Youth and Family Therapist – Live-in Treatment (LIT)

Who we are

YouthLink believes in the potential of every youth, and we are dedicated to providing them with the support, guidance and opportunities they need to make positive life choices. We provide youth with brief and ongoing counselling, in-home wraparound support, shelter, housing, educational support, and safe drop-in spaces.

Guided by our mission and inspired by the potential to make a profound impact, Youthlink works closely with youth, families and partners in our community. We come together to highlight and develop strengths, aspirations and positive actions that improve the health and well-being of all who live, work, study and play in our community. As a service delivery organization, we leverage data-driven decision-making and grassroots engagement with youth advisory councils to create an inclusive, innovative, and responsive agency that provides the best fit and most needed services for our communities.

If you are seeking a meaningful opportunity and want to play a key role in bringing our vision for a stronger Scarborough where all youth and families thrive, join us.

(Permanent Full-time, 35 hours/week)

Bargaining Unit Position

This position is responsible for providing high quality individual, family and group psychotherapy services for YouthLink’s Live-In Treatment (LIT) Home. LIT is a nine-bed live-in treatment home for female identified youth (14-18) and youth who are gender fluid, non-binary and transitioning. The program is for young people who would benefit from intensive live-in treatment looking to address their mental health and emotional wellness.

Reporting to the LIT Manager for day-to-day operations at LIT, and the Senior Clinical Manager(s) for Clinical Supervision, this position develops and implements group therapy curriculum, maintaining confidential and accurate client records for all psychotherapy interactions in the electronic health record (EHR). Attachment and family-focused models of intervention, as well as integrating lenses that are healing-centered, trauma-informed, and prioritize equity, anti-racism, and inclusion are expected. 

A flexible work schedule and approach is required to ensure service accessibility. The position assumes responsibility of a caseload primarily from the LIT program, though may support other clinical services as needed, generating a minimum of 15 attended individual, family and/or group sessions and 17.5 direct client contact hours per week.  Based in Scarborough, the successful candidate must be deeply competent in, and committed to, promoting equity and Black excellence in everything YouthLink does.

Your Role

Assessment & Treatment Planning

• Establishes and builds rapport through routine contact to initiate the facilitation of a therapeutic alliance and space.
• Ensures informed consent is received prior to proceeding with assessment and/or external communications; utilizes PHIPA to guide the process.
• Completes a Bio/Psycho/Social/Spiritual Assessment including intergenerational content to formalize case conceptualization.
• Determines appropriate assessment tools to administer to enhance the assessment formulation; risk assessment and safety planning as required.
• Administers, interprets and delivers results of appropriate, specialized, standardized clinical assessments and utilizes this information to enhance the LIT Plan of Care.
• Delivers professional recommendations for level of care and life areas for improvement to LIT team, clients and family members, where appropriate.
• Engages collaboratively with care team, youth and families to create Treatment Plans that enhance LIT Plan of Care, representing therapeutic goals and assessment recommendations.

Individual, Group & Family Therapy

• Creates an atmosphere that allows for client intrapsychic change; supporting clients in attaining goals and a higher quality of life.
• Provides psychotherapeutic and case management/coordination service, informed by a trauma lens, attachment, and family systems theories, as well as an anti-oppression, anti-racism and equity framework.
• Provides clinical services throughout YouthLink’s continuum of care, engaging youth and families in multiple levels of care as part of treatment planning, both internally and externally, to improve individual and family functioning.
• Develops and delivers psychotherapy interventions appropriate for client’s presenting issues.
• Researches and prepares appropriate documents and other resources for clients and the LIT team.
• De-escalates individual, family and group situations as it relates to psychotherapy.
• Directs and implements safety planning for new LIT clients and both suicidal and homicidal outpatient clients.
• Reports to the appropriate person or body any incidents that may jeopardize client, staff or community safety.
• Develops professionally through individual clinical supervision having an isomorphic impact on the client.
• Develops and delivers group psychoeducation and group therapy, for youth and caregivers with similar presenting issues.
• Understands the importance of outcome measures; delivering reliable measures in the process of individual, group and family psychotherapy.
• Provides flexible services that ensure accessibility for youth and families, including evening sessions on at least two evenings per week.
• Takes all necessary precautions to ensure client confidentiality and privacy.

Report Writing and Documentation

• Formulates timely, standardized, succinct, Clinical Reports at the time of Assessment, Treatment Review and End of Service; these reports enhance the LIT Plans of Care for clients who are at LIT.
• Actively participates in, creates, documents and regularly reviews safety plans/risk assessments.
• Prepares Ministry of Health Serious Occurrence reports and internal incident reports, when appropriate.
• Records accurate clinical notes contemporaneously.
• Takes all necessary precautions to ensure client confidentiality and privacy.

Health Record Management

• Maintains records and reports as required by Ministry guidelines, Accreditation and YouthLink policies and procedures.
• Ensures clear, accurate and consistent client file management, including maintaining electronic document filing and physical records.
• Opens and closes clinical files according to best practice.
• Supports data collection and program evaluation by maintaining complete and consistent records.
• Takes all necessary precautions to ensure client confidentiality and privacy.

