Addiction Counsellor (part- time) Job

Position Overview:

Heritage Skills Development Centre is seeking a compassionate and dedicated Part-Time Addictions Counsellor to join our team. The successful candidate will play a key role in providing culturally safe, client-centered care and support to individuals with lived and living experiences of substance use. In collaboration with the project team, the Addictions Counsellor will offer counseling, care coordination, and harm reduction services to individuals at risk of overdose, with a focus on reducing substance use-related harm in the community.

This role involves developing and maintaining strong partnerships with community organizations and offering integrated care and support that promotes recovery, empowerment, and well-being.

Key Responsibilities:

- Screening and Assessment: Provide detailed assessments to evaluate each client’s circumstances and link them to the most suitable treatment and recovery resources.
- Counseling and Support: Provide client-focused addiction counseling in both group and individual settings, providing care that is empathetic, suitable, and personalized to support each client’s goals.
- Provide therapeutic services rooted in best practices to help individuals navigate addiction-related challenges and interconnected emotional or behavioral needs.
- Care Coordination: Assist clients in connecting with community-based resources, arranging referrals, and providing steady support to promote continuity of care.
- Harm Reduction and Education: Deliver harm-reduction education and supportive strategies that help individuals reduce risk and equip them with the knowledge needed to make safer choices.
- Peer Support Programs: Guide peer support initiatives and weekly workshops, creating a safe, engaging space that enhances collaboration, promotes empowerment, and recovery stability.
- Collaboration and Partnerships: Build and sustain strong partnerships with
community networks to enhance and broaden access to recovery-supportive services.
- Deliver workshops that provide guided learning, therapeutic dialogue, and supportive engagement, enhancing community ties and encouraging healing in a group setting

Qualifications:

- Education: A Post Secondary degree in a relevant health-related field (e.g., Psychology, Social Work, or Nursing), clinical psychology or post-graduate training in addiction counseling with relevant experience
- Experience: At least three years of relevant experience in addiction services, encompassing one-on-one client support and leading group sessions, with a dedicated focus on individuals living with substance use disorders.
- Skills and Knowledge: Strong grounding in addiction treatment frameworks, harm-reduction strategies, and evidence-based methods, with with demonstrated skill in applying them across diverse client contexts.
- Proficient in performing thorough clinical assessments, offering compassionate and impactful counseling, and creating personalized treatment plans aligned with clients’ specific needs and recovery goals.
- Skilled in offering client-centered support that values cultural diversity and adapts sensitively to each individual’s identity and lived experience.
- Strong understanding of relevant legislation, such as the Health Care Consent Act, the Mental Health Act, and PHIPA, and the ability to use these guidelines effectively in both clinical and community contexts.
- Exercises strong clinical judgment and critical thinking to interpret complex client situations and guide personalized, client-centered care.
- Skilled at remaining steady under pressure, adapting well within dynamic environments, while exercising focus, adaptability, and good judgment.
- Provides grounded, compassionate, and non-judgmental support, partnering with individuals throughout their substance-use journeys and their efforts toward lasting recovery.
- Demonstrates a strong commitment to teamwork, supported by effective communication and interpersonal strengths that promote healthy professional relationships and a client-centered culture.
- Shows strength in both independent work and cross-team collaboration, promoting open communication and seamless coordination with community partners.