Emergency Psychiatrist - Emory University Hospital at Midtown

Emergency Psychiatrist - Emory University Hospital at Midtown

Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Setting: General Hospital Emergency Department & Behavioral Health Observation Service

Position Summary

We are seeking a board-certified/board-eligible Emergency Psychiatrist to lead psychiatric care in a General Hospital Emergency Department (ED) and our newly developed Behavioral Health Observation Service (BHOS) following the EmPATH (Emergency Psychiatry Assessment, Treatment, and Healing) model. In this daytime role, you will champion a shift away from traditional ED boarding toward immediate, trauma-informed stabilization. You will split your time between addressing high-acuity crisis consultations in the main ED and managing a collaborative, healing-centered environment in the BHOS. Working in an academic hospital may include supervision of resident physicians and bedside teaching of medical students and other trainees.

Anticipated effort directed towards ED and BHOS for first year is 1.0 FTE. After 1 year, depending on workload, the time commitment for ED/BHOS may reduce to 0.6 FTE with remaining time directed towards other clinical activities as per interest of the faculty member, but could include Telehealth Emergency Psychiatry, consult-liaison, inpatient or outpatient psychiatry.

Core Schedule & Workflow Advantages

1. Predictable Hours: Fixed Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM daytime schedule.

2. Work-Life Balance: No standard evening, night, or weekend shifts required.

3. On-Call: Participate in Faculty call schedule (typically 4-5 weeks per year)

Essential Duties

1. EmPATH Milieu Leadership: Direct the medical and psychiatric care of patients within the communal, chair-based BHOS, focusing on rapid stabilization within a 24-hour window. Round with team of advanced practice providers twice a day.

2. Main ED Consultations: Respond to urgent psychiatric consults in the general ED, managing medically complex patients, acute trauma, or individuals requiring initial chemical/physical restraint.

3. Trauma-Informed Care: Utilize proactive de-escalation and prompt pharmacological interventions to minimize the use of restraints and seclusion.

4. Throughput Facilitation: Accelerate the transition of behavioral health patients out of standard ED beds and into the BHOS to improve patient flow.

5. Multidisciplinary Team Care: Partner closely with an integrated team of psychiatric nurses, social workers, and peer support specialists to create rapid, holistic discharge plans.

6. Community Disposition: work with team to facilitate discharges to home/community by coordinating robust handoffs with community resources.

Required Qualifications

1. Education: MD or DO from an accredited school of medicine.

2. Training: Completed residency training in Psychiatry.

3. Licensure: Board Certified or Board Eligible in Psychiatry, with an active, unrestricted state medical license and DEA registration.

4. Philosophy: Strong alignment with recovery-oriented, restraint-reduction, and trauma-informed care models.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Prior clinical experience in an EmPATH unit, Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU), or dedicated Psychiatric Emergency Service (PES).

2. Experience working in high-volume, urban, or safety-net hospital emergency settings.

NOTE: Position tasks are required to be performed in-person at an Emory University location; working remote is not an option. Emory reserves the right to change this status with notice to employee.