Title: Behavioral Technician
State Role Title: Direct Service Associate III
Hiring Range: $42,493. Salary to commensurate with experience
Pay Band: 3
Agency: Dept Behavioral Health/Develop
Location: Western State Hospital
Agency Website: https://dbhds.virginia.gov/facilities/wsh/
Recruitment Type: Agency Employee Only - A
Job Duties
Behavioral Tech position-Mon-Fri, 7:00am-3:30 pm
Western State Hospital is seeking an engaged and dependable Behavioral Technician to join our Learning Center team. (This is an internal recruitment for current WSH Staff.) This role is responsible for supporting daily operations by ensuring patient and staff safety, delivering direct care services, and modeling therapeutic interventions in alignment with recovery and trauma-informed care principles.
Some of the Key responsibilities include:
Must be able to learn and acquire skills of treatment plan implementation including one-on-one interventions during PSR programming.
Implementing treatment plans and one-on-one PSR interventions.
Serving as a role model for DSA II staff in engagement, use of sensory tools, and trauma-informed practices.
Supervising Learning Center operations, orienting new staff, and responding to behavioral emergencies.
Providing direct patient care including documentation, observation, hygiene assistance, specimen collection, medication line monitoring, and patient escorts.
Supporting a safe, structured milieu using TOVA techniques and maintaining required documentation.
Communicating effectively across all formats while respecting the chain of command.
Demonstrating strong reliability, flexibility, and a commitment to continuing education and staff development.
This position plays a vital role in maintaining a therapeutic, supportive environment and requires professionalism, empathy, and adaptability.
Minimum Qualifications
• Ability to provide direct psychiatric patient care under the supervision of licensed staff
• Ability to effectively communicate with staff and psychiatric patients
• Ability to work in a secure and locked environment with individuals who are experiencing acute symptoms of mental illness and/or additional forensic/legal involvement
• Able to follow instructions and report observations/behaviors of psychiatric patients to licensed staff in a timely manner by describing observations verbally, in written, or electronically
• Demonstrate knowledge of recovery/trauma informed care
• Appropriately intervene in crisis or problem situations
• Has skills in providing direction and assistance to psychiatric patients in activities of daily living
• Willing to learn basic knowledge of developmental and psychiatric disorders along with human behavior, age-specific needs, and personality development
• Willing to learn basic treatment measures to promote mental health appropriate to the adult, developmentally disabled or impaired, and/or geriatric populations
• Vision and hearing adequate to recognize and respond to hazardous situation and ensure safety at facility
• Ability to work effectively with staff in a team approach
• Ability to perform infection prevention and control practices and appropriately apply standards in daily activities
• Ability to perform repetitious walking and/or standing, bending, lifting and reaching over to position/restrain/transfer/transport and/or escort individuals, and provide assistance with activities of daily living
• Ability to work overtime due to staffing emergencies in a 24 hour 7 day per week psychiatric hospital which at times may mean working a 16-hour shift if and when necessary
• Complete all annual competency training to include TOVA III with physical restraints
• Complete and maintain Basic Life Support (BLS) certification for Healthcare Providers with the American Heart Association
• Has basic computer skills
• If CNA, maintain certification in good standing with the Virginia State Board of Nursing
Additional Considerations
- Experience as a lead worker or other supervisory experience in a related field preferred
- Previous healthcare experience preferred especially with individuals with severe mental illness, intellectual/developmental disabilities, or in the medical field
- Current Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) and/or previous psychiatric experience preferred
- Demonstrated consistent work history preferred
- Some knowledge of program activities including recreation, leisure skills, communication, vocational, and educational programming preferred
- Veteran or Veteran Spouse
- Bilingual
- Certified Nursing Assistant
Special Instructions
You will be provided a confirmation of receipt when your application and/or résumé is submitted successfully. Please refer to “Your Application” in your account to check the status of your application for this position.
Commonwealth’s Alternate Hiring Process: In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their Certificate of Disability (COD) provided by a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor within the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS). Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS to get their Certificate of Disability. If you need to get a Certificate of Disability, use this link: https://www.vadars.org/drs/cpid/PWContact.aspx, or call DARS at 800-552-5019.
Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. Contact Human Resources at (540-332-8300) for assistance. Minorities, Individuals with disabilities, Veterans, and people with National Service experience are encouraged to apply. EEO/AA/TTY.
Western State Hospital is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment opportunities are open to all regardless of race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, veteran status, political affiliation, genetics, or disability.
DBHDS Facilities are no longer required to ensure that all staff members are vaccinated for COVID-19. However, facilities encourage and educate staff on the benefits and offer COVID - 19 vaccination programs to staff, residents, clients. Employees may be required to disclose immunization status for purposes of infection prevention and/or management of outbreaks. Upon acceptance of a job offer, new recruits will be asked to disclose their vaccination status (and for those fully vaccinated, proof of vaccination) during the pre-employment process. If you have questions, please contact the Office of Human Resources.
Contact Information
Name: Elizabeth Weber
Phone: 540-332-8056
Email: elizabeth.weber@dbhds.virginia.gov
In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their AHP Letter (formerly COD) provided by the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS), or the Department for the Blind & Vision Impaired (DBVI). Service-Connected Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS/DBVI to get their AHP Letter. Requesting an AHP Letter can be found at AHP Letter or by calling DARS at 800-552-5019.
Note: Applicants who received a Certificate of Disability from DARS or DBVI dated between April 1, 2022- February 29, 2024, can still use that COD as applicable documentation for the Alternative Hiring Process.