Health therapist vs mental health therapist

The differences between health therapists and mental health therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a health therapist and a mental health therapist. Additionally, a health therapist has an average salary of $55,274, which is higher than the $50,259 average annual salary of a mental health therapist.

The top three skills for a health therapist include social work, patients and patient care. The most important skills for a mental health therapist are social work, patients, and mental health.

Health therapist vs mental health therapist overview

	Health Therapist	Mental Health Therapist
Yearly salary	$55,274	$50,259
Hourly rate	$26.57	$24.16
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	104,056	114,386
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Master's Degree, 49%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	4	4

What does a health therapist do?

Health Therapists are healthcare workers who help patients overcome their physical, mental, or emotional challenges. They create treatment plans for patients depending on their specialization. They consider the patient's medical history as well as the risk factors. Health Therapists are actively involved in the patient's recovery. They monitor the progress of the treatment plan, schedule therapy sessions, provide activities during each session, and encourage them along the way. Health Therapists help improve the lives of their patients and ease them into their new realities.

What does a mental health therapist do?

The job of mental health therapists is to guide individuals, groups, couples, and families with problems that are impacting their well-being and mental health. Their duties and responsibilities include encouraging clients to talk about their experiences, examining issues that may affect mental health such as substance abuse and bullying, and assisting clients in defining their goals and action plans. Mental health therapists are also responsible for developing therapeutic processes, referring clients to other services or resources like psychologists, and helping them adjust to life changes.

Health therapist vs mental health therapist salary

Health therapists and mental health therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Therapist	Mental Health Therapist
Average salary	$55,274	$50,259
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $75,000	Between $35,000 And $70,000
Highest paying City	Los Angeles, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Connecticut
Best paying company	Baptist Health Care	Tykes And Teens
Best paying industry	Health Care	Non Profits

Differences between health therapist and mental health therapist education

There are a few differences between a health therapist and a mental health therapist in terms of educational background:

	Health Therapist	Mental Health Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Master's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Social Work	Social Work
Most common college	California State University - Long Beach	California State University - Long Beach

Health therapist vs mental health therapist demographics

Here are the differences between health therapists' and mental health therapists' demographics:

	Health Therapist	Mental Health Therapist
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2%	Male, 23.3% Female, 76.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 3.1% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 3.1% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	15%	15%

Differences between health therapist and mental health therapist duties and responsibilities

Health therapist example responsibilities.

Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Work with children who have autism by providing direct services.
Provide acute therapeutic intervention to adult and geriatric patients presenting with varying mental health diagnoses, seeking support and stabilization.
Record and maintain daily activities and rehabilitation progress for medical evaluation.
Facilitate therapy groups with adults and adolescents on acute psychiatric units and chemical dependency rehabilitation programs.
Facilitate transfer of patients to appropriate levels of care as determined by interdisciplinary team during or after completing treatment.

Mental health therapist example responsibilities.

Create and lead PTSD group for women, depression and stress management groups for men and women.
Collaborate with patients to develop individualize treatment plans and evaluate plans periodically to monitor progress towards achieving identify goals and objectives.
Provide clinical supervision for MFT intern and participate in peer to peer reviews.
Receive training in diagnoses, physical restraints and CPR.
Care for children with autism and document daily data collection.
Utilize therapy techniques from various modalities including EMDR, TF-CBT, and DBT

Health therapist vs mental health therapist skills

Common health therapist skills

Social Work, 33%
Patients, 20%
Patient Care, 7%
Substance Abuse, 4%
Discharge Planning, 4%
Clinical Documentation, 3%

Common mental health therapist skills

Social Work, 35%
Patients, 10%
Mental Health, 6%
Group Therapy Sessions, 5%
Mental Health Issues, 3%
Community Resources, 3%

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Health Therapist
Health Therapist vs Mental Health Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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