PSYCHIATRIC TECHNICIAN III / EMERGENCY APPOINTMENTS HOMELESSNESS

Salary : $56,288.88 - $75,860.88 Annually
Location : Los Angeles County, CA
Job Type: Full time
Job Number: b8163B-EA
Department: MENTAL HEALTH
Opening Date: 11/09/2023


Position/Program Information
TYPE OF RECRUITMENT:

OPEN COMPETITIVE - EMERGENCY
EXAM NUMBER:

b8163B-EA
FILING START DATE:

November 10, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. (Pacific Time)


This examination will remain open until the need of the service are met and is subject to close without prior notice
The LA County Board of Supervisors recently , and the County is working to revise and expand our response to help all who are affected. We are looking for qualified and passionate individuals to help us in the mission of addressing issues like housing, mental health, and substance use. If you are looking for a new career that will directly benefit the population of LA County, this may be the opportunity for you.
The Department of Mental Health is seeking qualified candidates to fill emergency Psychiatric Technician III vacancies related to the homelessness crisis.


Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%.

Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment to Psychiatric Technician III.

Essential Job Functions

• Administers, either orally or by injection, prescribed medications to clients in acute psychiatric settings.
• Interviews the clients, family members, and friends to obtain collateral information that may have bearing on the clients, treatment.
• Makes program services referrals for persons identified as mentally ill.
• Conducts the auditing of client records for compliance with documentation guidelines.
• Participates in multidisciplinary team conferences and collaborates with other mental health staff to develop the most effective treatment plan.
• Provides direct client care, completes required documentation, updates treatment team regarding client progress.
• Provides client, family members and significant others with referrals and linkage to community resources.
• Provides consultation to community agencies in the utilization of mental health and supportservices provided by directly operated clinics, in-patient facilities and contractors of the department.
• Provides in-service training to departmental staff and volunteers in the identification and treatment of mentally disordered individuals, principles of crisis intervention and management of assaultive behavior.
• Participates as a member of a Crisis Response Team in an inpatient psychiatric setting.
• Coordinate the activities of a Psychiatric Mobile Response Team or similar service teamwith law enforcement, courts, schools and other agencies, to assist and evaluate clients who are deemed to be a danger to themselves or others.
• Serve as a member of a Homeless Outreach and Engagement Team, providing initial assessments in the field and linking homeless mentally ill to mental health services.
• Coordinate the work of Psychiatric Technicians or others in the delivery of mental health services at an in-patient or out-patient facility.
• Coordinate or develop psychological rehabilitation programs for the chronically and persistently mentally ill.
• Lead and provide technical supervision to lower-level psychiatric technicians and supportstaff assigned to provide mental health services at an inpatient or outpatient facility.
• Serve as mental health service gatekeeper at the mental health ACCESS and Telecommunications Center, performing triage on caller requests for service, referring caller to an appropriate treatment source, and/or dispatching a psychiatric mobile response team.
• Assists Psychiatrists in completing and checking for accuracy on Treatment Authorization Request (TAR) and Prior Authorization (PA) forms.
• Promptly responds to phone calls / walk ins from clients regarding medication-related issues (i.e. medication side effects, pharmacy dispensing issues, refill needs) and consults with Psychiatrists and/or Register Nurses regarding those issues.
• Maintains medication inventory, organization, expiration dates, room/refrigerator temperature logs in the Medication Room.
• Orders supplies for Medication Room (i.e. sharps containers, syringes, needles, gloves, alcohol swabs, etc.)
• Maintains a caseload of clients and facilitate routine follow up and case management services as needed.
• Works in conjunction with other team members to facilitate services within Care Clinic Model.
• Prepares and signs the application for immediate 72-hour detention of disturbed psychiatric clients if Lanterman-Petris-Short (LPS) designated by the Office of Medical Director.

Requirements
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
Two years of *experience at the level of **Psychiatric Technician II in the County of Los Angeles.
Applicants must meet the above Minimum Requirements in order to be appointed to fill any vacancies related to this recruitment.

* Experience is evaluated based on a verifiable 40-hour workweek. Work performed part-time will be prorated on a month-for-month basis.

** Experience at the level of Los Angeles County's class of Psychiatric Technician II is defined as: Actively participates with professional staff members in the delivery of mental health services or the delivery of indirect and direct patient care to clients who are mentally ill or emotionally disturbed.
PHYSICAL CLASS:

Physical Class IV - Arduous: This class involves frequent heavy lifting over 25 pounds, often combined with bending, twisting, or working above ground on irregular surfaces. It includes those positions that occasionally demand extraordinary physical activity such as those in Safety positions.
LICENSE(S) REQUIRED:

• Possession of a current, active and unrestricted California State License to practice as a Psychiatric Technician . A copy of a valid California State License to practice as Psychiatric Technician MUST be attached to the application at the time of filing. Applications submitted without the required copy of licensure will be considered as incomplete until such information is provided. Original license must be presented at the time of appointment.
• Some positions in this classification, depending upon assignment, require possession of a valid California Class C Driver License to perform job-related essential functions. Candidates offered these positions will be required to show proof of a valid driver license before appointment.
• Successful applicants for this position who will be required to drive will be required to obtain a copy of his/her driving record from the California State Department of Motor Vehicles before being appointed. Applicant's license must not be suspended, restricted or revoked, or have more than four moving violations within the last two years. This information will be verified at the time of appointment.

