This paper is a brief 4 page description and interview of the work of a director in the Department of Behavioral Health of San Bernardino County. The interview includes how the director performs her duties and what it took for her to achieve her position including education level requirements and experience.
CA Sonya Thomas
268 West Hospitality Lane Suite 400
(909) [HIDDEN] Fax [HIDDEN]
CaSonya Thomas is a director in the director's office at the county of San Bernardino -- Department of Behavioral Health. (County of San Bernardino - Department of Behavioral Health, n.d.)This department is responsible for the "overall planning, implementation, direction, coordination, and evaluation of the Department of Behavioral Health." (County of San Bernardino - Department of Behavioral Health, n.d.) Specifically, the responsibilities of the office Ms. Thomas is apart of is grant writing applications, developing assessment protocols, and regulations interpreting. The Department of Behavioral Health Administration section has meetings with State and local agencies, communication with citizen advisory boards, and communication with other public and private agencies.
Along with the myriad of services provided by the Department of Behavioral Health are Adult programs. These adult programs include: Adult Residential Services Clinic, Conservatorship Investigation Unit, Employment Services Program, Housing Program, Mentally ill Homeless Program, and Agewise program. Below is a brief description of each and what they offer.
The Adult Residential Services Clinic offers assistance in placement to other programs and case management. Their goal is to move people to a level of care that is not restrictive as quickly as possible. This program provides liasons between state hospitals, IMD's, and Augmented Board and Care facilities.
The Conservatorship Investigation Unit as its name states assists people referred for a Lanterman-Petris-Short conservatorship. It also helps prepare their legal documents as well as help those who are unfit to stand trial. The Employment Services Program as the name suggests, assists people who are mentally ill find and acquire full or part time employment. This program provides employment skills such as computer competency, and job coaching.
The Housing Program as well as the Mentally ill Homeless program assists mentally ill people who are homeless or in need of housing acquire housing and become self sufficient. They provide basic needs such as food and clothing as well as social workers and employment opportunities. There some limitations to this program such as lack of avaliable space and restricted time in program.
Lastly, the Agewise Profram is an in-home "behavioral health and case management services to mentally ill older adults (60+ years of age). (County of San Bernardino - Department of Behavioral Health, n.d.) For services we cannot provide Agewise assists in linking clients to available community resources. Trained Senior Peer Counselors act as group leaders for clients and non-clients in their communities." Like the staff in the adminstrative section of the department, staff in this program use an approach that enables communication between other agencies in order to find appropriate assistance. The goal of this program is to prevent premature institutionalization.
What makes this department unique is the crisis services made available to the public as well as the mobile response teams. They help anyone experiencing a mental break down get the help, medication, and referrals needed to improve their lives. In fact this department helps many people suffering from mental health problems to better themselves and save their lives through constant and daily assistance. They also have courts and children's services.
The department houses detox programs for people dependent on alcohol and/or drugs. There are outpatient as well as residential facilities. As well as treatment, they offer placement just like with the housing programs and assistance in self sufficiency.
CaSonya Thomas was very kind to complete the interview with the questions provided for the assignment. These were her responses:
• What is your primary responsibility?
My primary responsibility as director in the director's office is to provide on point evaluations and effective communication to my staff on a daily basis. There are a number of cases daily that need to be supervised and/or investigated. It is my duty to oversee and communicate.
• Who are the department's customers?
The customers are not so much customers as they are people who are typically in need of help. Some have insurance and private funding. Most rely on the state and federal government to provide financial assistance. A lot of the people that come in have a history of mental health problems.
• What was your career path to this point?
My career path was in adminstration. I found and took early on supervisory jobs in order to build my resume and gain the experience needed to apply for this position. Even if it was just a manager position in a store when I was 20, that slowly built up my communication skills and expertise in my field.
• What are the educational requirements for the position?
Typically for a position such as director, you need an MBA or Masters in Business Administration. This degree lets the company or organization you want to work for know you did and will continue to do work that will help them in maintaining a functioning and efficient workplace. An MBA requires good grades and excellent communication with others.
• Did your education adequately prepare you for the various facets of your job?
I would say yes and no. In the end you can have several degrees on your wall, but if you don't have the actual experience behind it, the degree is just a very expensive piece of paper. What people want most is experience. I've seen some get by with just their high school diploma because they have years of experience in the kind of job they apply for. Experience is weighed more than education, although education is still very important
• What educational preparation would you recommend?
Obviously you need you MBA, that's a given especially for today's economic climate and try to get supervisory or management experience.
• What are similar positions like in other organizations?
There are director of operations in business that have a similar duty as me and require the same educational experience.
• What is the most important attribute for success in your position?
As was mentioned before, success in my position requires experience which can only be done by getting out there and applying for jobs that will get you to where you want to go. If I hadn't of gotten jobs in management, I would never be able to handle the work load I have now. Through the years I've learned to deal with a variety of people and circumstances and have learned how to effectively communicate with others. Communication is key in anything you do
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