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What does a mental health technician do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read
Quoted expert
Debra Persinger Ph.D.
What does a mental health technician do

A mental health technician's primary responsibility is to provide care and assistance to patients with mental health issues. Their tasks mainly revolve around administering scheduled and prescribed medication, monitoring vital signs, assisting during therapy sessions, and assessing patients' progress and behavior. They may also have administrative support tasks such as processing necessary documentation, preparing reports, managing schedules, and even reaching out to patients' guardians and families. A mental health technician may also build a healthy rapport with patients, giving them guidance and positive influence.

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Mental health technician responsibilities

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

  • Prevent and manage aggressive behavior among patients and administer CPR in emergency intervention.
  • Assist and organize workshops consisting of education, personal self-defense, CPR, and other techniques relating to mental health patients.
  • Assist in taking care of mental health patients, doing rounds on the ward, helping patients with compassion and care.
  • Apply immeasurable levels of compassion to preserve and safeguard the dignity of patients at all times.
  • Observe patient behaviors, if patients become physically violent, CPI training restraint techniques may become necessary.
  • Conduct patient rounds, assist with ADL care, offer therapeutic support, and provide written reports on assign patients
  • Assist patients working under direction of medical staff to become accustom to routines and participating in social/recreational activities to promote rehabilitation.
  • Initiate and update treatment plans in cooperation with interdisciplinary team, clients and families.
  • Transport to and from programs and appointments, administer medications, and assist in ADL's and life skills.
  • Work with emotionally disturb children; enforce behavioral plans and apply CPI (modify physical techniques) training as necessary.
  • Participate in interdisciplinary treatment team meetings.
  • Work as a team player.work computerized financial account management.1999-2003Other LPT experience
  • Monitor patients prescribe psychotropic medications to assess the medications' effectiveness and side effects.
  • Preform intake interviews, psychological and personality testing, and biofeedback therapy on clinic patients.
  • Perform and document therapeutic holds, restraints and other behavioral interventions according to facility procedures.

Mental health technician skills and personality traits

We calculated that 26% of Mental Health Technicians are proficient in Patients, Vital Signs, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Emotional skills, and Organizational skills.

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

  • Patients, 26%

    Preformed intake interviews, psychological and personality testing, and biofeedback therapy on clinic patients.

  • Vital Signs, 7%

    Recorded patient vital signs and other indicated specimens or measures and documented observations.

  • CPR, 6%

    Performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on four occasions during attempted suicides.

  • Social Work, 5%

    Assisted to court appearances and lawyer/family meetings and assisted Social Workers and Physicians concerning patient activity.

  • Crisis Intervention, 5%

    Implemented behavioral and crisis intervention, behavior management and modification as directed by the individual treatment plan and unit program guidelines.

  • Patient Safety, 4%

    Maintain accurate documentation of progress, facilitate one to one communication while maintaining hospital policy and patient safety.

Common skills that a mental health technician uses to do their job include "patients," "vital signs," and "cpr." You can find details on the most important mental health technician responsibilities below.

Interpersonal skills. Another common skill required for mental health technician responsibilities is "interpersonal skills." This skill comes up in the duties of mental health technicians all the time, as "psychiatric technicians and aides may want to develop a rapport with patients in order to properly care for them." An excerpt from a real mental health technician resume shows how this skill is central to what a mental health technician does: "developed and maintained therapeutic relationship with patients, responding with empathy and positive interpersonal skills. "

Compassion. Lastly, "compassion" is an important element of what a mental health technician does. Mental health technician responsibilities require this skill because "psychiatric technicians and aides spend much of their time interacting with patients who have mental, emotional, or developmental conditions." This resume example highlights how mental health technician duties rely on this skill: "orient new employees accomplishments recognized for accountability and compassion skills used cpi certified; cpr certified. "

All mental health technician skills

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

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Compare different mental health technicians

Mental health technician vs. Therapist

A therapist is responsible for improving the patients' health conditions by evaluating their needs and providing physical and mental support. Therapists are licensed, medical professionals who specialize in different areas to perform treatments and bring relief to patients. Some of their duties include diagnosing patient's problems, performing counseling services, monitoring medication progress, customizing therapy activities for pain management, and consulting other health professionals as needed. Therapists must have extensive knowledge with the medical industry to detect patients' conditions easily and provide effective medications.

