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What does a mental health assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted expert
Jennifer Kukis

A mental health assistant is responsible for supporting patients with mental and emotional issues under the supervision of psychiatrists and other mental health professionals. Mental health assistants assist patients in performing their daily activities, monitoring their progress, and observing their personal and social behaviors. They also conduct recreational and engaging activities for the patients as part of their cooperative treatment plans. A mental health assistant ensures that the rooms and facilities are clean and safe at all times to prevent potential hazards and accidents.

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Mental health assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real mental health assistant resumes:

  • Supervise and facilitate counseling interventions to psychiatric patients, and lead community therapeutic meetings.
  • Encourage participation in attending program meetings that focuse on rehabilitation management and coping skills.
  • Assist residents to function at their highest potential through formulation and implementation of rehabilitation plans.
  • Supervise daily activities of patients, assist in crisis management, and facilitate admissions and discharges.
  • Provide clear lines of responsibility and accountability within the BHT department; delegates appropriate authority for completion of assign responsibilities.
  • Adhere to HIPPA regulations and to company privacy standards to protect patient confidentiality.

Mental health assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 31% of Mental Health Assistants are proficient in Patients, Substance Abuse, and Direct Patient Care. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Emotional skills, and Organizational skills.

We break down the percentage of Mental Health Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 31%

    Directed and assisted patients according to Doctor and Therapist ordered individual treatment objectives and goals.

  • Substance Abuse, 6%

    Engaged in structured interviews with individuals with serious mental illness and co-occurring substance abuse disorders in supportive employment programs.

  • Direct Patient Care, 6%

    Provided direct patient care under the supervision of a registered Nurse.

  • Vital Signs, 5%

    Assist in safety search of patients, obtaining vital signs, orienting patients to units, and completing the admission process.

  • Patient Safety, 4%

    Maintained patient safety in a therapeutic environment.

  • Mental Illness, 4%

    Reviewed relevant literature related to supportive individualized employment programs and self-directed care programs for adults with serious mental illness.

"patients," "substance abuse," and "direct patient care" are among the most common skills that mental health assistants use at work. You can find even more mental health assistant responsibilities below, including:

Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a mental health assistant to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "clients talk to social workers about challenges in their lives." Additionally, a mental health assistant resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "used therapeutic communication skills to assist patients of a mental health office with issues in person and over the phone. "

Organizational skills. This is an important skill for mental health assistants to perform their duties. For an example of how mental health assistant responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "social workers must help and manage multiple clients, often assisting with their paperwork or documenting their treatment." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a mental health assistant: "provide assistance to clients with their daily, in-home routines employing customer service with empathy and organizational skills. ".

Problem-solving skills. For certain mental health assistant responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "problem-solving skills." The day-to-day duties of a mental health assistant rely on this skill, as "social workers must analyze their clients’ complex situations and develop practical solutions." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what mental health assistants do: "handled crisis intervention as necessary including but not limited to conflict resolution. "

Interpersonal skills. Another common skill required for mental health assistant responsibilities is "interpersonal skills." This skill comes up in the duties of mental health assistants all the time, as "social workers must be able to work with different groups of people." An excerpt from a real mental health assistant resume shows how this skill is central to what a mental health assistant does: "encouraged clients to get involved in social, recreational and other therapeutic activities to enhance interpersonal skills and develop social relationships. "

Compassion. While "compassion" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to mental health assistant responsibilities. Much of what a mental health assistant does relies on this skill, seeing as "social workers often work with people who are in stressful and difficult situations." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of mental health assistants: "provide quality and compassionate care to patients with a serious mental illness within an inpatient unit. "

All mental health assistant skills

The three companies that hire the most mental health assistants are:

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Compare different mental health assistants

Mental health assistant vs. Residence counselor

Residence counselors are professionals who are responsible for providing services such as one-to-one therapy and crisis support to clients who are living in group homes or assisted-living facilities. These counselors must assist adults with moderate intellectual disabilities to find employment while monitoring their work performance. They must facilitate and supervise daily personal care and activities for developmentally disabled adults. Residence counselors must also encourage clients to participate in community activities that can contribute to the development of skills necessary for independent living.

