ASSISTANT MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELOR, RN/EMERGENCY APPOINTMENTS HOMELESSNESS

Salary : $104,225.76 - $156,012.72 Annually
Location : Los Angeles County, CA
Job Type: Full time
Job Number: b5276F-EA
Department: MENTAL HEALTH
Opening Date: 10/28/2026
Closing Date: 11/30/2026 5:00 PM Pacific

Position/Program Information
TYPE OF RECRUITMENT:
OPEN COMPETITIVE - EMERGENCY
EXAM NUMBER

b5276F-EA

FILING START DATE:

Applications will be accepted from Thursday, October 29, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. (PT) until Monday, November 30, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. (PT).

All applications must be received before 5:00 p.m. (PT) on Friday, November 20, 2026 to be accepted.

The Department of Mental Health is seeking qualified candidates to fill emergency Assistant Mental Health Counselor, RN vacancies related to the homelessness crisis.

Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

During your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighed 100%.

Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment to Assistant Mental Health Counselor, RN.

About this position:
Positions allocable to this class provide mental health nursing services to individuals, families, and groups in a range of mental health care settings.

Essential Job Functions
Performs initial and ongoing assessment of client's presenting problems, including mental status, level of functioning, developmental status, social and employment skills, co-occurring substance abuse problems, and mental and physical health educational needs.

With client participation, develops a Client Care Coordination Plan including measurable objectives that is designed to address behavioral responses to mental illness.

Provides targeted case management to coordinate comprehensive mental health/physical health services and to ensure continuity of care; uses interventions to teach symptom management and relapse prevention, foster recreational activities, and facilitate development of independent living skills; educates client to integrate physical health care management into mental health care management activities.

Administers psychotropic medication, monitors drug effectiveness and side effects, and provides drug education to clients and clients' families.

Performs periodic and ongoing reassessment of changes in mental and physical health status, nutritional status, and of client's progress toward recovery; evaluates client outcomes to determine necessary modification in the Client Care Coordination Plan.

Identifies community agencies and resources to assist clients with rehabilitation and recovery while living in the community and consults with private medical facilities, courts, and governmental agencies to coordinate treatment options.

Provides input to multidisciplinary team in core area of expertise in connection with client's diagnosis as impacted by physical health problems, and educates individual clients concerning the physical health problems that impact the client's mental health.

Assesses client's suicidal or homicidal tendencies, potential for violence towards self or others, and grave disability and consults with supervisor and/or multidisciplinary team when making judgments concerning client's need for involuntary treatment.

Participates in team meetings to discuss caseload, shift activity, and changes to program policies and procedures.

Participates in continuing education and training to maintain mental health nursing skills.
Requirements
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:Option 1: Graduation from an accredited* Registered Nursing program**--AND-- five years of full-time post-licensure experienceas a Registered Nurse in a psychiatric setting.

Option 2: A Bachelor's degree** in nursing from an accredited college or university* with specialty coursework*** in psychiatric nursing.
Applicants must meet the above requirement at the time of filing in order to be appointed to fill any vacancies related to this recruitment. Out of class experience will not be accepted.
LICENSE REQUIREMENT:
An active license (without limitations or restrictions) to practice as a Registered Nurse issued by the State of California Board of Registered Nursing.
A valid California Class C Driver License or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.

PHYSICAL CLASS:

II - Light: This class includes administrative and clerical positions requiring light physical effort that may include occasional light lifting to a 10 pound limit and some bending, stooping, or squatting. Considerable ambulation may be involved.
ACCREDITION INFORAMTION:

It is important to fill out the job application completely as directed. The Department of Mental Health encourages all applicants to submit relevant attachments including resumes and required documents in the Attachments section of the application.

*In order to receive credit for any degree, such as a Associate's, Bachelor's or Master's, you must include a legible copy of the official diploma, official transcripts, or official letter from the accredited institution which shows degree has been conferred and the area of specialization with your application at the time of filing or email within seven (7) calendar days from application submission. We do not accept password-protected documents. Ensure documents are unlocked before attaching to your application or send to the exam analyst.

• Foreign degrees must be evaluated for equivalency to United States accredited institutions standards by an academic credential evaluation agency recognized by The National Association of Credential Evaluation Services or the Association of International Credential Evaluators, Inc. (AICE). See Employment Information under Accreditation Information.

Official Transcript is defined as a transcript that bears the college seal and states "official and/or copy" issued by the school's Registrar Office. A printout of the transcript from the school's website is NOT considered official and; therefore, will NOT be accepted and may result in your application being incomplete or rejected.