Meetings, Committees and Collaborative Networking

• Collaborates with the LIT and Clinical team to deliver programs across the continuum of care, contributing to onboarding of new counsellors/therapists in program processes.
• Incorporates an intersectional lens that includes all community members promoting diversity and equity into practice.
• Participates in Community initiatives and engagements.
• Attends and participates in team meetings and internal committees, providing the clinical lens and recommendations to the LIT team for day-to day interactions.
• Collaborates across organizational boundaries to achieve common goals.
• Develops professionally through group supervision, team meetings, case consultations, clinical rounds, community of practice, internal and external training events.
• Contributes to the Agency’s Strategic Plan by participating in initiatives and committees to support the overall plan.
• Takes all reasonable and necessary precautions to protect own health and safety and that of co-workers by complying and demonstrating knowledge of the policies, procedures and safe practices established by YouthLink.

Other duties as assigned.

What You Bring

Education and Training: 

• Master’s degree in a therapy/psychotherapy related field.
• Licensure/registration in a regulated health college which permits the delivery of the Act of Psychotherapy.
• Associate or Clinical Membership with the Canadian Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (CAMFT) or Ontario Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (OAMFT) is an asset.
• Coursework specific to family systems theory is an asset.
• Coursework that demonstrates the ability to provide clinical supervision to Master’s Level students engaged in practicum or internship for psychotherapy is an asset.
• ASSIST Certification is an asset.

Experience: 

• Minimum of (2) years post masters experience providing healing-centered engagement practices, trauma-informed individual psychotherapy to youth and/or adults.
• Minimum of (2) years post masters experience facilitating psych-educational and group therapy.
• Experience working in a Live-In Treatment setting is preferred.
• Experience providing service to youth and their families through complex mental health challenges, crisis management and safety planning.
• Experience with attachment and developmental approaches in working with youth and families.
• Experience with substance use/harm reduction theory and practice as applied to youth and families.
• Expertise working with 2SLGBTQIA+ youth and their families.
• Experience supporting BIPOC communities and working with youth and families from diverse cultural and socio-economic backgrounds; providing high quality, culturally safe, anti-racist support.
• Experience working in a Children’s Mental Health setting is an asset.
• Expertise in group curriculum development is an asset.
• Experience providing family therapy from a systemic framework is preferred.
• Experience providing clinical supervision to Master’s Level students engaged in practicum or internship is an asset.

Additional Requirements:

• Must be able to obtain a Vulnerable Sector Police Check.
• Medical clearances including up to date vaccinations and tuberculosis testing.

Full job description available here: https://youthlink.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/JD-Youth-and-Family-Therapist-LIT_Nov-2024.pdf

Work Conditions: 

• This position requires evening hours of at least 2 evenings per week with individual and family sessions ending at 8:00 pm. There are some risks involved in this position such as crisis management. 
• Time will be primarily spent at the Live-In Treatment Home, though travel to other YouthLink or community locations may be required.
• Minimal travelling required.

Salary Range:  Starting $65,914.

Join us.

YouthLink's core values define what we stand for and how we operate, helping us to work together in the most fulfilling ways.

We value leadership, acting in ways that exemplify what we expect of each other and our clients. We work together, bringing out the best in each other and creating strong working relationships. Our professional ethics are evident in all the work we do and the decisions we make.

We value humanity and show consideration for people, their abilities, skills, diversity and perspectives. We create an inclusive workplace that celebrates individual differences and, through our actions, demonstrates empathy, goodwill and honesty.

We value innovation, demonstrating flexibility and changeability in adapting to our work and community dynamics. We show courage in developing service initiatives that will improve the well-being of our clients and their families.

We value respect for people for who they are and for their knowledge, skills and experience as individuals and team members. We treat clients with respect and fairness and encourage the same in return.

We value excellence, demonstrating competence and accountability in delivering client services. We display clear judgment and exhibit clear thinking and reasoning in all situations. We continually strive to accomplish all tasks and provide an outstanding service for our clients.

Benefits

At YouthLink, we understand the nature of our work and the deep commitment every team member offers. We strive to provide a rewarding compensation and benefits package to support our people. This includes:

• Comprehensive health and dental coverage for you and your family, with 100% of the premiums fully covered.
• Annual vacation with pay at 1.66 working days for each calendar month to a maximum of 20 working days per year.
• 5 ‘authorized absence’ days for family illness or emergency circumstances that prohibit employees from reporting to work.
• 3 paid agency days every calendar year after 3 calendar months service.
• Maternity / parental /adoption leave top-up payments (to top-up Canadian government unemployment benefit payments).
• 100% premium cost for long-term disability coverage paid by employee.
• Eligibility to participate in the pension plan after 2 years of continuous service with a generous matching employer contribution.

Apply now.

We welcome applications from candidates who reflect the communities we serve, particularly candidates from Black communities, Indigenous communities, racialized people, persons with disabilities, members of diverse gender identities and people with lived experiences. 

We are seeking candidates who demonstrably operate and practice from an equity and trauma-informed lens. We encourage applications from passionate professionals who will help us dismantle systemic barriers and embrace working outside of Euro-centric practices.  

If you meet 70% of the qualifications we are looking for and share 100% of our passion and commitment to supporting youth and their families, please submit your application. We can’t promise to hire you; we can promise to review your lived and learned experiences fully.

We are committed to providing equitable employment opportunities and a workplace free from discrimination and harassment. We are equally committed to providing an inclusive and accessible workplace. If you require accommodations at any stage of the interview process, please email us at [email protected].