Behavior Analyst Hospital

Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center:  Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health is committed to an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your uniqueness is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt’s mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.

Organization:

Vanderbilt Kennedy Center

Job Summary:

JOB SUMMARY
The Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt seeks to hire a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) to join the Behavioral Health and Patient Safety Teams in supporting children with intellectual and developmental disabilities in an acute care medical setting.

This individual will work in partnership with our existing BCBA to further expand supports for children in the hospital who present with severe problem behaviors or behaviors interfering with medical adherence. The focus of this position will be providing evidence-based behavioral treatment for children presenting to the hospital in acute psychiatric crisis, or those with a primary medical issue and comorbid behavioral concerns interfering with their ability to participate in care. The BCBA would provide direct patient care to promote safety and coping in the hospital setting and train staff to implement basic behavioral strategies to reduce challenging and dangerous behavior. The BCBA, in collaboration with the Behavioral Health and Patient Safety Team, will assess, develop, implement, and oversee the behavioral treatment plan and provide caregiver training and some follow-up consultative support. There are opportunities for expansion of services to include some clinic time, as well. Ideal candidates should be comfortable with a fast pace, brief consultation, severe problem behavior, and medical complexity. The BCBA will work with and under the mentorship of our existing BCBA to expand our newly established Behavior Analytic Consultation Service (BACS) as we seek to support patients across additional areas of the hospital and provide education to medical personnel on safe and compassionate neurodiverse patient care.

Eligible candidates should have extensive experience assessing and treating challenging and dangerous behaviors.

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KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

·        Collaborate with the Behavioral Health Team and caregivers to assess incoming patients.

·        Implement and evaluate procedures for efficiently achieving safety for patients and staff.

·        Train staff on general and individualized patient procedures for promoting safety.

·        Assist the “transition team” in recommendations for support and resources upon discharge.

·        Develop systems for monitoring and evaluating behavioral services, from intake to discharge.  

·        Supervise direct care staff on the implementation of behavioral strategies.

·        Collaborate on service and program evaluation.

·        Consistent presence at and participation in clinical team meetings.

·        Communicate with internal and external team members regarding service implementation.

·        Materials for behavior coaching, follow-up consultation services, and caregiver training are created.

 

TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES

• Behavior Analyst Treatment Implementation/Supervision (Intermediate): Demonstrates proficiency in providing treatment consistent with the established care plan. Applies evidence-based clinical management practices. Supervises RBTs, graduate students, caregivers, and other service providers implementing treatments and providing feedback as appropriate. Supervision entails ongoing education, coaching, consultation, and data use for data-based decision making and feedback.

• Professional Provider & Family Education (Intermediate): Demonstrates proficiency in communicating the functional impact of assessment findings, treatment interventions, treatment planning, and discharge planning. Considers the audience's communication needs/level of understanding and may share appropriate information/literature. This may include creating interactive educational opportunities grounded in ABA for caregivers, educators, and other service providers, both internal and external, to VUMC. May supervise, educate, and train students from professional behavior analysis programs or internally registered behavior technicians.

• Dissemination (Intermediate): Provide ongoing education, coaching, and consultation grounded in ABA to individuals and teams of parents, community providers, and educators, tailoring presentation to audience needs. May also include data analysis and presentation of data in a manner accessible to non-ABA providers. Considers learners' diverse needs and develops appropriate instruction and engagement levels.

• Care Coordination (Intermediate): Demonstrates ability to coordinate care with other professionals, internal and external to VUMC, including communicating with education agencies, professional providers (within and outside the field of behavior analysis), as well as funding sources and other entities.

• Patient Documentation (Intermediate): The ability to receive and record patient information.

• Patient Assessment (Advanced): Demonstrates mastery of patient behavioral assessments and contingencies rapidly with parents, caregivers, nursing staff, multidisciplinary teams, and patients presenting in acute behavioral crises and medical emergencies. Demonstrates experience in several assessment processes. Demonstrates a solid understanding of advanced behavioral concepts, environmental contributors, and stimulus control. Possesses sufficient knowledge, training, and expertise to successfully deliver patient assessments to multidisciplinary teams and families without requiring support and instruction from others in collaborative non-behavior analytic language.

• Discharge Planning (Intermediate): Demonstrates mastery in the discharge planning process. Anticipates transition and discharge needs of the patient based upon understanding of pathology/diagnosis and relationship to their present functional status. Informs patient, family, and team members of the patient's needs based upon the assessment and/or treatment, and recommends continued services, follow-up, or referrals to other services. Educates others on the transition and discharge process, including transition service and referral resources. May initiate and develop relationships with additional services within Vanderbilt and in the community. May facilitate staff development in transition and discharge planning by scheduling and presenting in-service presentations.

• Treatment Planning & Goal Setting (Intermediate): Demonstrates mastery in developing a plan of care that incorporates treatment interventions focused on meeting objective goals. Develops and documents patient-focused short and long-term goals that are functional and measurable. Identifies the need for and referral to other services, as needed. May serve as a mentor for other clinical staff to develop their skills in treatment planning. May consult with team members or implement new procedures.

 

CORE ACCOUNTABILITIES

Organizational Impact: Executes job responsibilities by understanding how output would affect and impact other areas related to own job area/team with occasional guidance. Problem Solving/ Complexity of work: Analyzes moderately complex problems using technical experience and judgment. Breadth of Knowledge: Has expanded knowledge gained through experience within a professional area. Team Interaction: Provides informal guidance and support to team members.

