About this role
Overview
The Mental Health Technician (MHT) supports the nursing staff in maintaining a therapeutic setting by performing routinely assigned tasks and carrying out patient care activities within the scope of the MHT's training and experience. The MHT will maintain a safe and professional standard for patient care in accordance with Federal and State regulations, policies and procedures and accreditation and quality standards
Responsibilities
- Continually monitors and enforces compliance with unit rules.
- Effectively applies supportive behavior when assisting in the control of patients who exhibit
unacceptable behavior.
- Demonstrates the ability to employ de-escalation, crisis intervention, and therapeutic
interventions as needed.
- Completes unit safety checks.
- Inventories patient belongings accurately and secures contraband as needed.
- Complies with standard/universal precautions and infection control policies and attends
required in-services to keep self-informed.
- Implements patient care activities under the direction and supervision of licensed nursing
personnel.
- Performs vital signs, weights, ADL monitoring, nutritional monitoring, and communicates
findings to the nurse.
- Assists patients with laundry, meals, bathroom functions and maintaining of belongings as
needed.
- Assists at risk/physically challenged patients with mobility needs as needed.
- Individualizes all patient care activities to the age specific/disability/cultural sensitivity needs of
the patient.
- Communicates and documents patient observation and date effectively.
- Documents patient's departure from unit with 100% accuracy and within defined timelines.
- Documents significant occurrences, observed behavior, vital signs, nutrition intake and patient
observation findings on assigned patients and as requested by the registered nurse, with
100% accuracy and within defined timelines.
- Communicates outcome of assigned tasks to nursing staff in a timely manner.
- Communicates follow-up on patient care responsibilities, incomplete assignments, ongoing
activities and current patient needs to relevant staff to assure continuity of care.
- Escorts patients in and out of weekly Treatment Team meetings and in and out of visits with
practitioners and therapists.
- Performs goals and activity groups to keep patients engaged outside of required therapy
groups and report findings to clinical services.
- Performs other duties and projects as assigned.
Qualifications
- High school graduate or equivalent.
- Certified Nursing Assistant preferred
- At least 1 year experience working with psychiatric patients in an inpatient setting preferred
- Valid driver’s license
- Crisis intervention experience preferred