NOTE: if you are unable to attach the required documents with your application online, you may e-mail them to Exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within seven (7) calendar days from application submission. In the "Subject" of the e-mail please type Exam Title and Exam Number.

We do not accept password-protected documents. Ensure documents are unlocked before attaching to your application or sending to the exam analyst.

**Registered Nursing Program:
Proof of graduation from the required program or degree must indicate the specialized field in order to be evaluated. Candidates whose educational degree does not show the specialty must provide a written statement from their university/college indicating the degree and educational specialty on the university/college letterhead. A legible copy of diploma, official transcript, or written statement from the Registrar's Office must be submitted at the time of filing or within seven (7 ) calendar days of filing.

Registered Nurse License: To receive credit for experience claimed in a state other than the State of California, applicants must provide their complete registered nurse license information from that state. A conditional, provisional, probationary, or restricted license or certification will NOT be accepted. Applications submitted without the required license information will be considered incomplete and will not be accepted.

Submission of a copy of the required license/s may be requested at any time during the examination process.

***Option II: In order to qualify, you must include a legible copy of official transcripts showing the completion of the required psychiatric nursing coursework with the corresponding unit credits must be submitted at the time of filing or within seven (7 ) calendar days of filing. See accreditation and transcript information above for details.
Additional Information
EXAMINATION CONTENT:
During your initial work period, the appointing department will evaluate your performance. Those who achieve a passing score on this evaluation will be considered for permanent County employment.
APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION:

Applications must be submitted online only and will be reviewed for interview consideration on an ongoing basis. If you have not been contacted within 60 days and the recruitment remains open or reopens for filing, we encourage you to submit a new application. This will allow you to reaffirm your interest and update any relevant information.
Applications must be filed online by clicking on the green "Apply" button located on the top right corner of the screen. Applicants must complete and submit their online applications and upload required documents (e.g. Official Transcripts, Resume, etc.) as attachment(s) during application submission, or send by email to exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within 7 calendar days from date of application submission. Indicate the Exam Title on the subject line when sending required documents by email.
Fill out your application completely. The acceptance of your application will depend on whether you have clearly shown that you meet the Minimum Requirements. Provide any relevant education, training, and experience in the spaces provided so we can evaluate your qualifications for the job. For each job held, provide the name and address of your employer, your job title, beginning and ending dates, and description of work performed. If your application is incomplete, it will be rejected.
Many important notifications will be sent electronically to the email address provided on the application, so it is important that you provide a valid email address. Please add isan@dmh.lacounty.gov as well as noreply@governmentjobs.com and info@governmentjob.com to your email address and list of approved senders to prevent email notification from being filtered as span/junk/clutter mail.
You have the ability to opt out of emails from LA County. If you unsubscribe, you will not receive any email notification for any examination for which you apply with Los Angeles County. Regardless of whether you choose to unsubscribe, you can always check for notifications by logging into governmentjobs.com and viewing your profile inbox, which saves a copy of all emailed notices. Plan to submit your online application well in advance before the deadline as you may be required to verify your email address. This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on govermentjobs.com/careers/lacounty.gov you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.
IMPORTANT NOTES:

• Applications may be rejected at any stage of the examination and selection process.
• FALSIFICATION of any information may result in DISQUALIFICATION or RESCISSION OF APPOINTMENT.
• Utilizing VERBIAGE from the Class Specification, Minimum Requirements, and/or Special Requirement Information serving as your description of duties WILL NOT be sufficient to demonstrate that you meet the requirements. In doing so, your application will be REJECTED as INCOMPLETE.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER LANGUAGE

Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes. Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number.
COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT LIBRARIES

For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.
NO SHARING USER ID AND PASSWORD

All applicants must file their applications online using their own user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.
ANTI-RACISM, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION (ARDI)

The County of Los Angeles recognizes and affirms that all people are created equal and are entitled to all rights afforded by the Constitution of the United States. The Department of Human Resources is committed to promoting Anti-racism, Diversity, and Inclusion efforts to address the inequalities and disparities amongst race. We support the ARDI Strategic Plan and its goals by improving equality, diversity, and inclusion in recruitment, selection, and employment practices.
DEPARTMENT CONTACT:

Department Contact Name: Arineh Nazari, Exam Analyst
Department Contact Phone: (323) 705-4534 or (213) 972-7034
Department Contact Email:
ADA Coordinator Phone (323) 705-7034
Teletype Phone 800-735-2922
California Relay Services Phone 800-735-2922