If we compare the average mental health technician annual salary with that of a therapist, we find that therapists typically earn a $23,825 higher salary than mental health technicians make annually.Even though mental health technicians and therapists are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require patients, social work, and crisis intervention in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, mental health technician responsibilities require skills like "vital signs," "cpr," "patient safety," and "direct patient care." Meanwhile a typical therapist has skills in areas such as "patient care," "community resources," "therapeutic services," and "therapy services." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Therapists earn the highest salaries when working in the government industry, with an average yearly salary of $55,972. On the other hand, mental health technicians are paid more in the health care industry with an average salary of $31,278.The education levels that therapists earn slightly differ from mental health technicians. In particular, therapists are 35.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a mental health technician. Additionally, they're 1.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Mental health technician 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.

A career as a residence counselor brings a higher average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a mental health technician. In fact, residence counselors salary is $2,813 higher than the salary of mental health technicians per year.A few skills overlap for mental health technicians and residence counselors. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "patients," "vital signs," and "cpr. "

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that mental health technician responsibilities requires skills like "patient safety," "phone calls," "cpi," and "blood pressure." But a residence counselor might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "english language," "community resources," "cerebral palsy," and "community integration."

On average, residence counselors earn a higher salary than mental health technicians. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, residence counselors earn the most pay in the education industry with an average salary of $35,988. Whereas mental health technicians have higher pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $31,278.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Residence counselors tend to reach similar levels of education than mental health technicians. In fact, they're 3.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

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

Debra Persinger Ph.D.Debra Persinger Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Executive Director, FSMTB - Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards

-Simplified technology for the not-so-tech-savvy employees will be necessary to accommodate the span of generational employee demographics engaging in remote work.
-Employees will need to be adaptable - to learn and accommodate the rapid introduction of new and better technological efficiency tools.
-Controls will increase. Much like parental controls to monitor online activity, company restrictions will be implemented to prevent inappropriate online behaviors, accidental sharing, and training on basic etiquette and interpersonal communications.
-Technology that supports work and life activities - order groceries online, stress reduction apps - will demand.
-Time away from the screen will be necessary. Seems counterintuitive for a technology question. For example, I'm predicting that paper books will make a comeback - nobody wants to look at another screen for pleasure reading after working online all day.

Mental health technician vs. Counselor/art therapist

A counselor/art therapist is responsible for conducting art sessions as part of patients' therapy treatments, letting them express their human nature and emotions through artistic discovery. Counselors/art therapists guide the patients throughout their recovery process, identifying their needs and conditions by analyzing their crafts. A counselor/art therapist coordinates with other medical professionals to deliver quality care services for the patients, monitor their progress, record observations, and instructing patients in art activities to discover their maximum potential.

An average counselor/art therapist eans a higher salary compared to the average salary of mental health technicians. The difference in salaries amounts to counselor/art therapists earning a $47,299 higher average salary than mental health technicians.Using the responsibilities included on mental health technicians and counselor/art therapists resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "patients," "social work," and "crisis intervention.rdquo;

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a mental health technician is likely to be skilled in "vital signs," "cpr," "patient safety," and "direct patient care," while a typical counselor/art therapist is skilled in "diagnosis," "community resources," "family therapy," and "behavioral health."

Counselor/art therapists typically earn higher educational levels compared to mental health technicians. Specifically, they're 37.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 2.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Mental health technician 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.

Residential counselors average a higher salary than the annual salary of mental health technicians. The difference is about $1,999 per year.While their salaries may vary, mental health technicians and residential counselors both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "patients," "vital signs," and "cpr. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "patient safety," "direct patient care," "phone calls," and "blood pressure" are skills that commonly show up on mental health technician resumes. On the other hand, residential counselors use skills like direct care, autism, cleanliness, and money management on their resumes.The education industry tends to pay the highest salaries for residential counselors, with average annual pay of $35,120. Comparatively, the highest mental health technician annual salary comes from the health care industry.The average resume of residential counselors showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to mental health technicians. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 1.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.1%.

Types of mental health technician

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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