Psychiatric Technician - Per Diem

Title of Position: Psychiatric Technician

Location: Gateways Hospital & Mental Health Center

Exempt/Non-Exempt: Non-Exempt

Union/ Non-Union: Union

Supervisor: Director of Nursing

Gateways Hospital and Mental Health Center, located in Los Angeles, is a non-profit organization that provides an array of comprehensive mental health services for Children, Adolescents, Transitional Aged Youth, and Adults suffering from mental illness in the Greater Los Angeles area. The organization consists of a standalone fifty-five (55) )-bed hospital and six outlying outpatient facilities that have anywhere from fourteen (14) beds to one hundred and thirty-four (134) beds. The organization has approximately four hundred (400) employees. Summary Of Position The Psychiatric Technician performs direct and indirect psychiatric care to promote the comfort, safety and well-being of assigned patients as authorized by established hospital policy and procedure.

Essentials Duties

• Perform direct basic nursing care to promote comfort and safety of patient per hospital policies.
• Demonstrate ability to perform CPR, seclusion and restraint per hospital polices.
• Accurately measure and record height, weight, temp, pulse, blood pressure, intake and output per doctor’s order.
• Promptly report important unusual patient observations to charge nurse.
• Maintain accurate, legible documentation in dietary sheets, 15-min check sheets, point sheets and contraband sheet.
• Assist in providing clean, comfortable and therapeutic environment- to include cleaning and laundry.
• Implement time out, 1:1 observation per hospital orders
• Transport and accompany patients on required hospital appointments.
• Assists in the orientation of new psychiatric technicians
• Works with the treatment team in patient education and achieves treatment goals.
• Encourages and teaches the patient personal hygiene and dietary habits- monitors ADLs.
• Acts as a co-leader in patient groups as assigned.
• Carries out patient teaching projects with the supervision of the Charge Nurse/Supervisor.
• Implements patient group activities with direction and support of the Charge Nurse/Supervisor.
• Assists in the Management of disturbed and potentially assaultive patients; responds to calls for assistance in emergencies, may require hands-on.
• Responds to hospital emergency codes: Code Red, Code Blue, Code Gray, Code Triage, Code Silver and Dr. Emergy Code.
• Completes all tasks in a prompt, accurate manner.
• Willing and able to work independently.
• Exercises good judgment, objective and able to arrive at sound conclusions.
• Participate in unit patient care conferences and staff development program to improve patient care, skills and knowledge.
• Conducts in –service classes with the guidance of the Charge Nurse/Supervisor.
• Represents the unit at interdisciplinary team meetings.
• Attends in-service and continuing education classes, on a regular basis to maintain and increased skills.
• Seeks learning opportunities to gain new knowledge/skills which result in continuing quality improvement.
• Seeks appropriate guidance from immediate supervisor to achieve expected outcome.