If you are unable to attach required documents, you must e-mail the documents to View email address on click.appcast.io, within seven (7) calendar days of filing online. Please include the exam title and your full name as it appears on your application.

Additional Information
EXAMINATION CONTENT :
Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.


Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%. Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment.


APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION


Applications must be submitted online only and will be reviewed for interview consideration on an ongoing basis. If you have not been contacted within 60 days and the recruitment remains open or reopens for filing, we encourage you to submit a new application. This will allow you to reaffirm your interest and update any relevant information.


Applications must be filed online by clicking on the green "Apply" button located on the top right corner of the screen.


Applicants must complete and submit their online applications and upload required documents (e.g. Official Transcripts, Resume, etc.) as attachment(s) during application submission, or send by email to View email address on click.appcast.io within 7 calendar days from date of application submission. Indicate the Exam Title on the subject line when sending required documents by email.


Fill out your application completely. The acceptance of your application will depend on whether you have clearly shown that you meet the Minimum Requirements. Provide any relevant education, training, and experience in the spaces provided so we can evaluate your qualifications for the job. For each job held, provide the name and address of your employer, your job title, beginning and ending dates, and description of work performed. If your application is incomplete, it will be rejected.


Many important notifications will be sent electronically to the email address provided on the application, so it is important that you provide a valid email address. Please add as well as and to your email address and list of approved senders to prevent email notification from being filtered as span/junk/clutter mail.


You have the ability to opt out of emails from LA County. If you unsubscribe, you will not receive any email notification for any examination for which you apply with Los Angeles County. Regardless of whether you choose to unsubscribe, you can always check for notifications by logging into governmentjobs.com and viewing your profile inbox, which saves a copy of all emailed notices.


Plan to submit your online application well in advance before the deadline as you may be required to verify your email address. This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on gov
you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.
IMPORTANT NOTES:

• Applications may be rejected at any stage of the examination and selection process.
• FALSIFICATION of any information may result in DISQUALIFICATION or RESCISSION OF APPOINTMENT.
• Utilizing VERBIAGE from the Class Specification, Minimum Requirements, and/or Special Requirement Information serving as your description of duties WILL NOT be sufficient to demonstrate that you meet the requirements. In doing so, your application will be REJECTED as INCOMPLETE.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER LANGUAGE
Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes. Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number


COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT LIBRARIES
For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.


FAIR CHANCE EMPLOYER
The County of Los Angeles is a Fair Chance employer. Except for a very limited number of positions, you will not be asked to provide information about a conviction history unless you receive a contingent offer of employment. The County will make an individualized assessment of whether your conviction history has a direct or adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job, and consider potential mitigating factors, including, but not limited to, evidence and extent of rehabilitation, recency of the offense(s), and age at the time of the offense(s). If asked to provide information about a conviction history, any convictions or court records which are exempted by a valid court order do not have to be disclosed.

NO SHARING USER ID AND PASSWORD
All applicants must file their applications online using their own user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.


DEPARTMENT CONTACT:
HR Examinations Unit: View phone number on click.appcast.io
HR Examinations Unit Email: View email address on click.appcast.io
Analyst Contact Phone: Irene San, View phone number on click.appcast.io
Analyst Contact Email: View email address on click.appcast.io


ADA COORDINATOR PHONE: View phone number on click.appcast.io
TELETYPE PHONE : View phone number on click.appcast.io
CALIFORNIA RELAY SERVICES PHONES: View phone number on click.appcast.io


COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES

Employment Information

Any language contained in the job posting supersedes any language contained below.

This document is intended to provide general information about the recruitment process of the County of Los Angeles. Applicants with questions about a specific job posting should contact the exam analyst listed on the posting.

