Inova Health System logo
Inova Health System
Fairfax, Virginia

Psychiatric Emergency Clinician (Therapist) 4

Counselor / TherapistIncludes weekendsNo nightsFull-Time

Listed compensation

$43.22-$70.45/hr

The week · per this posting · weekdays assumed

Ask the employer about the work setting and call expectations.

Posted 1mo ago · Verified live

Job Description

Inova Fairfax Hospital Central Access is looking for a dedicated Psych Emergency Clinician 4 to join the team. This role will be Full-Time, Day shift position with the following schedule options: Sunday through Wednesday, 9:00 am–7:30 pm

At Inova Fairfax Hospital, our inpatient units are designed to provide clients with safety, structure, and stabilization. Our interdisciplinary team works together to ensure the best possible care for our patients. Therapeutic group activities, including creative art therapy, are an integral part of our patient-centered approach.

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.

The Psych Emergency Clinician 4 serves as a clinical leader and expert as they use an integrated approach toward patient outcomes and maintains therapeutic milieu to provide safe environment for crisis stabilization. Provides therapeutic assessments and interventions for individuals with mental health and/or substance use disorders. Serves as an advanced clinician, providing clinical and operational workflow support to the team.

Additional Duties and Responsibilities

  • Serves as a clinical leader by providing clinical supervision to team members seeking licensure as well as supervision/mentoring Psych Emergency Clinicians I, II and III while serving as a clinical leader within the team.
  • Serves as clinical expert providing a range of therapeutic services, programming and behavioral interventions to assist the client in achieving progress towards the goals and objectives of the individualized treatment plans.
  • Provides care, recommendations and referrals autonomously while striving to increase professional knowledge, develop expertise, and work toward certifications.
  • Assesses and diagnoses mental health and/or substance use disorders through a bio/psycho/social department specific and evidenced based assessment identifying patient and family goals and need. In the absence of the manager or Director, may provide program/department/unit clinical leadership.
  • Leads department huddles, ad-hoc case review meetings, and system-wide initiatives, as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

  • Certification - Basic Life Support within 3 months of hire; Crisis Prevention Institute in-person training for non-violent crisis intervention, receive CPI blue card within 6 months of hire, After 9/1/25, Vistelar replaces CPI for new and renewed de-escalation certifications. Approved Clinical Supervisor within 3 months of hire
  • Licensure – Upon Start: Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Clinical Psychologist (LCP), or Licensed Substance Abuse Professional (LSATP)
  • Experience - Five years of experience, three of which are post-licensure, working in the psychiatric or mental health field with the seriously mentally ill
  • Education - Master's Degree, Ph.D., PsyD, EdD in Mental Health, Social Work, Counseling, Substance Use Disorders or Behavioral Health-related field.

Preferred Qualifications

  • Previous experience working with patients in emergency services, mental health crisis situations or with severe mental illness

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 Psychiatric Emergency Clinician 4 serves as a clinical leader and expert, providing therapeutic assessments, interventions, and crisis stabilization for patients with mental health or substance use disorders. They also provide clinical supervision to team members and support operational workflows within the inpatient unit.

Requirements

Candidates must hold a Master's degree or higher in a behavioral health-related field and possess a valid clinical license such as LPC, LMFT, LCSW, LCP, or LSATP. A minimum of five years of experience in the psychiatric or mental health field, including three years post-licensure, is required.

Qualifications

Education
Master's degree (postgraduate degree)
Experience
5+ years of experience

Certifications

BLS

Key Skills

Mental health assessmentSubstance use disorder treatmentTherapeutic interventionsPatient-centered careTreatment planningPsychiatric care

Psychiatry — Counselor Career Context

The cost-of-living index for Virginia is 101.1 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$118k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $117k in an average-cost state. 61.1% of Virginia clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Of the 47 active Psychiatry listings this role was benchmarked against, 57% are remote, 26% have no call, 66% require no weekends.

What does the Psychiatry market look like in Virginia?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Work-life score5.1 / 10 · above average in psychiatry (counseling)ranked against 46 Psychiatry (Counseling) listingslisting-based score, 0–10
Cost-of-living adjusted pay~$117k in purchasing powerVirginia index 101.1 (US = 100)BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
Work settingon-sitepeers: 57% remote · 26% no call · 66% no weekends47 benchmarked listings
Sign-on & loan repayment$10k loan repaymentVirginia counselor listings (all specialties): 16% state a sign-on bonus (median $2k) · 13% offer loan repayment424 active listings, Nov 2026
New Psychiatry listings1,345 in the last 30 days862 the 30 days before (+56%)U.S., first seen on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index (46 Psychiatry (Counseling) listings), BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Nov 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page.

Top Counselor Jobs

36 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution

36 jobs · 20 employers
13
<$100k
13
$100k-120k
4
$120k-140k
5
$140k-160k
1
$168k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks

34 jobs · 20 employers
401k / retirement match
97% this job
Sign-on bonus
47%
CME allowance
18% this job
Loan repayment
9% this job
PSLF eligible
3%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Inpatient Clinical Director (LCSW, LMFT, LPCC) - Mental Health 105

Telecare · Redwood City, California

$136k-$168k
#2

Dental Therapist

InterDent Service · Salem, Oregon

From $155k
#3

Behavioral Health Therapist 4 Outpatient Behavioral Health

$93k-$151k
#4

Behavioral Health Therapist (Licensed) (Bilingual)

$96k-$149k
+ 34 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 3.0this job 5.1
Better work-life than 70% of Psychiatry (Counseling) listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 46 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • No nights
  • Includes weekends
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
Robust team member wellness program
401k match first 5% starting on first day
Up to $5,250 per year in education assistance
Up to $10,000 for student loans
25 mental health coaching or therapy sessions per person, per year, at no cost

Living in Fairfax

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$683k
Typical market rent
$2,456/mo
Residents’ average commute
28 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.