The MA Department of Public Health Suicide Prevention Program (SPP) seeks to reduce the incidence of suicidal ideation, attempts, and deaths across the Commonwealth through a comprehensive public health prevention framework that recognizes and addresses disproportionate harm and risk of specific populations through data-driven strategies and incorporating the voices of people with lived experience. SPP aims to achieve its mission through a portfolio of programs which includes the administration of federal grants, including the MA response to the national 988 Lifeline and the MA Youth Suicide Prevention Program; prevention-intervention-postvention services; workforce development initiatives; distributing funds to state agencies in support of population-specific approaches; supporting statewide and regional coalition building; and more.

MA DPH is seeking an experienced, driven, and motivated suicide preventionist for the role of Suicide Prevention Specialist to join the Suicide Prevention Program in its administration and oversight of statewide suicide prevention efforts. The Suicide Prevention Specialist is a program leader, subject matter expert, and trainer that has primary oversight over the SPP’s contracted providers, interagency state agreements, workforce development initiatives, and supervision responsibilities of professional level staff. The Suicide Prevention Specialist will utilize their subject matter expertise in suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention strategies and activities to provide strategic oversight, capacity building, and technical assistance to the program’s range of partners, including but not limited to, contracted providers and funded state agencies. The Suicide Prevention Specialist will oversee fiscal and programmatic contract management processes including participating in any related and relevant procurement activities. The Suicide Prevention Specialist will provide strategic oversight of the program’s public-facing workforce development initiatives including both the delivery of curricula/content and the curation of specialized content to be delivered by content area experts through a public training calendar, an annual 2-day conference, presentations, and other formats such as requests from partners and interested parties.

Duties and Responsibilities (these duties are a general summary and not all inclusive):

• Delivers training as certified Master Trainer in curricula such as Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR); QPR Instructor Training; Mental Health First Aid (MHFA – adults and/or youth), Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), etc.

• Provides strategic oversight and planning of the SPP’s Training Calendar and Annual Conference including curating relevant and best-practice content; overseeing allocated budget and spending; utilizing continuous quality improvement practices and values to recommend and implement changes or improvements to content, speakers, evaluation, or processes.

• Develops and delivers specialized content including, but not limited to, trainings, presentations, tool kits, case studies, and others as identified through CQI practices or as requested by interested parties and partners.

• Oversees the planning and development of the Annual Suicide Prevention Conference; supervises duties of assigned support staff and/or the chair of the conference planning committee, ensures relevant and timely project management techniques are utilized to create a successful event.

• Oversees the programmatic and fiscal activities related to SPP’s portfolio of contract providers and supervises duties of assigned contract support staff. Participates and leads related procurement activities as needed.

• Assists in the overall planning, coordination, and monitoring of the activities of the Suicide Prevention Program to ensure effective operations and compliance with established standards across the team.

• Provides capacity building and technical assistance to funded providers and interested partners on a variety of prevention, intervention, and postvention strategies and activities.

• Oversees data collection and reporting activities of vendors; provides training and support on collection and reporting methods; conducts basic data analysis in support of reports, partner communications, and public records requests.

• Supervises professional level staff, assigning work and reviewing performance.

• Applies health and racial equity and DEIA lens to work and engages in professional development opportunities on a regular basis.

• Participate in collaborative suicide prevention activities such as grant collaborations and partnerships, suicide mortality review team, etc

Required Qualifications:

• Ability to understand, explain and apply the laws, rules, regulations, policies, procedures, etc. governing assigned unit activities.

• Means to coordinate the efforts of others in accomplishing assigned work objectives.

• Capacity to analyze and determine the applicability of data, to draw conclusions and make appropriate recommendations.

• Power to supervise, including planning and assigning work according to the nature of the job to be accomplished, the capabilities of subordinates and available resources; controlling work through periodic reviews and/or evaluations; determining subordinates training needs and providing or arranging for such training; motivating subordinates to work effectively; determining the need for disciplinary action and either recommending or initiating disciplinary action.

