Physician Affiliate Group of New York (PAGNY) has an opportunity for an Outreach Worker at NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi and North Central Bronx. The Hospitals are part of NYC Health + Hospitals. Jacobi is a 457-bed, Level I Trauma Center and NCB has 213 licensed beds. The hospital maintains a strong academic affiliation with Albert Einstein Medical College to maintain its high healthcare delivery standards.
The mission of NYC Health + Hospitals is to extend equally to all New Yorkers, regardless of the ability to pay, comprehensive health services of the highest quality in an atmosphere of humane care, dignity, and respect. Their Values are built on a foundation of social and racial equity and has established the ICARE standards for all staff.
NYC Health + Hospitals is the nation’s largest municipal health care delivery system in the United States. Dedicated to providing the highest quality health care services to all New Yorkers with compassion, dignity and respect, and regardless of immigration status or ability to pay.
The SUV Stand Up to Violence is a gun violence prevention initiative run out of NYC Health+ Hospitals/Jacobi. The SUV program is an evidence-based, violence reduction initiative that treats gun violence as a disease by identifying its cause and it's causes and interrupting its transmission. The program hires a community outreach team of credible messengers - individuals who are hired from the communities in which they work and have backgrounds similar to those with whom they aim to connect - mentor the highest risk youth with an emphasis on conflict mediation and violence prevention.
In order to prevent violence, methods and strategies associated with disease control are implemented:
1. Detecting and interrupting conflicts
Outreach Workers (OW) identify and mediate conflict between high-risk individuals and groups in order to prevent violence and ongoing acts of retaliation.
2. Treating the highest-risk individuals the OWs mentor and support high-risk youth and young adults (ages 14 to 28) and connect them to educational, vocational, recreational and social services.
3. Changing social norms
Responsibilities:
Under the direction of the Senior Outreach Worker and/or Community Program Manager, the Outreach Worker will:
- Recruit and manage a caseload of 15 "high risk" gang/crew members and provide case management services. Responsible for mentoring these participants with a focus on providing alternatives to high-risk and violent behavior
- Build and maintain relationships with local gangs/crews; Stay up-to-date on rivalries and plans for retaliation; facilitate conflict mediation
- Canvass the target areas on foot and identify and diffuse "hot spots" for shootings and violence
- Link participants and individuals in the target area to opportunities and programs in the community including vocational, educational, recreational, and social services
- Plan and participate in monthly community activities (cook-outs, basketball tournaments, etc.) in order to strengthen community awareness and garner support
- Engage in community shooting responses (marches, vigils, etc.) within 72-hours after a shooting, in order to mobilize the community against gun violence and change community norms
- Document all participant interactions and conflict mediations in the program's computer database
- Attend ongoing trainings, individual supervision, and weekly staff meetings
- Communicate effectively with the team including other OWs, and supervisors
- Adhere to program safety regulations and remain in contact with a supervisor at all times
- Work flexible hours (mostly evenings and weekends) and respond to shootings or emergency situations
- Respond to violent trauma incidents and see patients in the hospital when needed