Equal Employment Opportunity/Non-Discrimination Statement:
The County of Los Angeles is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and is committed to non-discrimination in the County workforce, regardless of age (40 and over); ancestry; color; ethnicity; religious creed; protected family or medical leave status; disability; marital status; medical condition; genetic information; military and veteran status; national origin; race ; sex; gender; sexual orientation; or any other characteristic protected by State or federal law. For more information, please visit:
Testing Accommodations for Applicants:
The County of Los Angeles complies with all federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for qualified applicants and employees with disabilities. If a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application process, please contact the testing accommodation coordinator listed on the job posting. Hearing impaired applicants with telephone teletype equipment may leave messages by calling the teletype phone number on the job posting. For more information on accommodations, please visit:
Fair Chance:
The County of Los Angeles is a Fair Chance employer. Except as otherwise permissible under applicable laws, you will not be asked to provide information about conviction history unless you receive a conditional offer of employment. The County will make an individualized assessment of whether your conviction history has a direct and adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job, and will also consider potential mitigating factors, which may include, but is not limited to, evidence and extent of rehabilitation, recency of the offense(s), and age at the time of the offense(s). If asked to provide information about conviction history, any convictions or court records which are exempted by a valid court order do not have to be disclosed. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with County Fair Chance Policies and the Fair Chance Act (Gov. Code Section 12952).
Employment Eligibility:
Final appointment is contingent upon verification of U.S. citizenship or the right to work in the United States.
Career PathFinder:
Resources to help current and prospective employees plan a career with Los Angeles County are available. To explore career paths to and from nearly all job titles, please visit our interactive Career PathFinder application at
Veteran's Credit:
Pursuant to the County Charter and County policy, in all open competitive examinations (i.e., examinations open to everyone), the County of Los Angeles will add a credit of 10 percent of the total credits specified for such examination to the final passing score of an honorably discharged veteran, as well as the spouse of a deceased or disabled veteran, who served in the Armed Forces of the United States under specific conditions.
For more information on veteran's credit, please visit:
Revised September 2025
For detailed information, please click
01


The information you provide on your application and supplemental questionnaire will be evaluated and used to determine your eligibility to participate in the next phase of the examination process.
CHECK YOUR ANSWERS CAREFULLY.

Please be advised that failure to provide the complete and correct information in your application and supplemental questionnaire may result in not accepting your application, even if you possess the qualifying experience or education.


Be specific as possible and include all information requested. Comments such as "see resume or application" will not be considered as a response.

All information is subject to verification at any time in the examination and hiring process. Falsification of any information may result in disqualification or dismissal.

• I UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS

02


This position works directly with individuals experiencing homelessness.

• Yes, I understand and am willing to perform all necessary work duties.

03


Do you have a current, active and valid California State License to practice as a PSYCHIATRIC TECHNICIAN?
A legible copy of your Psychiatric Technician license MUST be ATTACH/UPLOAD (license information obtain from the Department of Consumer Affairs which provides the issuance and expiration date is acceptable) at the time of filing or email at View email address on click.appcast.io, within 7 calendar days from the application submission.

• Yes, I have attached my Psychiatric Technician license to my online application.
• No, I do not have a Psychiatric Technician license.

04


Do you have two years of *experience at the level of **Psychiatric Technician II in the County of Los Angeles?
* Experience is evaluated based on a verifiable 40-hour workweek. Work performed part-time will be prorated on a month-for-month basis.
** Experience at the level of Los Angeles County's class of Psychiatric Technician II is defined as: Actively participates with professional staff members in the delivery of mental health services or the delivery of indirect and direct patient care to clients who are mentally ill or emotionally disturbed.

• Yes
• No

05


If you answer yes to question #4 above. Describe in detail your experience at the level of PSYCHIATRIC TECHNICIAN II actively participating with professional staff members in the delivery of mental health services or the delivery of indirect and direct patient care to clients who are mentally ill or emotionally disturbed.
Employers and work experience listed here must also be listed and fully detailed in the Work Experience Section of your application.


Credit will not be given if this required information for evaluation is not listed on both the application and supplemental questionnaire. See resume is a non-response and credit will not be given.
EMPLOYER NAME:
DEPARTMENT/UNIT:

PAYROLL TITLE:

DATES OF EMPLOYMENT RELATED TO ABOVE EXPERIENCE: From (mm/year) - TO (mm/year)

LIST OF DUTIES THAT CLEARLY DEMONSTRATE YOUR EXPERIENCE:


If you do not have any experience in this area, please write "DOES NOT APPLY".


06


Are you proficient in American Sign Language (ASL)?

• Yes
• No

07


Do you have American Sign Language (ASL) certification?Note: Please attach a legible copy of your certificate to your application at the time of filing. If you are unable to attach your certificate, please email your certificate to View email address on click.appcast.io within seven (7) calendar days from application .

• Yes, I have attached ASL certification to my online application.
• Yes, I will email ASL certification to View email address on click.appcast.io within (7) calendar days.
• No, I do not have ASL certification.

08


Do you have a County American Sign Language (ASL) certification?Note: Please attach a legible copy of your certificate to your application at the time of filing. If you are unable to attach your certificate, please email your certificate to View email address on click.appcast.io within seven (7) calendar days from application submission.

• Yes, I have attached a County American Sign Language certification to my online application.
• Yes, I will email County American Sign Language certification to View email address on click.appcast.io within (7) calendar days from application submission.
• No, I do not have a County American Sign Language certification.

Required Question