The annual salary of residence counselors is $598 higher than the average salary of mental health assistants.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both mental health assistant and residence counselor positions are skilled in patients, substance abuse, and direct patient care.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between mental health assistants and residence counselor. For instance, mental health assistant responsibilities require skills such as "patient safety," "behavioral disorders," "patient behavior," and "admission process." Whereas a residence counselor is skilled in "english language," "cerebral palsy," "community integration," and "direct support." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Residence counselors earn the highest salaries when working in the education industry, with an average yearly salary of $35,988. On the other hand, mental health assistants are paid more in the government industry with an average salary of $38,610.The education levels that residence counselors earn slightly differ from mental health assistants. In particular, residence counselors are 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a mental health assistant. Additionally, they're 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Mental health assistant vs. Residential counselor

A residential counselor is responsible for guiding and providing the residents with their basic needs and other resources to support them in their daily living. Residential counselors' duties include maintaining the safety of the community by enforcing safety guidelines and procedures for the residents' compliance, organizing productive and engaging community activities, updating the residents of any changes and policies in the community, and resolving conflicts by counseling and understanding each resident's differences. A residential counselor must have excellent communication and decision-making skills to ensure the development of residents in a living facility.

A career as a residential counselor brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a mental health assistant. In fact, residential counselors salary is $216 lower than the salary of mental health assistants per year.A few skills overlap for mental health assistants and residential counselors. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "patients," "substance abuse," and "vital signs. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real mental health assistant resumes. While mental health assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "direct patient care," "patient safety," "mental health issues," and "behavioral disorders," residential counselors use skills like "direct care," "autism," "cleanliness," and "money management."

Residential counselors earn a lower average salary than mental health assistants. But residential counselors earn the highest pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $35,120. Additionally, mental health assistants earn the highest salaries in the government with average pay of $38,610 annually.residential counselors earn similar levels of education than mental health assistants in general. They're 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for mental health assistants in the next 3-5 years?

Jennifer KukisJennifer Kukis LinkedIn profile

Professor/Coordinate, Lorain County Community College

Well, tele-health services will increase and, I think, we will see other types of social services using virtual means, such as Zoom, to provide services and offer programming.

Mental health assistant vs. Community health counselor

A community health counselor typically provides health and welfare support to the disadvantaged members of a community. Their responsibilities revolve around devising strategies to reach out to community members, coordinating with schools and other institutions, and building positive relationships with the communities that they serve. They may also provide counseling sessions to individuals of all ages, conduct observations and assessments, perform interventions, and identify any signs of abuse or neglect, reporting to the authorities right away. Furthermore, they may refer families or individuals to other social services unit if necessary.

On average, community health counselors earn higher salaries than mental health assistants, with a $8,971 difference per year.mental health assistants and community health counselors both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "patients," "direct patient care," and "vital signs," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from mental health assistant resumes include skills like "substance abuse," "patient safety," "behavioral disorders," and "compassion," whereas a community health counselor is more likely to list skills in "behavioral health," "family therapy," "community agencies," and "mental health disorders. "

Community health counselors make a very good living in the health care industry with an average annual salary of $41,674. On the other hand, mental health assistants are paid the highest salary in the government industry, with average annual pay of $38,610.When it comes to education, community health counselors tend to earn higher degree levels compared to mental health assistants. In fact, they're 12.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.9% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Mental health assistant vs. Human services assistant

Human service assistants function in a wide array of capacities. Basically, though, they provide services to clients in fields like rehabilitation, social work, or psychology. They provide support in the aforementioned fields for families and other workers. They are tasked with helping clients discover community services or benefits. Working with other professionals, they develop treatment plans, carry out research services to aid clients, and help clients with necessary paperwork.

Human services assistants typically earn lower pay than mental health assistants. On average, human services assistants earn a $4,412 lower salary per year.According to resumes from mental health assistants and human services assistants, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "patients," "substance abuse," and "vital signs. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "direct patient care," "patient safety," "rehabilitation," and "mental health issues" are skills that commonly show up on mental health assistant resumes. On the other hand, human services assistants use skills like direct care, social services, patient care, and residential facility on their resumes.human services assistants enjoy the best pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $33,918. For comparison, mental health assistants earn the highest salary in the government industry.human services assistants reach lower levels of education compared to mental health assistants, in general. The difference is that they're 5.8% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.7% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of mental health assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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