Inova Health System logo
Inova Health System
Falls Church, Virginia

Mental Health Technician 1 Adolescent Psychiatry

Behavioral Health TechNo nightsFull-Time

Listed compensation

$18.44-$30.06/hr

The week · per this posting3-day week · 3×12s

Ask the employer about call expectations and weekend coverage.

Posted 59m ago · Verified live

Job Description

Inova Fairfax Hospital is looking for a dedicated Mental Health Technician 1 to join the Adolescent Psychiatry team. This role will be full-time day shift: (3 x 12-hour shifts, 7:00 am to 7:00 pm).

Inova is consistently ranked a national healthcare leader in safety, quality and patient experience. We are also proud to be consistently recognized as a top employer in both the D.C. metro area and the nation.

Featured Benefits

  • Committed to Team Member Health: offering medical, dental and vision coverage, and a robust team member wellness program.
  • Retirement: Inova matches the first 5% of eligible contributions – starting on your first day.
  • Tuition and Student Loan Assistance: offering up to $5,250 per year in education assistance and up to $10,000 for student loans.
  • Mental Health Support: offering all Inova team members, their spouses/partners, and their children 25 mental health coaching or therapy sessions, per person, per year, at no cost.
  • Work/Life Balance: offering paid time off, paid parental leave, flexible work schedules.

Mental Health Technician 1 Job Responsibilities

  • Communicates patients' progress toward desired outcomes and changes to the Registered Nurse.
  • Monitors patients/their environment and intervenes appropriately to promote a safe and therapeutic milieu.
  • Completes forms and flow sheets accurately according to policies and procedures. Reinforces transition/discharge teaching and home care skills.
  • Provides information to patients, families, and visitors, orients patient to the unit and program, explains rationale for rules or restrictions, provides printed information.

Minimum Qualifications

  • Education: High School or GED
  • Certification: Basic Life Support (BLS) – American Heart Association- upon start

Preferred Qualifications

  • Mental Health background
  • Clinical/medical background

We are Inova, Northern Virginia’s leading nonprofit healthcare provider. Every day, our 26,000+ team members provide world-class healthcare to the communities we serve. Our people are the reason we're a national leader in healthcare safety, quality and patient experience.

And from best-in-class facilities to professional development opportunities, we support them at every step. At Inova, we're constantly striving to be ever better — to shape a more compassionate future for healthcare.

Inova Health is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, pregnancy (including childbirth, pregnancy-related conditions and lactation), race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, genetic information, or any other characteristics protected by law.

Key Responsibilities

The Mental Health Technician monitors patients and their environment to ensure a safe and therapeutic milieu while communicating progress to the Registered Nurse. They also assist with patient orientation, documentation, and reinforcing discharge teaching for patients and families.

Requirements

Candidates must possess a High School diploma or GED and hold a Basic Life Support (BLS) certification from the American Heart Association. Previous experience in a mental health or clinical medical setting is preferred.

Qualifications

Education
Professional certificate or licensure

Key Skills

Patient monitoringPsychiatric careCrisis interventionCommunicationMilieu managementClinical support

Healthcare Professional Career Context

The cost-of-living index for Virginia is 101.1 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$50k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $50k in an average-cost state. 61.1% of Virginia clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Of the 40 active healthcare listings this role was benchmarked against, 78% have no call, 53% require no weekends.

What does the healthcare market look like in Virginia?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Listed pay$38k–$63khealthcare median $322k (middle half $298k–$347k)13 comparable listings, Nov 2026
Cost-of-living adjusted pay~$50k in purchasing powerVirginia index 101.1 (US = 100)BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
healthcare listings in Virginia44 active1,601 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Work settingon-sitepeers: 78% no call · 53% no weekends40 benchmarked listings
Sign-on & loan repayment$10k loan repaymentUS healthcare professional listings: 5% state a sign-on bonus (median $3k) · 13% offer loan repayment1,000 active listings, Nov 2026
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index, BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Nov 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page.

Top Behavioral Health Tech Jobs

25 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution

25 jobs · 19 employers
7
<$40k
14
$40k-50k
4
$50k-60k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks

15 jobs
401k / retirement match
100% this job
CME allowance
27% this job
Sign-on bonus
20%
PSLF eligible
13%
Loan repayment
7% this job

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Therapeutic Recreation Behavioral Health Technician (BHT)

New Horizon Community Care · Tolleson, Arizona

$23-$27/hr
#2

Behavioral Health Technician

Discovery Behavioral Health · Fairfax, Virginia

$16-$25/hr
#3

Behavioral Health Tech IV

$22-$25/hr
#4

Behavioral Health Associate I

$20-$25/hr
+ 23 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

5.1/ 10
Listing-based score
  • No nights
  • On-site
Inova Health System logo

About Inova Health System

Hospitals and Health Care
Falls Church, Virginia
10,000+ employees

Benefits & Perks

Medical, dental, and vision coverage
Wellness program
401k with 5% match
Tuition assistance up to $5,250/year
Student loan assistance up to $10,000
25 free mental health coaching/therapy sessions per person per year
Paid time off
Paid parental leave

Living in Falls Church

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$776k
Typical market rent
$2,534/mo
Residents’ average commute
29 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
108.9
State income tax
Up to 5.8%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Sep 2026), Zillow market rents (Sep 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.