and are consulted when evaluating and/or revising treatment and services.
• 14. Utilizes evidence-based practices to promote recovery, reduces stigma and unconditionally enhance the quality of life.
• 15. Assures a positive therapeutic milieu exists during treatment and emphasizes recovery goals.
• 16. Participates in comprehensive performance improvement and utilization management plans to include
• Quality and appropriateness of services,
• Evaluation of patient-based functions,
• Decreasing the escalation of healthcare costs, and
• Improvement in patient outcomes.
• 17. Prepares or oversees the preparation of documentation, testimony, and written orders needed for care, treatment, medical records, legal actions, referrals, performance development, credentials/privileges, and administrative requirements.
• 18. Provides subject matter expertise to staff in all matters pertaining to mental health treatment (modalities and medications), and mental health programs both domestic and international.
• 19. Analyzes public health care trends, in the mental health area, of related special population groups and assists in developing and implementing policies and guidelines to improve mental health services of such groups.
• 20. Assumes responsibility for the non-psychiatric medical evaluation, diagnosis and treatment of patients for whom she or he is responsible in the absence of non-psychiatric physicians in emergency situations and within incumbent’s competency and scope of practice.
• 21. Spends at least 60% of time in direct patient care to meet the performance targets set by the IHSC.
• 22. Provides specialized medical services to “outpatients” and provides medical care to inpatients in facilities with a short stay unit. Specific duties involve all aspects of health care delivery. The incumbent will work in concert with both facility staff and consultant specialists in various clinical areas.
• 23. Acts as a mental health consultant to medial staff, providing oversight and direction related to the provision of mental health care.
• 24. Examines and orders appropriate diagnostic testing and provides necessary treatment and/or medications as required. Refers selected cases to consultant specialists when necessary.
• Refers residents requiring hospitalization to a community hospital and to an appropriate admitting physician.
• 25. Ensures that proper evaluations and treatments are carried out and documented. Incumbent shall constantly monitor and evaluate the quality of patient care, providing data to the departmental Performance Improvement program, and other agencies or committees as required.
• 26. May be required to see patients who are not in the category of his/her expertise but within his or her scope of practice.
• 27. Assures proper maintenance of medical records, preparation of reports, etc., as related to the area of responsibility. Makes recommendations on matters of policy, procedures, training, personnel, and equipment as related to specific area of responsibility.
• 28. Performs record keeping functions in accordance with program policies and position.
• 29. Maintains functional proficiency and ease of use utilizing electronic health records as required by, and appropriate to, position.
• 30. Completes and passes all discipline specific competencies testing, initially and annually.
• 31. Completes all initial, annual and ad hoc training as required/assigned.
• 32. Maintains patient confidentiality, and confidentiality of medical records, in compliance with the Privacy Act and HIPAA regulations in all work activities.
• 33. Adheres to, and maintains awareness of, IHSC Policies, Procedures, Directives, Operational Memoranda and accreditation standards as prescribed by ICE/IHSC.
• 34. Adheres to, and participates in, IHSC’s Safety, Prevention, Infection Control, Quality
• Improvement, Patient Education and other programs and collateral duties as appropriate.
• 35. Attends and participates in general/medical staff meetings

Skills

• Knowledge of the indications and contraindications, complications and techniques in the various psychiatric treatment and diagnostic modalities.
• 2. Ability and proficiency to properly use equipment, materials and supplies in simple
• diagnostic and treatment procedures.
• 3. Teaching experience acknowledging a level of expertise and capacity for developing and accessing clinical educational programs.
• 4. Ability to work in a multi-cultural and multi-lingual environment.
• 5. Ability to utilize telephonic interpreter/translation services to complete assigned duties if not fluent in a language the patient understands.
• 6. Ability to adapt to sudden changes in schedules and flexibility in work requirements.
• 7. Ability to communicate proficiently in English (verbal and written) in order to develop positive rapport with patients, co-workers and other stakeholders.
• 8. Verbal and written proficiency in Spanish (preferred, not required).
• 9. Ability to establish and maintain positive working relationships in a multidisciplinary
• environment.
• 10. Ability to navigate in an electronic work environment including use of telehealth equipment, electronic health records, web-based training and communications.
• 11. Knowledge of, and moderate proficiency in, common Microsoft Office programs,
• specifically Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook and SharePoint.
• 12. Knowledge of regulations (HIPAA/Privacy Act) regarding the confidentiality of patient medical records and information as well as Personally Identifiable Information (PII).

We invite qualified candidates who are passionate about improving mental health outcomes to apply for this rewarding opportunity as a Psychiatrist within our organization.