Extra-Help Psychiatric Specialist (Open)

San Mateo Medical Center Psychiatrist Position

San Mateo Medical Center is recruiting several part-time, extra-help adult psychiatrists for intermittent and relief work on all shifts (weekday, night, and weekend) in our 24-hour psychiatric emergency department and our 24-bed acute inpatient unit.

We offer an opportunity to provide great psychiatric care to those who really need it, in a relaxed yet intellectually stimulating teaching hospital located only minutes from San Francisco and Stanford University. San Mateo Medical Center is San Mateo County's public health care system, consisting of a general hospital and a series of clinics located across the county. The main campus includes a full-service acute hospital along with a medical emergency department, 70 med-surg and ICU beds, 30 rehab beds, and extensive outpatient clinics in addition to our psychiatric units. San Mateo County is a national leader in community mental health services with a commitment to excellent care and to support the recovery of the people we serve. Our award-winning Psychiatric Residency Training Program is based at the Medical Center, and staff psychiatrists are invited to join the faculty and participate in training residents as well as the psychology interns. We also may soon have one or more openings for full-time, benefitted employment, so these extra-help positions offer the chance to see whether a long-term career here would be a good fit.

San Mateo Medical Center has adopted the Soarian electronic health record for inpatient medical documentation and orders. Emergency department, admission, and discharge reports are dictated. Outpatient clinic records are maintained in eClinicalWorks (for primary care, internal medicine, and medical specialties) and Avatar (for outpatient mental health).

Typical Work Assignment:

• In Psychiatry Emergency Services (PES), the psychiatrist can expect to see an average of 6 patients during the day shift and 5 at night, typically writing admission orders and notes on one-third of these. On nights and weekends, the PES psychiatrist also covers the inpatient unit and handles emergency consultations on the med-surg and rehab services.
• On the acute psychiatric inpatient unit, the typical assignment is direct care of 8-9 patients per day, as well as supervision of a resident team covering up to 6 patients. Note that all admission evaluations and orders are handled by the PES and consultation services, not the psychiatrist assigned to the acute unit.
• Weekday, night, and weekend shifts are all available.

This Job Announcement was edited on November 3, 2022, to include: Extra Help providers receive a differential of $45 per hour in addition to all other compensation, for all work performed during the assigned night shift hours of 6:00 PM - 6:00 AM in the Psychiatric Emergency Services.

This Job Announcement was edited on May 16, 2023, regarding the definition of the extra help assignment. This is an extra-help, at-will assignment, paid on an hourly basis. Extra-help hours are dependent on the business needs of the department and therefore work hours may vary from week to week. Extra help employees shall not exceed 1,040 hours of work per fiscal year. Some extra help positions are eligible for benefits under the Affordable Care Act. Extra help employees are not guaranteed permanent status at the end of the assignment.

Examples Of Duties

• Conduct psychiatric assessments and make diagnoses.
• Prescribe appropriate treatment plans and prescribe therapy, psychotherapy, or rehabilitation programs.
• Coordinate the work of consulting medical specialists.
• Act as physician member of a multi-disciplinary team for clinical work or program development.
• Train and supervise interns and residents.
• Provide clinical supervision to licensed and professional staff in other disciplines.
• Prepare reports and maintain records of activities.
• Conduct and direct individual and group psychotherapy.
• Consult and work with other medical and/or mental health professionals in the community when necessary.
• Confer with patients' relatives regarding illness and treatment.
• Maintain records of diagnosis, treatment and prognosis according to Joint Commission of Accredited Hospitals Organization standards and other regulatory agencies, and according to San Mateo Medical Center guidelines
• Develop comprehensive case histories.
• Perform related duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Education and Experience: Any combination of education and experience that would likely provide the required knowledge, skills and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to qualify is:

• Board certification in psychiatry, or completion of an accredited psychiatric residency program.

Licensure/Certification:

• License to practice medicine in the State of California.

Knowledge of:

• Principles and practices of psychiatry including both individual and group psychotherapy.
• Specialized techniques, procedures, and equipment used in psychiatry.
• Current developments, trends and research in the field.
• Basic understanding of clinical supervisory principles and practices.
• Pharmacology including laws regarding informed consent, dosage ranges, drug incompatibilities, and side effects.
• Proper documentation of clinical services.
• Principles, practices, and techniques of general medicine and its application.
• Medical diagnosis and treatment.

Skill/Ability to:

• Perform specialized medical services in psychiatry.
• Diagnose and treat patients.
• Develop and monitor appropriate treatment plans.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with patients, their families, staff and others.
• Learn and apply laws, statutes, codes and regulations governing California health service providers, and JCAHO and other regulatory requirements.
• Maintain medical records and prepare reports.
• Serve on interdisciplinary teams.
• Clinically supervise licensed and professional staff.

Application/Examination

Anyone may apply. A supplemental application form must be submitted in addition to our standard County employment application. This is a continuous recruitment which may close at any time. The final filing date will be posted five days in advance in the County of San Mateo Human Resources Department. The examination may consist of a panel interview (weight: 100%). Depending on the number of applicants, an application appraisal of education and experience may be used in place of other examination, or a screening committee may select those applicants whose education and/or experience appear to best meet the needs of the position. As a result, not all candidates meeting the minimum qualifications are guaranteed advancement through the selection process. Qualified applicants will be notified of the date, time and place of the interview. All interviews will be conducted in San Mateo County, California, and applicants must participate at their own expense. This is a continuous recruitment which may close at any time. The final filing date will be posted five days in advance on this job announcement.

Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County's website, you may click the 'Apply' button. If you are not on the County's website, please go to to apply. Online applications must be received by the Human Resources Department before midnight on the final filing date.