Emergency Psychiatric Assess Counselor
Listed compensation
$29.25-$46.25/hr
The week · per this posting · weekdays assumed
Ask the employer about the work setting, weekend coverage and time off.
Job Description
Location: Avera Behavioral Health Center-Sioux Falls
Worker Type
Regular
Work Shift
Day Shift (United States of America)
Pay Range
The pay range for this position is listed below. Actual pay rate dependent upon experience.
$29.25 - $46.25
Position Highlights
You Belong at Avera
Be part of a multidisciplinary team built with compassion and the goal of Moving Health Forward for you and our patients. Work where you matter.
A Brief Overview
Provides evaluation and treatment for individuals of all ages who are suffering from an acute mental health crisis through telephonic, face to face, or interactive video communication.
Ability to work in an intense, stressful work environment where you must perform rapid assessments, make swift treatment decisions and have the ability to multi task.
Applies specialized clinical knowledge and advanced clinical skills in the areas of assessment, diagnosis, and crisis intervention of mental, emotional and behavioral disorders, conditions and addictions, including severe mental illness in adults and seniors, severe emotional disturbances in children and adolescents, and acutely intoxicated or withdrawing individuals. Helps facilitate referral or placement to appropriate level of care or other resource.
What You Will Do
Answers all inquiry calls in a timely fashion, offer and schedule assessments, complete the database and keep all information up to date. As the point of contact for all of BHC services, provides excellent customer service to all callers.
Completes the psychosocial assessment including suicide/homicide risk assessment, determine appropriate level of care and make appropriate referrals.
Manages the Behavioral Health Center emergency room by visiting with walk in patients, providing a medical screen, meeting all the EMTALA guidelines.
Assists the emergency room physicians, including E- assessment through the E-emergency program.
Works with law enforcement to petition or place Board of Mental Illness holds when needed, and with security regarding transports and Crisis Prevention Intervention when needed.
Provides crisis intervention and case management for local mental health clinics, medical clinics and psychiatry clinics. Provide EAP assessment and counseling including phone intervention. Manages the psychiatric inpatient beds through a system wide tracking board, manage the physician rotation assignments and on call schedules. Maintains current knowledge of admitting modules and the ability to register Clinical ARC patients and Pre-admitted patients, in a timely fashion.
Provides ongoing training/orientation for all students including psychiatric residents, nurses, counseling interns and paramedics. Provides mental health support services in the community and promote mental health services available through Avera Behavioral Health.
Obtains and completes all insurance pre-certifications and authorizations as determine necessity for pre-certification; coordinates with insurance companies, patients and clinical staff to obtain information; and maintains complete and accurate documentation. Must have proficient knowledge of insurance requirements, medical/clinical terminology, psychotropic medications, and medical necessity associated with certification.
Must maintain an updated working knowledge of the following: SD, Minnesota and Tribal Mental Illness Holds; Duty to Warn and Abuse reporting standards; Informed consent and competence to make treatment decisions; referral sources in a 4 state region; level of care criteria and pre-authorization requirements and processes; ASAM criteria; DSM criteria; ICD9 codes along with de-certification process and appropriate admission service types.
Essential Qualifications
The individual must be able to work the hours specified.
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job function satisfactorily including having visual acuity adequate to perform position duties and the ability to communicate effectively with others, hear, understand and distinguish speech and other sounds.
These requirements and those listed above are representative of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform the essential job functions.
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions, as long as the accommodations do not cause undue hardship to the employer.
Required Education, License/Certification, or Work Experience:
Bachelor's and 5 years of Behavioral Health Experience or
Master's must be obtained within 6 months of hire
Expectations and Standards
Commitment to the daily application of Avera’s mission, vision, core values, and social principles to serve patients, their families, and our community.
- Promote Avera’s values of compassion, hospitality, and stewardship.
- Uphold Avera’s standards of Communication, Attitude, Responsiveness, and Engagement (CARE) with enthusiasm and sincerity.
- Maintain confidentiality.
Work effectively in a team environment, coordinating work flow with other team members and ensuring a productive and efficient environment.
Comply with safety principles, laws, regulations, and standards associated with, but not limited to, CMS, The Joint Commission, DHHS, and OSHA if applicable.
Benefits You Need & Then Some
Avera is proud to offer a wide range of benefits to qualifying part-time and full-time employees. We support you with opportunities to help live balanced, healthy lives. Benefits are designed to meet needs of today and into the future.
- PTO available day 1 for eligible hires.
- Up to 5% employer matching contribution for retirement
- Career development guided by hands-on training and mentorship
Avera is an Equal Opportunity Employer - Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, Veteran Status, or other categories protected by law. If you are an individual with a disability and would like to request an accommodation for help with your online application, please call 1-605-504-4444 or send an email to talent@avera.org.
Key Responsibilities
The counselor provides acute mental health crisis evaluations through various communication methods and manages the Behavioral Health Center emergency room. They also facilitate patient referrals, coordinate with insurance providers, and maintain accurate clinical documentation.
Requirements
Candidates must possess a Bachelor's degree with 5 years of behavioral health experience or a Master's degree. Proficiency in clinical terminology, insurance requirements, and crisis intervention standards is essential.
Qualifications
- Education
- Master's degree (postgraduate degree)
- Experience
- 5+ years of experience
Key Skills
Psychiatry — Counselor Career Context
The cost-of-living index for South Dakota is 88.6 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$79k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $89k in an average-cost state. 58.2% of South Dakota clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).
Of the 50 active Counselor listings this role was benchmarked against, 68% are remote, 24% have no call, 62% require no weekends.
| Measure | This job | Market |
|---|---|---|
| Work-life score | 6.9 / 10 · top 25% in psychiatry (counseling) | ranked against 53 Psychiatry (Counseling) listingslisting-based score, 0–10 |
| Listed pay | $61k–$96k | Counselor median $65k (middle half $52k–$80k)239 comparable listings, Nov 2026 |
| Cost-of-living adjusted pay | ~$89k in purchasing power | South Dakota index 88.6 (US = 100)BEA Regional Price Parities (2024) |
| Counselor listings in South Dakota | 36 active | 13,338 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026 |
| Work setting | on-site | peers: 68% remote · 24% no call · 62% no weekends50 benchmarked listings |
| Sign-on & loan repayment | not stated | US Counselor listings: 17% state a sign-on bonus (median $5k) · 18% offer loan repayment1,000 active listings, Nov 2026 |
| New Psychiatry listings | 1,274 in the last 30 days | 1,015 the 30 days before (+26%)U.S., first seen on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026 |
| Counselor pay trend | −2.4% vs prior quarter | —through Oct 2026 |
| Avera Health | #12 of 24 for pay | Top Employers work-life index |
Work-Life Balance Analysis
WeekdayDoc's proprietary algorithm rates Emergency Psychiatric Assess Counselor at Avera Health a 6.9 out of 10 for work-life balance — classified as good. This places the position in the top 25% in Psychiatry (Counseling) — ranked against 53 active Psychiatry (Counseling) listings on WeekdayDoc. Contributing factors include no night shifts.
Location & Logistics
South Dakota has no state income tax, which can significantly increase take-home pay compared to high-tax states. At the posted ~$79k midpoint, that is roughly $3k–$5k a year versus a typical 4–7% state rate.
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