Join MAHEC's interdisciplinary psychiatry team and contribute to a meaningful impact on behavioral health care accessibility in Western North Carolina. This Behavioral Health Therapist role will support walk-in expansion access and provides evidence-based behavioral health services to children, adolescents, and adults across outpatient psychiatry and integrated primary care settings. In this role, you'll collaborate with physicians, residents, and care team members while delivering high-quality therapy, assessment, crisis support, and care coordination in a mission-driven academic healthcare environment.

The Behavioral Health Therapist provides outpatient behavioral health services through a combination of scheduled therapy appointments and same-day walk-in behavioral health support. To support patient access, this position is expected to include limited evening coverage, anticipated to be no later than 7:00 PM one day per week, subject to final operational approval. Our anticipated start date for this hire will be late January - Early February 2027.

JOB SUMMARY:

The Behavioral Health Professional works as an active member of the interdisciplinary team to provide patient centered care in our outpatient psychiatry clinic. The Behavioral Health Professional provides behavioral health treatment in person and via telehealth using evidenced based practices to address a variety of mental illness and substance use disorders. 

Behavioral Health Professionals provide psychodiagnostic assessment and psychotherapy and engage in triage and referrals as indicated. This position will be assigned to the general outpatient psychiatric clinic or integrated into a medical clinic (Family Medicine, Internal medicine and OBGYN). Clinic assignment determined by current clinic need as well as applicant’s clinical strengths. 

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Individual, family and group psychotherapy for children, adolescents and adults, sometimes involving crisis intervention counseling.

• Evaluates patient’s response to plan of care and works in collaboration with the care team to make any necessary adjustments. 

•  Provides care that is safe, ethical, patient-centered, culturally congruent and evidence-based.

• Consultation:  Through face-to-face meetings with resident and faculty physicians. 

• On-call responsibilities on a rotating basis as assigned.

•  Coordinate care by identifying and serving as liaison with other agencies and community resources including schools, courts, primary care, hospitals, and psychiatrists.

• All clinical activities involve some degree of collaborative care with residents and/or faculty physicians.

• Assess for and makes referrals to other providers and services in the community both internally and externally.

• May be offered the opportunity to teach residents on a case by case and as needed basis.

KEY COMPETENCIES: 

• Communication Skills  

Effectively and respectably communicate with other individuals, whether it be a colleague, patient, or patient’s family member and appropriately enumerate information in a manner easily understood by all parties. We do this to foster a culture of understanding between all parties, especially in complex and difficult situations, to ultimately provide the best care possible to our patients and their families. 

• Decision Making 

Ability to make the most appropriate decision in a given situation and then taking the next steps to ensure appropriate and timely completion. This requires conflict resolution skills, critical thinking skills, confidence in your ability to make the right decision in most situations. This also includes ability to prioritize your workday appropriately to ensure the most important tasks are completed on time. 

• HealthCare Knowledge 

Having the drive to keep yourself abreast and up to date on the new breakthroughs in your area of expertise and communicating them to the rest of the team, as appropriate.  This also includes keeping up with your licensure and yearly training requirements within your area expertise along with MAHEC’s organizational training. Finally, the ability to apply the depth of knowledge maintained and gained through this process in real life scenarios as appropriate. 

• Interpersonal Skills  

Showing the ability to meet difficult situations with grace, professionalism, and understanding. Within your area of expertise, showing respect and showing empathy where appropriate with your colleagues, patients, and their family at all times, even when its most difficult to do so. This is done, in part, by effective listening, being your authentic self, showing responsibility and dependability, and being patient with others. 

• Organizational Values 

Adherence to MAHEC’s founding principles and incorporating them every day. This includes, among others, having integrity and accountability, reverence for other cultures and equitable practices, ability to manage change, and displaying a clear understanding of organizational dynamics. Doing these things creates a culture where people want to do the best for each other and gives personal ownership towards the goal of helping people in their time of need. 

• Problem Solving  

Having an analytical mind and ability to work autonomously to solve complex problems that may arise. The wherewithal to think logically through a difficult problem and come to an appropriate resolution for a given issue. This helps to drive continuous improvement by thinking through where we can improve in a novel way. Measures success by understanding where we are currently and where we want to go and then applying those new ideas to affect positive change. 

SPECIFIED SKILLS:

• FOREIGN LANGUAGE: Spanish/English bilingual skills welcome, but not required, and eligible for compensation add on

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Master’s in social work, Mental Health Counseling, Marriage and Family Therapy or Doctorate in Clinical Psychology 

• Two (2) years relevant experience or comparable combined experience and/or education preferred.  

• Licensed Clinical Addictions Specialist preferred.

REQUIRED LICENSES:

• Current North Carolina License to practice independently including Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor (LCMHC), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) or Doctoral level Psychologist (PhD or PsyD)

• Current BLS certification required.

SCHEDULE:

• Regular attendance on-site is an essential function of this position. Typical business hours are Monday – Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm (or flexed to best meet the needs of the clients and/or the Division); 40 hours per workweek; weekend, holiday, or evening coverage is occasionally required. Work hours will need to be flexible in order to respond to special work assignments, or evening activities, as requested by the team leader.

COMPENSATION PACKAGE:

• $63,800 - *$84,500 full-time, exempt
  • * Opportunity for additional compensation based on eligible higher education, dual-credentials (LCAS preferred), and bilingual Spanish-English skills
• all full-time therapists are eligible for an annual continuing medical education allowance and dedicated paid time off for that continuous education work
• MAHEC provides in-house supervision hours for associate therapist roles at no cost
• MAHEC's Total Rewards package includes professional liability insurance coverage, comprehensive healthcare plan options, deep in-house discounts for care services, up to 30 paid days off annually, retirement savings match and more!

At MAHEC, we strive to equip all team members with Total Rewards (pay + benefits) to honor their service, support their health, manage their financial security, build their career, and thrive.

MAHEC is a qualifying employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program. Employees who meet federal requirements may be eligible to have remaining student loan balances forgiven after 10 years of qualifying payments while working full-time at MAHEC.

If you are interested in this role, and you have related experience and qualifications, we encourage you to apply or reach out to [email protected] for support in your job search process. You could be the talent we are seeking for this or other opportunities

All MAHEC employees and learners will be required to receive the Flu vaccine or have an approved exemption.

MAHEC does not provide employment-based US visa sponsorship, now or in the future. All new employees must provide valid, original I-9 documents on their first day of work.

MAHEC Talent Management is located at 121 Hendersonville Road, Asheville, NC 28803. Equal Opportunity Employer.