Behavioral Health Intern

Job Description

About company

MyMichigan Health is a technology-driven healthcare organization that values teamwork, caring, and compassion. They are committed to providing excellent customer service, both internally and externally. The organization promotes continuous learning, offering further learning opportunities to its employees, and maintains strict adherence to safety protocols, including required bloodborne pathogen and TB testing.

Job Description, Detailed

Job Title: Behavioral Health Intern

Summary of the Role:
The Behavioral Health Intern position offers a vital opportunity to gain hands-on experience directly working with patients in a healthcare setting. Interns will contribute to meaningful projects under the direct supervision of experienced licensed behavioral health professionals (MSW, LPC, LP), ensuring their learning aligns with their academic credentials. A core responsibility involves assessing patients’ psychosocial, spiritual, educational, and other needs. Beyond assessment, interns are integral in providing coordination, treatment, and aftercare to patients. They will collaborate closely with their supervisor to develop and implement individualized care plans and interventions. Working as an active member of the interdisciplinary treatment team, interns will become proficient in planning, executing, and monitoring the effectiveness of care. A key aspect of the role is providing resources to patients, which requires the ability to analyze, evaluate, and discuss information in a manner understandable across all educational levels. The intern plays a pivotal role in maintaining the quality of patient care, actively monitoring patient progress on action plans and goals, and maintaining accurate and up-to-date patient records and documentation. Some behavioral health interns may also contribute to program development, including researching, collating information, collecting/analyzing data, and preparing materials, reports, and presentations for new initiatives.

Key Responsibilities:

• Clinical Assessment & Intervention (Under Supervision):
• Assesses the clinical status of patients.
• Identifies and intervenes with “at-risk” patients to prevent further psychological or physical deterioration.
• Consults with the internship supervisor as needed and facilitates referrals to other behavioral health providers for longer-term specialty care.
• Patient Engagement & Care Coordination:
• Ensures patient engagement and consistent follow-up care.
• Collaborates with the care team to efficiently and effectively treat and manage patients with emotional and/or physical health problems.
• Provides cognitive-behavioral interventions using evidence-based techniques.
• Assists in preventing relapse for conditions prone to recurrence.
• Utilizes assessment tools for identifying concerns, triaging, and outcomes measurement.
• Systematically documents treatment response and monitors patients (in-person or by telephone) for changes in clinical symptoms, treatment side effects, or complications.
• Works with the healthcare team, patient, family, and/or significant others to transition patients to appropriate levels/places of care.
• Actively participates in care coordination efforts, identifying high-risk factors and documenting key information and next steps.
• Is an active participant in care coordination meetings.
• Resource Provision & Advocacy:
• Obtains and maintains patient education materials about common mental health and substance use disorders, along with local treatment options for distribution and education.
• Advocates, mediates, negotiates, and navigates with an emphasis on self-determination for the patient system, to formulate cohesive plans for health improvement, enhanced social supports, and safe transition to less restrictive care levels.
• Assists in obtaining financial and other resources for patients and families in need.
• Analyzes, evaluates, and discusses resources and educational information to ensure understanding across all educational levels.
• Documentation & Compliance:
• Maintains timely, clear, and concise documentation in all required systems.
• Provides pertinent clinical data to designated outside agencies to ensure compliance with their requirements.
• Assures compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Completes all documentation and data entry requirements.
• Under supervision, completes and disseminates all necessary legal and clinical documentation as needed for resolution.
• Team Collaboration & Program Development:
• Collaborates with the treatment team on competency/capacity determination, obtaining legal guardianship, involuntary psychiatric admission, and ethical concerns.
• Collaborates with the team to provide information relating to admission, continued stay, discharge criteria, managed care, federal program regulations, reimbursement fundamentals, and regulatory standards.
• Assists in program development for groups and patient education tools (e.g., depression, pain, insomnia, stress).
• For some interns, contributes ideas and feedback to the development of new programs and initiatives, including research, information collation, data collection/analysis, and report/presentation preparation.
• Discharge Planning & Family Engagement:
• Completes and documents a standard assessment to eliminate barriers to treatment and discharge, increase patient/family satisfaction, and improve resource utilization.
• Identifies the need for and conducts family meetings (with or without the physician) that result in understanding, comfort, decision-making, and other important outcomes like discharge.
• Integrates relevant theories of family dynamics, crisis intervention, strengths-based, solution-focused, trauma, and meaning of illness into everyday casework.
• Summarizes patient and family situations concisely, providing helpful guidance to non-behavioral health staff members about recommended actions and discharge barriers.
• Facilitates discharge planning for patients, including extended care placements, other facility transfers, and home care arrangements in collaboration with the healthcare team.
• Professionalism & Customer Service:
• Attends applicable meetings and actively contributes.
• Builds professional relationships with patients, families, facilities, and resources to address conflict resolution with positive outcomes.
• Willingly and consistently offers to help peers as needed.
• Communicates teamwork, caring, and compassion.
• Provides excellent customer service to both internal and external customers.
• Performs all other duties as assigned.

Certifications and Licensure:
• N/A (Not applicable for this intern role).

Required Education:
• Bachelor’s degree is required.
• Candidates must be currently enrolled in a Master’s or Doctoral Degree program in Social Work, Psychology, or Professional Counseling.

Experience, Training, and Skills:

• Interpersonal skills necessary to communicate successfully with individuals and groups, and to interact with people at all levels, conveying ideas and concepts clearly.
• Adherence to the Code of Ethics for the degree pursued (Social Work, Psychology, or Professional Counseling).
• Competency in Microsoft® Windows.
• Willingness to participate in further learning opportunities offered by MyMichigan Health.

Physical/Mental Requirements and Typical Working Conditions:

• Exposure to stressful situations, including public contact, trauma, grief, and death.
• Ability to wear personal protective equipment (PPE), including latex materials or appropriate substitutes if required.
• Ability to move freely about the facility with or without an assisted device and perform outlined job functions.
• Overall vision and hearing are necessary, with or without assisted devices.
• Frequently required to sit, stand, and walk in a healthcare setting, including walking between buildings on campus.
• May require postural changes such as stooping, kneeling, or crouching.
• Some exposure to bloodborne pathogens and other potentially infectious material; adherence to MyMichigan Health’s bloodborne pathogen and TB testing requirements is mandatory.
• Ability to handle multiple tasks, get along with others, work independently, maintain regular and predictable attendance, and stay awake during shifts.
• Overall dexterity is required, including handling, reaching, grasping, fingering, and feeling, potentially with regular to frequent repetition.
• Physical Demand Level: Sedentary. Must be able to occasionally (0-33% of the workday) lift or carry 0-10 lbs.