Psychiatric Technician- HCPC Unit 1D- Restoration Oriented Treatment Program- Day Shift

UTHealth Houston; Town of Texas (WI); On-site; USD 42,000 - 55,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

100% paid medical premiums

Generous time off

Longevity Pay

Retirement/pension plan

Job summary

UTHealth Houston's HCPC 1D psychiatric unit is seeking a Psychiatric Technician dedicated to safety and therapeutic patient care. You will support daily activities, observe patients, assist with groups, and respond to crisis with de-escalation techniques under licensed staff direction.

This frontline role emphasizes trauma-informed care, teamwork, and compassionate service in a 20-bed unit serving adults with psychosis and ROTP programs. Matrix scheduling applies.

Qualifications

• CPR certification required or obtained upon hire.
• Experience in behavioral health settings preferred.
• Ability to work with mentally ill patients in a compassionate, professional manner.
• Ability to follow safety protocols and de-escalation techniques.

Responsibilities

• Provides inpatient and outpatient non-skilled nursing for psychiatric patients.
• Maintains safety through 1:1 or 2:1 supervision as needed.
• Operates equipment and assists with ADLs while protecting patient privacy.
• Engages patients using trauma-informed and therapeutic communication.
• Supports treatment plans and milieu management to ensure safety.
• Facilitates therapy groups and participates in activities and observations.

Skills

CPR

Crisis intervention

Verbal de-escalation

Trauma informed care

Therapeutic communication

Patient observation

Education

High School Diploma or equivalent

CNA preferred

MA preferred

EMT preferred

Job description

Join the HCPC 1D team, a 20-bed adult psychiatric unit dedicated to providing compassionate, recovery-focused care for adult patients experiencing psychosis and those participating in the Restoration Oriented Treatment Program (ROTP). In this role, you will work closely with an interdisciplinary team to promote patient safety, engagement, and service excellence while supporting therapeutic activities and daily patient care needs. Responsibilities include conducting safety rounds, obtaining vital signs, documenting patient information, assisting with patient groups, providing one-to-one observation when needed, utilizing verbal de-escalation and crisis intervention techniques, and supporting a safe therapeutic environment. This position is ideal for individuals who are passionate about behavioral health, enjoy working directly with patients, and thrive in a collaborative healthcare setting. The Day Shift schedule is 7:00 AM to 7:30 PM and follows a matrix scheduling pattern with alternating weekends. To support patient care and operational needs across the hospital, team members may also be required to float to other behavioral health units based on staffing needs and patient census.

Schedule: 7:30 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. | Matrix Schedule: 2 days on, 2 days off, 3 days on, repeating cycle.

• Mandatory Orientation: Two-week onboarding process for all new hires
• Hospital-Wide Education Orientation: Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM (first two weeks)

What we do here changes the world.

UTHealth Houston is Texas’ resource for healthcare education, innovation, scientific discovery, and excellence in patient care. That’s where you come in.

Once you join us you won't want to leave.

It’s because we reward our team for the excellent service they provide. Our total rewards package includes the benefits you’d expect from a top healthcare organization (benefits, insurance, etc.), plus:

• 100% paid medical premiums for our full-time employees
• Generous time off (holidays, preventative leave day, both vacation and sick time – all of which equates to around 37-38 days per year)
• The longer you stay, the more vacation you’ll accrue!
• Longevity Pay (Monthly payments after two years of service)
• Build your future with our awesome retirement/pension plan!

We take care of our employees!

As a world-renowned institution, our employees’ wellbeing is important to us. We offer work/life services such as...

• Free financial and legal counseling
• Free mental health counseling services
• Gym membership discounts and access to wellness programs
• Other employee discounts including entertainment, car rentals, cell phones, etc.
• Resources for child and elder care
• Plus many more!

Position Summary:

The Psychiatric Technician focuses on safety, performing patient care activities or tasks for psychiatric patients as well as maintaining a therapeutic and safe environment under the direction of the licensed staff. Must be comfortable working with mental health patients, many of whom have experienced trauma, in a compassionate and professional manner while promoting a safe environment.