 

CORE CAPABILITIES

Supporting Colleagues:- Develops Self and Others: Invests time, energy, and enthusiasm in developing self/others to help improve performance and gain knowledge in new areas.- Builds and Maintains Relationships: Maintains regular contact with key colleagues and stakeholders using formal and informal opportunities to expand and strengthen relationships.- Communicates Effectively: Recognizes group interactions and modifies communication styles to suit different situations and audiences. Delivering Excellent Services:- Serves Others with Compassion: Seeks to understand current and future needs of relevant stakeholders and customizes services to address them better.- Solves Complex Problems: Approaches problems from different angles; Identifies new possibilities to interpret opportunities and develop concrete solutions.- Offers Meaningful Advice and Support: Constructively provides ongoing support and coaching to increase employees' effectiveness. Ensuring High Quality: Performs Excellent Work: Regularly engages in formal and informal dialogue about quality; promptly addresses quality issues.- Ensures Continuous Improvement: Applies various learning experiences by looking beyond symptoms to uncover underlying causes of problems and identifies ways to resolve them. - Fulfills Safety and Regulatory Requirements: Understands all aspects of providing a safe environment and performs routine safety checks to prevent safety hazards from occurring. Managing Resources Effectively: - Demonstrates Accountability: Demonstrates a sense of ownership, focusing on and driving critical issues to closure.- Stewards Organizational Resources: Applies understanding of the departmental work to manage resources for a department/area effectively.- Makes Data-Driven Decisions: Demonstrates a strong understanding of the information or data to identify and elevate opportunities. Fostering Innovation:- Generates New Ideas: Proactively identifies new ideas/opportunities from multiple sources or methods to improve processes beyond conventional approaches.- Applies Technology: Demonstrates an enthusiasm for learning new technologies, tools, and procedures to address short-term challenges.- Adapts to Change: Views difficult situations and/or problems as opportunities for improvement; actively embraces change instead of emphasizing negative elements.

 

Position Qualifications:

 

 

Certifications:

Board Certification in Behavior Analysis

 

Work Experience:

Relevant work experience

 

Education:

Master’s Degree

 

The minimum requirements of the position are a master’s degree, 3-5 years of experience with assessing and treating challenging behavior of ages 3-22, certification as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) in good standing, licensure as a Behavior Analyst (LBA) in TN in good standing or eligibility to immediately apply for licensure in TN, and several years of experience directly serving children, students, and/or adults with diverse educational and behavioral needs, as well as caregivers and professional providers. Substantial experience in one or more areas may replace the need for expertise in all areas listed.

 

Additional experience coaching relevant personnel (e.g., service providers, educators) is strongly preferred. In addition, eligible candidates must desire continued professional development (i.e., growth mindset), an ability to collaborate with various teammates across various projects, and flexibility to adapt to the evolving needs of relevant stakeholders. Excellent communication/presentation skills and knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Zoom, or similar video conferencing platforms are required.

  

Allied health is among the fastest growing occupations in healthcare today. This area can be defined as credentialed professionals who perform supportive, diagnostic, and therapeutic health care services to promote health and prevent disease in a variety of settings.

These areas are crucial to Vanderbilt Health’s reputation for excellence in these areas that has made us a major center for patient referrals from throughout the Mid-South.

Each year, people throughout Tennessee and the southeast choose Vanderbilt Health for their health care because of our leadership in medical science and our dedication to treating patients with dignity and compassion.

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Core Accountabilities:

Organizational Impact: Executes job responsibilities with the understanding of how output would affect and impact other areas related to own job area/team with occasional guidance. Problem Solving/ Complexity of work: Analyzes moderately complex problems using technical experience and judgment. Breadth of Knowledge: Has expanded knowledge gained through experience within a professional area. Team Interaction: Provides informal guidance and support to team members.

Core Capabilities :

Supporting Colleagues:- Develops Self and Others: Invests time, energy, and enthusiasm in developing self/others to help improve performance e and gain knowledge in new areas.- Builds and Maintains Relationships: Maintains regular contact with key colleagues and stakeholders using formal and informal opportunities to expand and strengthen relationships.- Communicates Effectively: Recognizes group interactions and modifies one's own communication style to suit different situations and audiences. Delivering Excellent Services:- Serves Others with Compassion: Seeks to understand current and future needs of relevant stakeholders and customizes services to better address them.- Solves Complex Problems: Approaches problems from different angles; Identifies new possibilities to interpret opportunities and develop concrete solutions.- Offers Meaningful Advice and Support: Provides ongoing support and coaching in a constructive manner to increase employees' effectiveness. Ensuring High Quality: - Performs Excellent Work: Engages regularly in formal and informal dialogue about quality; directly addresses quality issues promptly.- Ensures Continuous Improvement: Applies various learning experiences by looking beyond symptoms to uncover underlying causes of problems and identifies ways to resolve them. - Fulfills Safety and Regulatory Requirements: Understands all aspects of providing a safe environment and performs routine safety checks to prevent safety hazards from occurring. Managing Resources Effectively: - Demonstrates Accountability: Demonstrates a sense of ownership, focusing on and driving critical issues to closure.- Stewards Organizational Resources: Applies understanding of the departmental work to effectively manage resources for a department/area.- Makes Data Driven Decisions: Demonstrates strong understanding of the information or data to identify and elevate opportunities. Fostering Innovation:- Generates New Ideas: Proactively identifies new ideas/opportunities from multiple sources or methods to improve processes beyond conventional approaches.- Applies Technology: Demonstrates an enthusiasm for learning new technologies, tools, and procedures to address short-term challenges.- Adapts to Change: Views difficult situations and/or problems as opportunities for improvement; actively embraces change instead of emphasizing negative elements.

Position Qualifications:

Responsibilities:

Certifications:

Work Experience:

Relevant Work Experience

Experience Level :

3 years

Education:

Master's

Vanderbilt Health is committed to fostering an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and is committed to the principles of equal opportunity.  EOE/Vets/Disabled.