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Health unit supervisor vs mental health consultant

The differences between health unit supervisors and mental health consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a health unit supervisor, becoming a mental health consultant takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a health unit supervisor has an average salary of $74,174, which is higher than the $51,006 average annual salary of a mental health consultant.

The top three skills for a health unit supervisor include patients, social work and patient care. The most important skills for a mental health consultant are healthcare, substance abuse, and patients.

Health unit supervisor vs mental health consultant overview

Health Unit SupervisorMental Health Consultant
Yearly salary$74,174$51,006
Hourly rate$35.66$24.52
Growth rate28%9%
Number of jobs70,139127,233
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 54%Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Average age4745
Years of experience64

What does a health unit supervisor do?

A health unit supervisor handles both the administrative and executive tasks in a health care unit. They coordinate all that takes place in one or more patient care units in health care facilities. The unit supervisor plans and oversees administrative operations. They also supervise other personnel or staff in the unit or ward. They may also be responsible for the generation of schedules for teams in the unit. They will be required to communicate with other members of the administrative team.

What does a mental health consultant do?

A mental health consultant is responsible for providing counseling and emotional support to manage a client's issue and control behaviors. Mental health consultants must have excellent communication and listening skills to understand and assess the client's situation and evaluate the level of their emotional and psychological distress. They also need to monitor progress on the client's state and use different psychotherapy methods and treatment plans. A mental health consultant should also reach out to other health professionals to ask assistance for any recovery options as needed.

Health unit supervisor vs mental health consultant salary

Health unit supervisors and mental health consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Health Unit SupervisorMental Health Consultant
Average salary$74,174$51,006
Salary rangeBetween $50,000 And $108,000Between $34,000 And $75,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateNew HampshireCalifornia
Best paying companyTeslaGuidehouse
Best paying industry-Government

Differences between health unit supervisor and mental health consultant education

There are a few differences between a health unit supervisor and a mental health consultant in terms of educational background:

Health Unit SupervisorMental Health Consultant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 54%Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Most common majorNursingPsychology
Most common collegeUniversity of Michigan - Ann ArborUniversity of Pennsylvania

Health unit supervisor vs mental health consultant demographics

Here are the differences between health unit supervisors' and mental health consultants' demographics:

Health Unit SupervisorMental Health Consultant
Average age4745
Gender ratioMale, 35.1% Female, 64.9%Male, 29.3% Female, 70.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 7.6% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%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 Percentage12%15%

Differences between health unit supervisor and mental health consultant duties and responsibilities

Health unit supervisor example responsibilities.

  • Engage, educate and empower participants to access community base resources in or- der to achieve rehabilitation and recovery.
  • Facilitate administrative, advocacy, customer service and technical support to uninsure and under-insure patients, and their families.
  • Engage, educate and empower participants to access community base resources in or- der to achieve rehabilitation and recovery.
  • Coordinate with clinical managers regarding: CMS, CDPH, TJC, and ACHC survey preparation process and on-site surveys.
  • Assist in respiratory fit-testing program, strongly contributing to prevention of tuberculosis and other airborne diseases.

Mental health consultant example responsibilities.

  • Serve as resource person for family health physicians at clinic on managing psychotropic medications for medical patients with psychiatric problems.
  • Evaluate patients for psychiatric and behavioral health issues; make recommendations regarding treatment measures, including medications and non-pharmacological treatments.
  • Supervise residential staff and provide individual and group counseling services in rehabilitation centers.
  • Provide occupational therapy consultation services to center's authorities to enhance intern's rehabilitation.
  • Program communication and development working with service providers, healthcare association and organizations to establish a state-wide tobacco treatment safety network.
  • Analyze and compare relate cases of past and present communicable diseases and STDs incidence to identify disease trends or patterns.
  • Show more

Health unit supervisor vs mental health consultant skills

Common health unit supervisor skills
  • Patients, 21%
  • Social Work, 13%
  • Patient Care, 11%
  • CPR, 6%
  • Substance Abuse, 5%
  • Clinical Supervision, 4%
Common mental health consultant skills
  • Healthcare, 14%
  • Substance Abuse, 12%
  • Patients, 11%
  • Crisis Intervention, 9%
  • Social Work, 9%
  • Patient Care, 5%

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