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IU Health
Indianapolis, Indiana

Behavioral Health Counselor-MS

Counselor Top 10% in Behavioral Health (Counseling)No callFull-Time

Compensation

Pay not disclosed

Listing transparency2 of 6 stated

Ask the employer about the pay range, the work setting and weekend coverage.

Employment & setting
Full-Time
Call expectations
No call
Weekends
Not specified
Posted 34m ago · Verified live

Job Description

Position Title: Counselor-Behavioral Health MS
Location: Riley Hospital
Shift: Full-Time Day

Position Overview: The Behavioral Health Counselor MS facilitates patient
involvement in the milieu of treatment and education, performing individual,
group, and family counseling as well as utilization review and discharge
planning functions. This role communicates and collaborates with all members of
the health care team to ensure patients receive safe, timely, and comprehensive
care, while interpreting and communicating complex patient and family needs and
role modeling caring practices to other caregivers. The Counselor assesses
patients' and families' psychosocial risk factors, counsels on the emotional,
social, and financial consequences of illness or disability, and mobilizes
family and community resources to meet identified needs. This position serves as
the point person for child abuse/neglect, adult and elderly abuse/neglect,
institutional abuse, and domestic violence cases, acting as liaison between
Indiana University Health and state and county protective service teams, and
provides intervention related to guardianship, foster care, adoption, and mental
health level II placements.

Key Responsibilities:  
Facilitates patient involvement in the milieu of treatment and education.
Performs functions of individual, group, and family counseling.
Performs all functions related to utilization review and discharge planning.
Communicates and collaborates with all members of the health care team to
facilitate the episode of care so the patient receives services in a safe and
timely manner, and the patient and family are provided all necessary resources
and education.
Interprets and communicates complex patient/family needs and role models caring
practices to other caregivers.
Assesses patients' and families' psychosocial risk factors through evaluation of
prior functioning levels, appropriateness and adequacy of support systems,
reaction to illness, and ability to cope.
Counsels patients and families regarding emotional, social, and financial
consequences of illness and/or disability.
Accesses and mobilizes family/community resources to meet identified needs.
Provides mental health assessments of patients upon physician referral.
Provides therapeutic intervention to facilitate complex discharge planning.
Serves as the point person in child abuse/neglect, adult/elderly abuse/neglect,
institutional abuse, and domestic violence.
Serves as liaison between Indiana University Health and state and county child
and adult protective teams.
Provides intervention in guardianship (temporary/permanent), foster care,
adoption, and mental health level II placements.

Qualifications & Requirements:  
Master's Degree from an accredited college or university in a mental health
field such as Social Work, Counseling, Psychology or related field is required.
Requires 0-3 years of relevant experience.
Requires license eligible in the state of Indiana as an LCSW, LMHC, LMFT or
LCAC. Must have a minimum of a permanent LSW, LMHC-A, or LMFT-A upon hire.
Certification in crisis intervention may be required.
BLS certification may be required.
Requires relevant health care, mental health, or community-based experience.
Requires knowledge of the impact of the disease process and of human behavior to
provide psychosocial assessments, therapeutic counseling, and crisis
intervention to patients, families and staff.
Requires knowledge and implementation of relevant Evidenced Based Practices
(CBT, MI, DBT).
Requires knowledge of state and county adult and child protective legal
mandates.
Requires knowledge of the principles of growth and development over the life
span.
Requires the ability to maintain principles, practices and techniques of crisis
intervention and de-escalation techniques.
Requires the ability to provide a safe and therapeutic environment, including
instruction of daily activities and programming.
Requires basic proficiency in Electronic Medical Record and MS Office (Word,
Excel, PowerPoint).
Requires the ability to develop and maintain strong working relationships with
the community, medical teams, law enforcement, APS/CPS, schools, probation and
other agencies as indicated.

Why IU Health?

Join Indiana's leading healthcare system committed to delivering compassionate,
patient-centered care. We offer opportunities for professional development, a
collaborative team environment, and a focus on improving community health.

Benefits Designed for You
[https://careers.iuhealth.org/pages/benefits-designed-for-you]

* Indiana University Health has nearly 40,000 team members, including more than
3,600 physicians and 1,200 advanced practice providers, and we’re home to the
largest nursing network in Indiana with more than 9,000 nursing team members
at over 800 sites of care.
* IU Health is ranked No. 1 in Indiana by U. S. News & World Report, Riley
Children's Health is ranked among the top children's hospitals in the country
by U. S. News & World Report.
* A unique partnership with the Indiana University School of Medicine – one of
the nation’s largest medical schools – gives patients access to
groundbreaking research and innovative treatments, and it offers team members
access to the latest science and the very best training – advancing
healthcare for all.
* With 15 hospitals, including seven with Magnet designation and eight with
Pathways to Excellence designation, our team members are leading the way
through excellence.
* At Indiana University Health, your personal and professional growth is a top
priority. You will have access to many diverse opportunities to learn and
develop in meaningful ways that matter most to you, such as advanced clinical
training, leadership development, promotion opportunities and cross training
development.
* Indiana University Health is invested in the lives of Hoosiers, leading the
transformation of healthcare to make Indiana one of the nation’s healthiest
states.

Indiana University Health is Indiana’s most comprehensive health system, with 15
hospitals and nearly 40,000 team members serving Hoosiers across the state.
We’re looking for team members who are inspired by challenging and meaningful
work for the good of every patient. People who are compassionate and serve with
a purpose. People who aspire to excellence every day.

Requirements

Candidates must hold a Master's degree in a mental health field such as Social Work, Counseling, or Psychology. Applicants are required to be license-eligible in Indiana as an LCSW, LMHC, LMFT, or LCAC, with 0-3 years of relevant experience.

Qualifications

Education
Master's degree (postgraduate degree)

Key Skills

Individual counselingGroup counselingPsychosocial assessmentChild abuse reportingAdult abuse reportingDomestic violence intervention

Work-Life Balance Analysis

WeekdayDoc's proprietary algorithm rates Behavioral Health Counselor-MS at IU Health a 6.9 out of 10 for work-life balance — classified as good. This places the position in the top 10% in Behavioral Health (Counseling) — ranked against 283 active Behavioral Health (Counseling) listings on WeekdayDoc. Contributing factors include no on-call duties.

Behavioral Health — Counselor Career Context

Of the 50 active Counselor listings this role was benchmarked against, 42% are remote, 28% have no call, 60% require no weekends.

Counselor pay on WeekdayDoc is up 1.5% vs. the prior quarter (through Aug 2026).

The cost-of-living index for Indiana is 93.3 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)). 60.4% of Indiana clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Top Counselor Jobs

43 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution42 jobs · 36 employers

10
<$75k
9
$75k-95k
6
$95k-115k
10
$115k-135k
7
$135k+

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks29 jobs

401k / retirement match
79%
CME allowance
38%
Sign-on bonus
21%
Loan repayment
21%
PSLF eligible
7%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

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$66/hr
#2

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$66 per hour
#3

Licensed Therapist (LCSW or LPC)

#4

Licensed Mental Health Counselor (Bilingual)

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+ 41 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

6.9/ 10
Listing-based score

Top 10% in Behavioral Health (Counseling)

  • No call

Living in Indianapolis city (balance)

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$229k
Typical market rent
$1,389/mo
Residents’ average commute
25 min
State income tax
Up to 3.1%
Sources & methodology

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

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

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About IU Health

Hospitals and Health Care
Indianapolis, Indiana
10,000+ employees

Benefits & Perks

Health Insurance
Professional Development
Collaborative Team Environment