Sr Clinical Program Manager, Mental Health/Strong Minds Program

Company: Special Olympics
Location: Washington
Posted on: May 27, 2023

Job Description:

Special Olympics Inc. (SOI) is an international NGO serving over 5 million with intellectual disabilities (ID) in 193 countries. While best known for its sports opportunities, SOI offers a vast array of health interventions and collects and maintains the largest database on the health of people with intellectual disabilities in the world. SOI's Health strategy is directed towards (1) Preventive care services, including early intervention for those under 8 years of age, fitness programs and public health promotion activities; (2) Assessment services, directed at preventive health screenings and early detection of the most common conditions for people with ID and developing person-centered care coordination and connections to reduce those conditions; (3) Training services, to engage the health care workforce using evidence-based learning activities that employ virtual and hands-on interactions to improve quality of care; and (4) Promoting health systems reform through partnerships with provider and government organizations and promoting strong self-advocacy.

This is an incredible opportunity to be a part of the team that delivers Special Olympics' highly acclaimed Strong Minds health program. Strong Minds provides mental health screenings, education, services, and care at no charge to Special Olympics athletes while training the next generation of health care providers on inclusion. The Senior Clinical Practice Manager position oversees the health screenings and the mental health programming (Strong Minds) and is set for a transformation to a comprehensive mental health and emotional wellness preventive and restorative program.

This position provides the opportunity to work with a team of health clinical program managers, and a global network of health professional volunteers and advisors in operationalizing and implementing this volunteer-run health care program, including screening, delivery, and ongoing preventive programming throughout the world. This position is also responsible for providing technical assistance in mental health and wellness to Special Olympics state and country program offices.

Strong Minds has been delivered as an interactive learning opportunity focused on helping athletes to develop adaptive coping skills. Now, Strong Minds is poised to expand into a broader mental health and emotional wellness program to identify and address conditions, such as anxiety and depression, experienced at higher rates by children and adults with intellectual disabilities through preventive education, screening, brief intervention through skill-building, care coordination, referral to partners for more intensive therapy when needed, and follow-up. Through the Strong Minds Program, Special Olympics will address the mental health disparities facing people with intellectual disabilities through increasing prevention, early detection, access to interventions, and the larger levels of training of providers on inclusive mental health and health systems strengthening. Mental health promotion efforts related to Strong Minds are not restricted to the health screenings for athletes, but are also woven into activities provided to athletes, families, caregivers, coaches, athletes, and all across the movement to maximize the reach and benefit.

Responsibilities:

• Assume overall responsibility for the global strategic and operational management of the SOI mental health and social emotional wellness program, Strong Minds.
• Oversee implementation of Strong Minds health screenings, including the following:
  
  • Serve as point of contact for domestic and international Special Olympics offices for all services related to Strong Minds
  • Develop, organize and provide training for volunteer providers, students and country-level Clinical Directors
  • Continually modernize and standardize protocols to ensure that they reflect the latest evidence-based practices
  • Ensure efficient management of global supply chain of equipment and services needed to carry out screenings and follow-up
  • Administer capacity grants (review, approve and monitor grants and post-event reports) to fund country-level in-person and virtual health screenings;
  • Coordinate screening activities and event management at Regional and World Games
  • Develop and implement quality improvement plan to set and adhere to metrics, to ensure high-quality services, and evaluations for mental health screenings
  • Compile reports and statistics on reach and impact of screenings and follow-up
  • Identify and develop relationships with health care partners to serve as community referral and care coordination resources. Develop, maintain, and manage referral resource directory.
  • Design, develop and implement an improved, evidence-based mental health and emotional wellness intervention for Special Olympics current and future athletes to improve mental wellness and decrease disparities (especially depression and anxiety) by 2025
    • Develop augmented cognitive behaviorally-based mental health hygiene intervention for athletes to prevent conditions and improve resilience skills
    • Conceptualize and carry out operational plan to roll out Strong Minds intervention
    • Monitor, evaluate and continuously improve Strong Minds
    • Develop relationships with health care partners to increase financial resources for the program (e.g., fundraising for cash and in kind goods and services)
    • Develop relationships with relevant professional associations and organizations supporting mental health initiatives for people with IDD (e.g., mental health partners)
    • Represent SOI on mental health topics for people with IDD with external stakeholders
      
      Required Qualifications & Experience:
      • Master's degree and clinical licensure in relevant field (e.g., behavioral/mental health clinician, including clinical psychology, psychiatry, clinical social work, nurse practitioner with mental health focus, etc.) with at least 5 years of experience in program operations, international development, global public health, or community-based programs.
      • 3 - 5 years experience in driving value-based solutions i.e., health outcomes, ensuring the quality of services rendered and the ability to manage programs that derive health improvements in population health.
      • Proven track record in creating strategies, planning, and executing programming, and setting and delivering on targets, preferably cross-culturally.
      • Strong project management skills and experience and an ability to manage multiple deadlines concurrently.
      • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English, including a demonstrated ability to build and maintain networks, provide advice, and communicate effectively with a culturally and professionally diverse range of stakeholders.
      • Ability to work effectively in a global team environment as well as independently with minimal supervision and exercise judgment to identify solutions and strategies for novel situations in a fast-paced environment. Desired Qualifications:
        • Additional Master's or Doctorate degree in relevant field (public health, health administration, business, international development)
        • Experience developing and utilizing quality measures in health care (eg NQF, NICE or similar)
        • Experience working with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in mental health settings (i.e., experience with dual diagnosis).
        • Experience overcoming barriers to major health systems challenges in resource poor settings.
        • Additional language skills are a plus (Spanish/ French/Mandarin)
          
          Special Olympics provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
          
          This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

Keywords: Special Olympics, Washington DC , Sr Clinical Program Manager, Mental Health/Strong Minds Program, Healthcare , Washington, DC