Emergency Psychiatrist - Emory University Hospital at Midtown

Job Description

Job Description

Emergency Psychiatrist - Our Organization

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

Position Overview

We are looking for a board-certified or board-eligible Emergency Psychiatrist to oversee psychiatric services in our General Hospital Emergency Department (ED) and the newly established Behavioral Health Observation Service (BHOS), utilizing the EmPATH (Emergency Psychiatry Assessment, Treatment, and Healing) framework. In this daytime position, you will advocate for a shift from conventional ED boarding to immediate, trauma-informed stabilization. Your responsibilities will include managing high-acuity crisis consultations in the main ED and fostering a collaborative, healing-focused atmosphere in the BHOS. This role may also involve supervising resident physicians and providing bedside education to medical students and other trainees in an academic hospital setting.

Initially, the expected commitment to the ED and BHOS will be 1.0 FTE for the first year. After this period, based on workload, the dedication to ED/BHOS may decrease to 0.6 FTE, allowing the remaining time to be allocated to other clinical interests, which could encompass Telehealth Emergency Psychiatry, consult-liaison, inpatient, or outpatient psychiatry.

Core Schedule & Workflow Benefits

1. Consistent Hours: Fixed schedule from Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

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

3. On-Call Duties: Participate in the faculty call rotation (typically 4-5 weeks annually).

Key Responsibilities

1. Leadership in EmPATH Milieu: Oversee the medical and psychiatric treatment of patients in the communal, chair-based BHOS, emphasizing rapid stabilization within a 24-hour timeframe. Conduct rounds with a team of advanced practice providers twice daily.

2. Main ED Consultations: Address urgent psychiatric consults in the general ED, managing patients with complex medical needs, acute trauma, or those requiring initial chemical or physical restraint.

3. Trauma-Informed Care: Implement proactive de-escalation techniques and timely pharmacological interventions to reduce the need for restraints and seclusion.

4. Facilitating Patient Flow: Enhance the transition of behavioral health patients from standard ED beds to the BHOS to optimize patient flow.

5. Collaborative Team Care: Work closely with an integrated team of psychiatric nurses, social workers, and peer support specialists to develop swift, holistic discharge plans.

6. Community Discharge Coordination: Collaborate with the team to facilitate discharges to home or community settings by ensuring effective handoffs with community resources.

Required Qualifications

1. Education: MD or DO from an accredited medical school.

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 commitment to recovery-oriented, restraint-reduction, and trauma-informed care models.

Preferred Qualifications

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

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

Note: This position requires in-person performance at an organizational location; remote work is not an option. The organization reserves the right to modify this status with prior notice to the employee.