CLINICAL STAFF MEMBERS

The clinical staff is made up of three distinct but interrelated groups. The clinicians provide direct mental health services such as one-on-one counseling, family therapy, school counseling, home visits, etc. They develop the client’s service plans and work with the consumer to achieve the stated outcomes. Their dedicated efforts provide the guidance and support for the client to move forward in their lives. Many of our clinicians are bilingual and/or bicultural and they add a needed dimension to our services to the underserved and unserved ethnic groups that constitute the Asian Pacific Islanders. This group includes our staff psychiatrists who provide consultations and assessments, medication and follow-up care.

Another important group is the Community Service Specialists (CSS) who provide a myriad of supportive services such as interpretation between the client and clinician, vocational training, outreach at community festivals and county offices, referrals and linkage to services, ESL classes, after-school programs, and enrollment in various programs.  In collaboration with the clinicians, they supplement the needed services for clients to become independent individuals.  Although they are not clinicians, they take a very active role in client care and forge strong bonds with consumers and their families.

PACS also has a group of students who rotate in for an internship or practicum during their first or second year of schooling in the MSW or MFT programs.  They have a limited number of service hours per week, but they enable the agency to see larger numbers of clients.  At this student level, they gain exposure to the public health sector and have an opportunity to work with a different population than the private practitioner.

All three of these components, under the supervision of the Clinical Director, Director of Community Services, clinical site managers and clinical supervisors provide a rich array of program services to our clients.  The directors and managers are also heavily involved in the interactions and meetings of the various County DMH service areas.  They provide the requisite training for new staff and students.  They have a deep commitment to the agency’s mission to serve the Asian Pacific Islander populations so that clients are empowered to lead meaningful, independent and productive lives.