• Skilled to write concisely, to express thoughts clearly and to develop ideas in logical sequence.

• Ability to follow written and oral Instructions

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experienced trainer with certifications in suicide prevention trainings such as Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR), QPR Instructor Training, Mental Health First Aid (MHFA – Adult and/or Youth), Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), SafeTALK, etc.

• Knowledge of and practical experience delivering and/or overseeing the implementation of suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention strategies and activities being performed by others.

• Experience and familiarity with project management techniques and continuous quality improvement approaches.

• Experience supervising staff.

• Comfort speaking in front of varied-sized audiences, delivering trainings and presentations with virtual technology as well as in-person

About the Department of Public Health:

The mission of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) is to prevent illness, injury, and premature death, to assure access to high quality public health and health care services, and to promote wellness and health equity for all people in the Commonwealth.

We envision a Commonwealth in which all people enjoy optimal health. Massachusetts ranks among the healthiest of states according to comparative analyses, but we face numerous challenges, including chronic and infectious disease, substance abuse, violence, preventable hospitalizations, and health disparities.

DPH coordinates programs and policies to address specific diseases and conditions and offer services to address the needs of vulnerable populations. We also develop, implement, promote, and enforce regulations and policies to assure that the conditions under which people live are most conducive to health and enable people to make healthy choices for themselves and their families. We license health professionals, healthcare facilities and a variety of businesses that impact public health. We operate the state laboratory and four public health hospitals. We monitor health status and manage vital records including births, marriages and deaths. We educate people about public health issues and work closely with local boards of health and community partners to identify and solve public health problems.

More information can be found at: MA Department of Public Health​

Pre-Hire Process:

A criminal background check will be completed on the recommended candidate as required by the regulations set forth by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services prior to the candidate being hired. For more information, please visit http://www.mass.gov/hhs/cori

Education, licensure and certifications will be verified in accordance with the Human Resources Division’s Hiring Guidelines.

Education and license/certification information provided by the selected candidate(s) is subject to the Massachusetts Public Records Law and may be published on the Commonwealth’s website.

ADA Reasonable Accommodation:

If you require a reasonable accommodation with the application/interview process, please contact us at: EOHHS Candidate ADA Requests

For questions regarding this requisition, please contact the Executive Office of Health and Human Services Human Resources at 1-800- 510-4122 Ext. #4

MINIMUM ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must have at least (A) four years of full-time, or equivalent part-time, professional, administrative or managerial experience in business administration, business management or public administration the major duties of which involved program management, program administration, program coordination, program planning and/or program analysis, and (B) of which at least one year must have been in a supervisory capacity, or (C) any equivalent combination of the required experience and the substitutions below.

Substitutions:

I. A Bachelor's degree with a major in business administration, business management or public administration may be substituted for a maximum of two years of the required (A) experience.*

II. A Graduate degree with a major in business administration, business management or public administration may be substituted for a maximum of three years of the required (A) experience.*

III. A Bachelor's or higher degree with a major other than in business administration, business management or public administration may be substituted for a maximum of one year of the required (A) experience.*

*Education toward such a degree will be prorated on the basis of the proportion of the requirements actually completed.

NOTE: No substitutions will be permitted for the required (B) experience.

Salary placement is determined by a combination of factors, including the candidate’s years of directly related experience and education, and alignment with our internal compensation structure as set forth by the Human Resources Division’s Hiring Guidelines. For all bargaining unit positions (non-management), compensation is subject to the salary provisions outlined in the applicable collective bargaining agreement and will apply to placement within the appropriate salary range.

Comprehensive Benefits

When you embark on a career with the Commonwealth, you are offered an outstanding suite of employee benefits that add to the overall value of your compensation package. We take pride in providing a work experience that supports you, your loved ones, and your future.

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An Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer. Females, minorities, veterans, and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

The Commonwealth is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, national origin, veteran status, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. Research suggests that qualified women, Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color (BIPOC) may self-select out of opportunities if they don't meet 100% of the job requirements. We encourage individuals who believe they have the skills necessary to thrive to apply for this role.