Care Plus NJ hiring for Bergen County crisis center

Care Plus NJ is hiring a team of clinical, medical and peer support workers as it prepares to launch a new 24/7 Crisis Receiving and Stabilization Center in Bergen County.

The Paramus-based nonprofit announced the recruitment plans this week it is recruiting therapists, nurses, psychiatric nurse practitioners, behavioral health technicians, medical assistants and peer recovery specialists.

A spokesperson told NJBIZ that Care Plus is looking to fill 22 positions at the CRSC, with a particular need for a part-time psychiatrist.

The facility is slated to open early next year at 610 Valley Health Plaza in Paramus. It will provide short-term, voluntary care for adults experiencing mental health or substance-use crisis.

Designed as an alternative to a hospital emergency room, for stays of up to 24 hours, the center will offer:

• Crisis intervention
• Assessment
• Medical care
• Stabilization
• And peer support

People will be able to walk in or arrive through referrals or emergency drop-offs, according to Care Plus NJ.

‘Coordinated, compassionate care 24 hours a day’

Brigitte Johnson, president and CEO of Care Plus NJ, commented, “Effective crisis care requires more than responding quickly. It requires professionals from multiple disciplines working together to understand each person’s needs, stabilize the immediate crisis and determine the appropriate next step in care.”

The 2026 NJBIZ Healthcare Power List honoree added, “As we prepare to open the CRSC, our focus is on hiring skilled professionals who can deliver that coordinated, compassionate care 24 hours a day.”

As a leading nonprofit provider of integrated behavioral health, substance use disorder, and primary care services for adults and children across northern New Jersey, Care Plus NJ serves over 12,000 individuals annually. It is also one of the first Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers in the U.S.

Professionals interested in joining the CRSC team can learn more about available roles and apply through Care Plus NJ’s careers page. Sign-on bonuses are also available for select positions, the organization said.

Effective crisis care requires more than responding quickly.
– Brigitte Johnson, president and CEO of Care Plus NJ

More on the way

Paramus is among five communities where the New Jersey Department of Human Services is introducing Crisis Receiving and Stabilization Centers to expand the state’s 988 crisis-care system. The first opened last March in Newark thanks to a partnership with Rutgers Health.

The hiring push also follows the state’s $16.45 million investment announced in August to phase in centers in Bergen, Camden, Essex, Monmouth and Morris counties.

In 2024, according to the state, contracts of $6.9 million each were awarded to:

• Center for Family Services in Morris County
• Care Plus NJ in Bergen County
• Rutgers Health, UBHC in Essex County
• Monmouth Medical Center in Monmouth County
• Legacy Treatment Services in Camden County

The funding consisted of a mix of state and federal resources.

The national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline launched in July 2022, giving people across the country a three-digit number to call or text for mental health and substance use crisis support.

According to New Jersey officials, the average number of monthly calls answered in the state has more than doubled over the past six years to 8,635. Given the growing demand, the state has focused on building out its own network of crisis services to provide an in-person response for people who need more than a phone call.

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