Crisis Intervention Social Work in New York

It can happen to anyone at any time.

It’s an unplanned pregnancy. An unexpected bill without money in the bank. An accident that totals a vehicle needed to get to work. Or worse, it can come in the form of a drug overdose, or a sudden mental breakdown.

That’s what happened to Win Rozario. The 19-year-old Queens man experienced an episode in March of 2024 that caused his concerned brother to call 911. Within 3 minutes of arriving, police officers shot him dead in front of his horrified mother and family.

What do you go into social work for if not to help people in crisis?

If they’d been in Harlem rather than Queens, Rozario might have had a chance. There, in a pilot project, teams of EMTs and social workers are often sent to such calls rather than the police. Trained in de-escalation and assistance, they’ve been able to resolve the situations through hospitalization, referrals, and on-site treatment.

To some extent, crisis intervention is just another line item that appears in job descriptions for almost every social worker. As a specialization within the field, it’s a critical and exciting part of practice that demands quick thinking and deep training.

As Win Rozario’s case shows, though, it’s also a matter of life and death. Social workers can be the difference when crisis resolution requires more than a gun.

What Is Crisis Intervention in Social Work?

Crisis intervention is a sort of distillation of the essence of clinical social work. It’s all about reacting in the moment, dealing with immediate needs and averting imminent trouble through direct intervention or fast referrals to appropriate services.

Crisis care in social work can span the range between an individual experiencing sudden mental health distress to an entire community reeling in shock from natural or man-made disasters.

Social workers are uniquely suited to helping people manage crisis due to their holistic training in:

Every little thing counts in a crisis

~ Jawaharlal Nehru

Social Work Crisis Intervention Model

All crises are unique. There’s no typical day and no specific set of tasks that crisis management social workers have. Instead, they react to the needs of the moment in whatever way is most appropriate.

But there is a pattern to how they manage any crisis that comes at them:

Rapidly assess the situation
Assure clients of their safety and the temporary nature of the crisis
Validate feelings, emotions, and experiences the clients is going through
Deliver direct clinical counseling, resources, and information to help the client manage the crisis as best possible on their own terms and with individual agency

Social workers in this role need to be self-assured, have strength and personal composure, along with experiential knowledge dealing with similar crises.

In some cases, this means skills in specific populations, like substance use disorder patients or military veterans experiencing PTSD. Rapidly establishing trust and rapport is important so it’s often useful to have background experience and foreign language skills.

Some Crisis Management Social Work Roles in New York Deal with the Bigger Picture

Some social workers in this role intervene and manage the fallout of crises at larger scales. When disasters strike, like 9/11 or Hurricane Sandy, entire towns and communities are ravaged. They don’t just need food, or shelter, or counseling—they need it all, and they need it now.

Social workers are uniquely equipped to help address the full spectrum of needs that emerge in the wake of disaster. Just as importantly, they are sensitive to the social and equity issues that can make recovery even harder for certain disadvantaged populations, and can work to address those disadvantages in ways that other disaster responders may not.

Crisis intervention isn’t unique to social work, and often involves interdisciplinary teams. So crisis management social workers are very likely to regularly interact with other behavioral health, law enforcement, and emergency medical services personnel.

While almost any social worker will get a taste of crisis intervention work, some find they have a real talent for it. It’s very important work, that at times can be heart-racing.

But even the most talented social worker won’t get far in a crisis intervention role unless they are backed up by the right education and practical experience.

Getting the Right MSW for Crisis Intervention Social Work in New York

The sensitive nature of crisis intervention means that almost all such roles require an advanced education and clinical licensure. That means earning a Master of Social Work degree at a minimum on the way to qualifying for licensure.

Unlike other specialized roles, there aren’t often specialized concentrations that are focused on crisis intervention and management as a field of practice, but there are options that allow you to earn a certificate alongside your MSW. A program like the Master of Social Work with Specialized Practice Certificate in Crisis and Resilience is one you will find available in New York.

New York’s crisis intervention social workers come to the role through in-depth study in specific population focus specializations. Those can include MSW concentrations like:

Advanced Clinical Social Work Practice
Trauma Informed Practice
Military Practice
Mental Illness
Alcohol and Substance Abuse
Health, Mental Health, and Disabilities
Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Trauma in Context

Because crisis intervention is a sort of high-speed application of all the various skills that you pick up during MSW studies, any of these can equip you for success in the role. You’ll learn critical skills through courses like:

Social Work and Trauma
Psychopathology in Clinical Social Work Practice
Conflict Resolution
Ethical Issues in Contemporary Social Work Practice
Case Management
Cultural Perspectives on Loss and Grief
Intervention in the Field of Addictions

Just as important, an MSW will qualify you for New York state licensing as an LMSW (Licensed Master Social Worker) and, eventually, LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). Most crisis intervention social work positions in the state require one of those licenses.

Certificates Available in New York Can Add Crisis Management to Your Resume

MSW concentrations specific to crisis intervention are few and far between. But once you have your MSW, you’ll find options to build on those skills for more focused crisis management training.

There are programs available in New York such as a Post-Graduate Crisis Counseling Certificate or a Post-Master’s Certificate in Trauma-Informed Clinical Practice that offer training specific to crisis management for social workers.

Post-master’s social work certificates have a limited scope compared to a full degree, but you may spend up to three months diving into highly focused training for crisis management roles.

In these classes you’ll learn:

The difference between situational and developmental crises
By engaging in clinical social work crisis intervention role play
The neurobiological, psychoanalytic, and physical challenges faced by humans in crisis
How to rapidly evaluate and stabilize crisis situations
Best practices for engaging traumatized clients and helping them to manage crisis situations themselves

Where are the Jobs in New York for Crisis Intervention Social Workers?

It’s fairly rare in New York to find specific jobs listed for crisis intervention social workers. However, it’s a role that often falls to the most experienced and highly trained individuals in an organization. So jobs like Senior Clinical Care Team Specialist, Social Worker – Crisis Intervention Specialist, Social Work Team Leader, or Care Coordinator are all more likely to involve crisis management than more entry-level jobs.

Crisis intervention can be a feature in all kinds of social work practice, but there are some populations and focus areas where it’s more common than others:

Whether state/municipal government or private non-profit, organizations that specialize in these kinds of populations are more likely to employ social workers in crisis management roles.

Crisis services are equally likely to come from government agencies or charity organizations.

In the wake of the death of Win Rozario and dozens of others, many government health and safety organizations are stepping up their employment of social workers with crisis management expertise. NYC Health now runs Mobile Crisis Teams which are staffed with various behavioral health professionals, including social workers, respond to individuals in crisis throughout the city. And the NY State Office of Mental Health has established a county-based system that is even more comprehensive, with hotlines, mobile care teams, and even crisis stabilization centers that employ social workers.

On the private side of social services, crisis intervention work is most likely to pop up in New York non-profits that deal with mental health services and substance use disorder treatment. They may also work for organizations that specialize in crisis and disaster management, such as the American Red Cross. They can go all over the country and around the world in such positions, both training first responders and helping with disaster management directly.

At some point in anyone’s life, crisis is bound to come calling. Social workers in this role will never lack for work, and they’ll never get tired of making a difference in the most critical moments.