Position Key Accountabilities:

• Provides inpatient and outpatient non-skilled nursing for psychiatric patients.
• Provides supervision of patients on suicide or other critical precautions, 1:1 or 2:1, which requires a staff member to be within continuous arm 's length of a patient.
• Responsible for operating equipment such as IVAC, Sphygmomanometer and Scale.
• Assists patients with activities of daily living i.e. bathing, shaving, hygiene, toileting, and grooming, while respecting the patient 's privacy, to the extent possible.
• Interacts and engages with patients in a therapeutic manner using Trauma informed care and therapeutic communication strategies.
• Participates in implementing and formulating patients' treatment plan based on experience and close observation of patients.
• Helps maintain a therapeutic milieu. Assists with milieu management and uses crisis de-escalation and trauma informed care strategies to reduce destructive and disruptive patient behavior and ensures the safety of patient, self, and others. Recognizes early warning signs of worsening patient behaviors and intervenes appropriately.
• Facilitates patients' groups and participation in therapeutic activities (i.e. community meeting, transition, and wrap-up groups etc.).
• Implements crisis management skills (de-escalation skills) as directed by licensed staff, including situations where the patient could be in danger, suffer self-inflicted harm, or harm others.
• Must be able to restrain an adult, adolescent, or pediatric patient within the guidelines currently in use at HCPC, including circumstances where the patient is violent or aggressive towards staff and others, including other patients.
• In certain circumstances, must be able to maintain initial physical control of an adult, adolescent or pediatric patient individually until assistance from other team members arrive.
• Escorts patients on and off campus for medical emergencies and diagnostic procedures when required.
• Conducts patient Q15 and Q30 minutes observation rounds with appropriate documentation, and one to one observation. Observes patient condition for signs/symptoms consistent with illness or mental status change; reports observations about patient condition to the nurse.
• Conducts environmental rounds on unit for safety.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Certification/Skills:

• None
• Work may involve handling biohazardous, chemical, and radiological materials, as well as operating associated equipment. Required safety training and appropriate engineering and administrative controls including the use of personal protective equipment must be followed.
• Cardiac Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) by American Red Cross or American Heart Association (AHA) required
• Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) by Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) preferred or
• Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (MA) by National Center for Competency Testing (NCCT) preferred or
• Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) by National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) preferred

Minimum Education: High School Diploma or equivalent required Minimum Experience: 1 year of experience as a Mental Health Technician/Psychiatric Technician or successful completion of the Psychiatric Technician Internship program required Physical Requirements: Exerts up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 20 pounds frequently and/or up to 10 pounds constantly to move objects. Security Sensitive: This position is a security-sensitive position pursuant to Texas Education Code

This position is a security-sensitive position pursuant to Texas Education Code 51.215 and Texas Government Code 411.094. To the extent that a position requires the holder to research, work on, or have access to critical infrastructure as defined in Texas Business and Commerce Code 117.001(2), the ability to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure is a minimum qualification to be hired for and to continue to be employed in that position. Personnel in such positions, and similarly situated state contractors, will be routinely reviewed to determine whether things such as criminal history or continuous connections to the government or political apparatus of a foreign adversary might prevent the applicant, employee, or contractor from being able to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure. A foreign adversary is a nation listed in 15 C.F.R.

• 51.215 and Texas Government Code
• 411.094. To the extent that a position requires the holder to research, work on, or have access to critical infrastructure as defined in Texas Business and Commerce Code
• 117.001(2), the ability to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure is a minimum qualification to be hired for and to continue to be employed in that position. Personnel in such positions, and similarly situated state contractors, will be routinely reviewed to determine whether things such as criminal history or continuous connections to the government or political apparatus of a foreign adversary might prevent the applicant, employee, or contractor from being able to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure. A foreign adversary is a nation listed in 15 C.F.R.
• 791.4. Veteran Information:

Military occupations that relate to the initial selection criteria and registration or licensure requirements for this position may include but are not limited to: 46P1, 46P3, 46P4, 46PX, 66C, 001387, 4A0X1, 68X. For a complete list please visit http://www.uthealth-veterans.jobs/.

Residency Requirement:

Employees must permanently reside and work in the State of Texas.